Also indexed as:Cholesterol (High), Dyslipidemia, Hypercholesterolemia, Hyperlipidemia, Hypoalphalipoproteinemia, Low HDL Cholesterol, LDL Cholesterol Damage, HDL Cholesterol Damage
Take control of your cholesterol to lower your heart disease risk. According to research or other evidence, the following self-care steps may be helpful.
Health information provided by Aisle7
Take control of your cholesterol to lower your heart disease risk. According to research or other evidence, the following self-care steps may be helpful.
- Reduce risk with fiber
Add whole grains, legumes, fruits, and vegetables to your meals to reduce heart disease risk
- Add soy protein to your diet
30 grams (about 1 ounce) a day of powdered soy protein added to food or drinks can help lower cholesterol
- Check out natural vegetable fats (plant sterols and stanols)
Take 1.6 grams a day as a supplement or in specially fortified margarines to help reduce cholesterol
- Get some supplemental garlic
600 to 900 mg a day of a standardized garlic extract may help lower cholesterol and prevent hardening of the arteries
- Talk to your doctor
Atorvastatin (Lipitor), rosuvastatin (Crestor), and lovastatin (Mevacor) are often prescribed to lower blood cholesterol levels
- Raise “good” cholesterol with exercise
Start a regular exercise program to help raise HDL ("good") cholesterol
Cut the bad fats
Foods that contain saturated fat, hydrogenated fat, and cholesterol (such as animal products, fried foods, and baked snacks) can raise cholesterol
Pick a plant-based diet
Emphasize vegetarian meals whenever possible to reap the rewards of avoiding animal fats and increasing fiber and other cholesterol-stabilizing nutrients
- Get and stay trim
Aim for a healthy body weight to avoid problems with blood lipids and other heart disease risk factors
- Get moving
Use a regular program of aerobic exercise to maintain optimal blood lipid levels and lower heart disease risk
- Avoid the habit
Maintain healthy HDL (“good”) cholesterol levels and low heart disease risk by avoiding cigarette smoke
- Protect with antioxidants
Use at least 100 mg per day vitamin C and/or up to 400 IU vitamin E to protect LDL cholesterol from damage that can increase heart disease risk
These recommendations are not comprehensive and are not intended to replace the advice of your doctor or pharmacist. Continue reading for more in-depth, fully referenced information.
About This Condition
Although it is by no means the only major risk factor, elevated serum (blood) cholesterol is clearly
associated with a high risk of heart disease.
Most doctors suggest cholesterol levels should stay under 200 mg/dl. As levels fall below 200, the risk of
heart disease continues to decline. Many doctors consider cholesterol levels of no more than 180 to be
optimal. A low cholesterol level, however, is not a guarantee of good heart health, as some people with low
levels do suffer heart attacks.
Medical laboratories now subdivide total cholesterol measurement into several components, including LDL
(“bad”) cholesterol, which is directly linked to heart disease, and HDL (“good”)
cholesterol, which is protective. The relative amount of HDL to LDL is more important than total cholesterol.
For example, it is possible for someone with very high HDL to be at relatively low risk for heart disease
even with total cholesterol above 200. Evaluation of changes in cholesterol requires consultation with a
healthcare professional and should include measurement of total serum cholesterol, as well as HDL and LDL
cholesterol.
The following discussion is limited to information about lowering serum cholesterol levels or increasing
HDL cholesterol using natural approaches. Because high cholesterol is linked to atherosclerosis and heart
disease, people concerned about heart disease should also learn more about atherosclerosis.
Symptoms
This condition does not produce symptoms. Therefore, it is prudent to visit a health professional on a regular basis to have cholesterol levels measured.
Healthy Lifestyle Tips
Exercise increases protective HDL cholesterol,1 an effect that occurs even from walking.2 Total and LDL cholesterol are typically lowered by exercise, especially when weight-loss also occurs.3 Exercisers have a relatively low risk of heart disease.4 However, people over 40 years of age, or who have heart disease, should talk with their doctor before starting an exercise program; overdoing it may actually trigger heart attacks.5
Obesity increases the risk of heart disease,6 in part because weight gain lowers HDL cholesterol.7Weight loss reduces the body’s ability to make cholesterol, increases HDL levels, and reduces triglycerides (another risk factor for heart disease).8, 9 Weight loss also leads to a decrease in blood pressure.
