Cholesterol Isn't Our Enemy

Cholesterol is actually a vital element for our health. We need cholesterol.

Our body produced cholesterol naturally in the liver and we actually don’t need cholesterol in our diet. It’s when we consume too much food which raised the cholesterol level, then the problems arise.

It’s the food which gives us the problem instead of the cholesterol itself. Foods are important too and it’s visible while cholesterol is invisible. Food is more attractive, delicious and tempting so it’s nearly impossible to consider some foods as our enemy. It’s easier to blame the cholesterol of the food.

It’s not necessary to consider some foods as our enemy too, we just need to understand which foods to consume and which ones to avoid in achieving a good health.

Too many foods contain high amounts of fat, which increase the cholesterol level in our blood. The most ideal food we can consume without worrying about the cholesterol are the Mediterranean menu.

~ Fish: Omega 3 fatty acids, which are found in fish is beneficial to keep a healthy cholesterol level. Consume fish at least twice a week. If for some reason you can’t eat fish then substitute it with fish oil or krill oil supplement instead.

~ Whole grains: brown rice, cereals, oatmeal and whole grain bread contains fiber which also can lower cholesterol level. Eating minimum two servings of whole grains per day will maintain your cholesterol level.

~ Beans, legumes: black beans, black-eyed peas, kidney beans, navy beans, lentils, and others are also a great source of fiber.

~ Nuts & Seeds: Almonds, Brazil nuts, peanuts, pistachios and other beans are also full with fiber and healthy fats. They also contain plant sterols, which block the absorption of cholesterol in the body. Chia seeds and ground flax seeds are rich with a plant-based omega-3 fatty acids.

~ Fruits: apples, olives, pears and prunes also a great source of fiber, while avocados are high in folate, a healthy monounsaturated fat.

Eating the right foods can help you in living a healthy life without worrying about cholesterol. You are what you eat.

A Deeper Understanding About Cholesterol

Cholesterol is a type of fat from a group of molecules which named as steroids. It has a soft waxy texture like a melted candle. We can find cholesterol in some foods, in all of the cells of our body and in the blood.

Cholesterol is produced by our body. 75% – 85% of our cholesterol is produced naturally by the body while the remaining 15% – 25% comes from our food. It is produced mostly in the liver, as well as by every single cells in the body and was formed by a complicated biochemical reactions.

The liver produces around 1,000 milligrams cholesterol every day. The modern lifestyle with all kind of fast food restaurants and ready to consume products give around another 360 milligrams of cholesterol a day in men and between 220 up to 260 milligrams in women daily.

The cholesterol level is measured by the amount of cholesterol circulating in the blood. Cholesterol’s waxy texture can’t easily dissolve in the blood, similar as candle can’t mix with water. In order to carrying cholesterols in the bloodstream, there are some molecules made from proteins when transporting cholesterols form a substance called lipoproteins. The amount of proteins contained in these molecules give the density of these lipoproteins.

The High Density Lipoproteins or HDL is the “good” cholesterol as it contains a higher percentage of protein to cholesterol and enable the protein to transporting the cholesterol to the liver. Imagine that a vehicle should be bigger to carry its cargo. While the LDL, Low Density Lipoproteins or “bad” cholesterol contains a lower percentage of protein compared to cholesterol, so the cargo is bigger than the vehicle and it needs the help of other transportation which comes from the HDL. It’s HDL ability to transporting all cholesterols to the liver and after processing it, the liver dispose the excess of cholesterol out from our body.

Cholesterol is a vital element in protecting our cell membranes. It forms, maintains and protects the cells in temperature changes. Cholesterol forms the sex hormones (cortisol, estradiol, progesterone, testosterone) and steroid hormones (estrogens and testosteron). It produces bile salts in order to controlling our body fluids and digest food. It is needed to produce Vitamin D when the skin is exposed to sunlight.

Our body produced enough cholesterol needed to maintain a good health and we actually don’t need too much extra cholesterol from our diet. Watch the food we consume so it won’t raised the cholesterol level. High cholesterol levels isn’t good for our health and heart.

List of Low Cholesterol Foods To Avoid High Cholesterol Diseases ( Hypercholesterolemia )

High cholesterol or hypercholesterolemia is a condition where levels are not normal. Cholesterol itself is a waxy fat that is mostly produced in the liver and some of it is obtained from food.

List of low cholesterol food to avoid hypercholesterolemia:

1. Olive oil
Olive oil is an oil with unsaturated fat content that serves to lower LDL cholesterol “lipoprotein” levels and increase good cholesterol HDL (High-Density Lipoprotein). This olive oil is commonly used in salads or cooked foods, and is well used every day.

