Although statins are often prescribed to lower cholesterol levels, there are several other strategies that can help reduce cholesterol. Your best treatment option for high cholesterol No, but it's commonly added later in treatment if you need to lower your cholesterol further. According to the 2018 cholesterol treatment guidelines, statins are the first-choice options for people with high cholesterol. But, since Zetia (ezetimibe) works pretty well at lowering "bad" cholesterol (LDL) levels (about 13-20%) with few side effects, it's also recommended as an addition to statins Becoming more physically active. A sedentary lifestyle lowers HDL cholesterol. Less HDL means there's less good cholesterol to remove bad cholesterol from your arteries. Physical activity is important. At least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise a week is enough to lower both cholesterol and high blood pressure. Q. Cholesterol-lowering drugs like simvastatin or pravastatin make my muscles weak and my brain foggy. Without statins my brain works fine but my cholesterol climbs. My doctor agrees that I can't tolerate statins but he hasn't offered me anything but Welchol. I eat no red meat and almost no fat. My cholesterol is over 230 and that is too high. Studies have revealed that a diet with 2 grams of phytosterols daily is linked to a 10% lower LDL cholesterol level. Phytosterols can also benefit people taking statins or ezetimibe, a cholesterol High cholesterol levels could mean an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Certain medications called statins lower the amount of cholesterol in the blood. They can prevent related medical conditions and increase life expectancy. Whether or not it's worth taking them will depend on what other risk factors you have, though. If the risk of cardiovascular disease can't be reduced enough .

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