Smoking is linked to a lowered level of HDL cholesterol10 and is also known to cause heart disease.11Quitting smoking reduces the risk of having a heart attack.12
The combination of feelings of hostility, stress, and time urgency is called type A behavior. Men,13, 14 but not women,15 with these traits are at high risk for heart disease in most, but not all, studies.16 Stress17 or type A behavior18 may elevate cholesterol in men. Reducing stress and feelings of hostility has reduced the risk of heart disease.19
Eating Right
Diet is the key to managing many diseases and to improving general quality of life. For this condition, scientific research has found benefit in the following healthy eating tips.
| Recommendation | Why | Get started |
|---|
| Add some olive oil
| Monounsaturated fats, such as the fats in olive oil, lower LDL (“bad”) cholesterol, especially when the olive oil replaces saturated fats, such as many fats from meat and dairy, in the diet. | |
|
| Avoid sugar
| Eating sugar has been reported to reduce HDL (“good”) cholesterol and to increase other heart disease risk factors.
| |
|
| Eat canola oil and flaxseed | People who eat diets high in alpha-linolenic acid—found in canola oil and flaxseed products—have high blood levels of omega-3 fatty acids, which may protect against heart attacks. | |
|
| Eat more fish | Eating fish has been reported to increase HDL “good” cholesterol and is linked to a reduced risk of heart disease in most but not all studies. | |
|
| Get good omega-6 fatty acids
| Many vegetable oils, nuts, and seeds contain omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids that improve the ratio between “bad” and “good” cholesterol. (When choosing oils, avoid partially-hydrogenated oils, which increase heart disease risk.
| |
|
| Get your garlic | Eating garlic has helped to lower cholesterol in some, but not all, research. It is also known to act as a blood thinner and may reduce other heart disease risk factors. | |
|
| Go nuts | Research consistently shows that people who frequently eat nuts have a reduced risk of heart disease, possibly because eating nuts lowers cholesterol. | |
|
| Reduce risk with fiber | Add whole grains, legumes, fruits, and vegetables to your meals to reduce heart disease risk. | |
|
| Choose coffee carefully | Drinking boiled or French press coffee increases cholesterol levels, but drinking paper-filtered coffee does not, as paper coffee filters keep the offending chemicals from entering the cup. | |
|
| Eat smaller, eat often | When people eat a number of small meals, studies have shown that serum cholesterol levels fall compared with the effect of eating the same food in three big meals. | |
|
| Enjoy a drink | People who have one to two drinks per day appear to live longer and are less likely to have heart disease. | |
|
| Go easy on the eggs | Until more is known about the link between eggs and heart disease, limiting eggs to one per day may be a good idea for people with diabetes. | |
|
| Replace meat with soy | Soy protein has been shown to reduce cholesterol levels. And if soy replaces animal protein, the cholesterol-lowering effect is even more pronounced. | |
|
| Try a vegetarian diet | Vegetarians have lower cholesterol than meat eaters, in part because they avoid animal fat. Vegans (people who eat no meat, dairy, or eggs) have the lowest cholesterol levels. | |
|
| Cut the bad fats | Foods that contain saturated fat, hydrogenated fat, and cholesterol can raise cholesterol. | |
|
| Watch the margarine | Most margarines contain high levels of trans fatty acids and are linked to high cholesterol and heart disease. | |
|
| Drug | Common brands | |
|---|
| Atorvastatin | Lipitor
| |
| Simvastatin | Zocor
| |
| Rosuvastatin | Crestor
| |
| Lovastatin | Altoprev
Mevacor
| |
| Pravastatin | Pravachol
| |
| Cholestyramine | Questran
| |
| Colestipol | Colestid
Colestid Flavored
| |
| Fenofibrate | Antara
Tricor
| |
| Fluvastatin | Lescol
Lescol XL
| |
| Gemfibrozil | Lopid
| |
| Niacin | Niaspan
Slo-Niacin
| |
| Estradiol | Climara
Estrace
Vagifem
| |
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The information presented in Aisle7 is for informational purposes only. It is based on scientific studies (human, animal, or in vitro), clinical experience, or traditional usage as cited in each article. The results reported may not necessarily occur in all individuals. Self-treatment is not recommended for life-threatening conditions that require medical treatment under a doctor's care. For many of the conditions discussed, treatment with prescription or over the counter medication is also available. Consult your doctor, practitioner, and/or pharmacist for any health problem and before using any supplements or before making any changes in prescribed medications. Information expires June 2013.