2. Margarine
Eating margarine can help lower LDL cholesterol levels in the body. In margarine there is generally a “lite” content that can convert fat into energy that plays a role for heart health.

3. Peas and soybeans
These nuts are widely found in beans, pods and soybeans, these nuts have a good function for diet and keep the nutrients for the body. Nutritional content of these nuts will keep the heart from attacking high cholesterol. Try to eat nuts like this every day or four times during the week.

4. Low fat yogurt
You can make yogurt or choose yogurt with fat-free milk and a little cheese. Low-fat yogurt serves enough protein in the body and is beneficial to those of you who have less blood (anemia).

5. Fruit and vegetables are rich in antioxidant
Fruits that contain high antioxidant such as oranges and fruits are rich in vitamin C. Fruits are rich in vitamin C such as grapes and lemons, while berry fruits such as strawberries, blueberries, blackberries are also rich in antiiox idant. For vegetables including broccoli and Chinese cabbage. Other fruits rich in antioxidants are peaches and mango. For vegetables such as spinach, broccoli and cabbage are also good for heart health.

6. Garlic
Garlic has been predicted long ago as a plant that has a content to cure various diseases. Garlic serves to lower cholesterol levels in the body, can be consumed directly also mixed into the dish.

7. Type of grains, wheat
Wheat and oats have a high fiber content if consumed by the body, can also lower cholesterol levels in the body if consumed every day. Healthy breakfasts for example by eating whole-grain bread every morning can help to control your cholesterol levels.

8. Oatmeal
Oatmeal is a food that can get rid of bad cholesterol from the body. About two servings of oatmeal can lower LDL cholesterol by 5.3% in about 6 weeks. This is because in oatmeal there is a substance called beta-glucan that works to absorb the amount of LDL cholesterol in the body. How, delicious right?

9. Salmon and Other Omega 3 Resources
Salmon is one of the animals that live in the waters, especially the oceans. Salmon is one source of omega 3. Omega 3 fatty acids are very good for health benefits. In omega 3 there are DHA and EPA. DHA has the task of wrapping the nerves in order for the nervous system to work properly in sending stimuli to the brain, while the EPA is useful for the formation of blood and heart cells. The names of these omega-3 sources are mostly obtained from fish such as salmon, sardines, herring, and tuna. There are also vegetables that store these essential nutrients such as broccoli, kale, and lettuce. But the lower cholesterol is more than the fish group.

10. Chocolate
Sweet taste given by chocolate can nourish the heart because it stores powerful antioxidant properties that also help in producing HDL cholesterol levels. In one study, the participants involved were given chocolate powder to see the results after 3 months. The results obtained were surprising, in those who consume according to orders have increased the amount of HDL cholesterol by 24%. Although chocolate is popular with many people because of its sweetness and enjoyment, you still have to keep yourself from tooth decay due to chocolate. The sweetness of chocolate will stick to any chocolate that sticks and slips on the teeth, over time if not cleaned and realized will create a hole in the teeth that can make you become uncomfortable when eating because it often not feel pain.

11. Spinach
These green vegetables contain high amounts of lutein. Lutein has a virtue in keeping the body from the risk of age-related macula degeneration, the leading cause of blindness. Recent studies have identified another ability of lutein by choosing some high-lutein foods, such as spinach.

What are The Differences Between HDL and LDL ?

Cholesterol is the fat that flows in the blood with proteins. The combination of both is called lipoprotein. There are two lipoproteins based on its density of high density lipoprotein (HDL) and low density lipoprotein (LDL).

What are the differences between HDL and LDL ?

HDL Cholesterol

HDL cholesterol is a good cholesterol that is safe for the body despite its high levels. HDL cholesterol does not contain as much fat as LDL cholesterol, but contains lots of protein. HDL cholesterol is a very safe cholesterol for the body. HDL cholesterol serves as a transport of fat deposits in the body and serves as a cleanser of fat deposits in the walls of blood vessels that carry blood flow to the liver. If high HDL the risk of heart disease is very small but if low HDL will lead to heart disease.

HDL cholesterol levels should be greater than LDL cholesterol levels. Well, here are the HDL cholesterol levels that fit your needs:

The normal HDL cholesterol level for men is about 40-50 mg/dl.

The normal HDL cholesterol level for women is about 50-60 mg/dl.

Low HDL cholesterol levels for men less than 40 mg/dl.

Low HDL cholesterol for women is less than 50 mg/dl.

If HDL cholesterol in our body can work well we will avoid heart disease or stroke.

We must keep eating foods that can maintain good cholesterol stability.

Foods maintain good cholesterol stability, such as soy, salmon, avocado, spinach, and tea.

LDL cholesterol

LDL cholesterol is commonly called bad cholesterol.

The right ldl content in the body is about 60% to 70%.

LDL cholesterol has a denser constituent particles than other cholesterol types. LDL will bring cholesterol throughout the body in need through arterial tissue. He will send it whenever the cell needs it. But when the LDL is too much, it will accumulate cholesterol in the arteries causing plaque. Cholesterol deposits will clog the artery ducts. LDL affects the saturated fat levels in the body and the cholesterol content that we eat. So when your cholesterol levels are high, you should be on a low-fat diet.

Here are normal LDL cholesterol levels:

LDL cholesterol levels are normal for people with heart disease less than 70 mg/dl.

Normal LDL cholesterol levels are about 70-100 mg/dl.

LDL cholesterol levels are about 100-129 mg/dl.

High LDL cholesterol levels around 160-189 mg/dl.

The very high level of LDL cholesterol is about 190 mg/dl.

LDL cholesterol is bad for heart health and brain health.

Foods containing LDL cholesterol should be avoided.

Foods that we should avoid, such as dairy foods, red meat, lean protein, processed foods, liver, lobster, burgers, steaks, and foods containing trans fats.

So, manage the daily consumption of food to avoid dangerous diseases. Keep the diet, adequate rest and enough exercise. If the cholesterol level is too high, go on a low-fat diet and do not consume careless cholesterol drugs, because today there are so many outstanding cholesterol drugs that contain harmful chemicals, which actually damage your body.

Top 12 Foods High in Cholesterol

High cholesterol or hypercholesterolemia is a condition where the cholesterol levels are not normal. Cholesterol itself is fat that is mostly produced in the liver and some of it is obtained from food. People who lurk high cholesterol sufferers can usually release energy such as stroke and heart attacks.

Why should we avoid high cholesterol foods? Because high cholesterol foods make the body fatter and can cause fatal illness.

Well, that’s why we should avoid high cholesterol foods. Here are examples of foods we should avoid.

1. Foods that contain lots of salt
Often we do not realize that the body has consumed too much salt. Excessive sodium intake will make your blood pressure rise. Although it does not directly affect your cholesterol levels, a combination of hypertension and high cholesterol will increase your risk of heart disease. Therefore, subtract salt in your daily menu. Avoid these foods as much as possible, like chips, crackers, pickles, and other salty foods.

2. Fried Food
Any fried food certainly contains a lot of bad cholesterol. Especially that processed by deep-frying method, by dipping and frying food in the oil in large quantities. In addition to eliminating the water content in food, this frying technique also makes the food suck fat. As a result, food will be higher in calories. Examples of fried foods, such as: fried chicken, snacks and other fried foods. So, don’t get this foods.

3. Sweet Food
While it tastes delicious, sugar can cause many serious diseases. Examples are obesity, heart disease, diabetes and of course high cholesterol. You should know the proper levels of consuming sugar-containing foods and drinks, such as candies, ice cream, and more.

4. Seafood
Consumed enough seafood, is good for health because many marine fish contain omega-3. Tuna and salmon include food from the sea that is rich in healthy fatty acids. However, there are also seafood is also included in the type of high cholesterol foods, such as shrimp and shellfish.

5. Foods Containing Trans Fat
If you continue to be consumed, this type of fat will contribute in increasing levels of bad cholesterol and lower your good cholesterol levels. Trans fats are widely used by food manufacturers in their products because these ingredients can serve as food preservatives. Therefore, you should be wary when choosing foods in packaging. Pay attention to the composition contained in it. If the fat transition composition (trans fat) or ‘partially hydrogenated’ is written, limit consumption of the product.

6. Foods Containing Saturated Fat
Saturated fats are commonly found in animal foods, such as sausages, pork oil, cheese, butter, or margarine. Snacks made from these ingredients also automatically contain saturated fats are also high possibility. For example, chocolate milk, pudding, tart, and biscuits. Not only that, this fat can also be found in coconut oil and palm oil. You can also replace your cooking oil with a healthier one, such as olive oil or canola oil.

7. Red Meat
Red meat derived from cows, sheep, and pigs tends to contain more cholesterol than saturated fats. In addition to increasing cholesterol, red meat is also able to worsen the condition of heart disease. Salmon, nuts, and non-fried chicken are recommended as a better substitute.

8. Egg yolk
One egg contains 186 mg of cholesterol. Eating less than four yolks per week does not degrade a person’s chances of developing heart disease. The key is not to consume excessively and continue to keep your cholesterol intake.

9. Butter and margarine
Butter or margarine is often used to make bread or baking material. Butter or margarine should be highly avoided by people suffering from high cholesterol. Because the process and ingredients to make butter or margarine already contain saturated fats are very dangerous for the body. If you are accustomed to using butter or margarine then replace with healthier oils like olive oil or canola oil. Butter or margarine can even contain trans fats that can increase the risk of breast cancer for women.

10. Cheese
Cheese is one of the most widely used bread and pastry ingredients. Cheese is also often used for cooking mixes. Although these foods go through a complicated and long process of fermentation it turns out the cholesterol content in the cheese is quite high. Cheese is produced from milk fat deposition so that cholesterol must be very high. Consumption of cheese is even very dangerous for people with high blood pressure because it can cause a rapid attack. Cheese is also dangerous because it becomes a super fat fast food.

11. Alcohol
Drinking alcohol increases the chances of developing bad cholesterol that increases blood pressure and cardiovascular disease.

12. Refined Wheat Products
White bread, bagels, pasta and tortillas contain refined carbohydrates. These foods raise bad cholesterol in the blood and eventually clog the arteries. Reduce refined carbohydrate intake to improve cholesterol levels.

Increase The HDL Cholesterol Levels

Cholesterol has two very contradictory types, LDL and HDL. LDL is bad cholesterol because its very high fat content makes it easy to stick to blood vessel wall. While HDL is known as good cholesterol because of its high protein content. HDL is responsible for carrying excess cholesterol brought by LDL to the liver to re-process and lower cholesterol levels. Thus HDL plays a major role in preventing the attachment of fat and bad cholesterol in the walls of blood vessels. The minimum level of HDL the body needs is 60 mg/dl.

How to get high HDL cholesterol levels?

The way is to run a healthy lifestyle habits, like:

Maintain a healthy weight
Weight can affect cholesterol levels. But there is good news, if you are overweight, losing even a few pounds can improve your HDL level. Each loss of 1 kg (2 pounds), your HDL may increase by 0.35 mg/dl and approximately 1 mg/dl for every 3 kg (6 pounds). To maintain your weight in a healthy range, focus on dietary changes and exercise. Motivate yourself by remembering the benefits of losing weight, such as a healthier, more energetic, and immune-enhancing heart.

Physical activity
Physical activity has been proven to provide tremendous benefits for health. Physical activity will increase the formation of HDL cholesterol by increasing insulin sensitivity and utilization of blood glucose. Physical activity can also reduce inflammation as well as lose weight, while it will also burn body fat as fuel. The end result is the level of HDL cholesterol in the blood will increase. Exercising is the best way to raise good cholesterol.

Choose healthy fats
Just like cholesterol, there are good fat good and bad fats. Eating fatty foods like olive oil, omega-3 foods, and avocados can help raise your HDL cholesterol.

Consume more dark-colored vegetables and fruits.
All fresh foods have health benefits, but fresh foods that are dark red and purple can increase HDL levels and lower LDL levels. Blackberries, grapes, purple sweet potatoes, purple cabbage and purple carrots are dark-colored foods rich in antioxidants, especially colorful compounds called anthocyanins. Anthocyanins can raise HDL levels by nearly 14%, and lower LDL levels.

Wise in drinking alcohol
Not just any alcohol you can drink to raise HDL cholesterol levels. Choose a moderate alcohol like red wine at least once a day, can increase the amount of good cholesterol in the body.

Quit smoking
If you smoke, stop. Because if you stop smoking, the levels of HDL in the blood will increase by 15% to 20%. Of course quitting smoking is not easy. You can try more than one strategy to quit smoking. Communicate this with your doctor, your doctor may advise your mission to quit smoking.

Consult a doctor
In order to better know clearly how to raise good cholesterol, you should consult a doctor to get the right advice.

Foods To Raise HDL Cholesterol Levels

Cholesterol with high lipoprotein content commonly referred to as HDL cholesterol or cholesterol with High Density Lipoprotein. Sometimes the term HDL cholesterol is then seen as good cholesterol, while LDL cholesterol or Low Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol is seen as bad cholesterol.

If LDL cholesterol can threaten health, otherwise with HDL. Good cholesterol is needed by the body to prevent a variety of problems, including heart disease which is due to increased levels of bad LDL cholesterol.

One of the best ways to rid the body of arterial blockage due to LDL or bad cholesterol is to eat foods that can increase good cholesterol or HDL. Then what kind of food is recommended for consumption to be able to increase levels of HDL cholesterol in the body? Some of the following foods rich in HDL cholesterol can be the best choice.

Olive oil

Compared to all other types of vegetable oils, olive oil is the best choice to get HDL cholesterol intake. Its content is also enriched with omega-6 fatty acids are good for anti-inflammatory, especially when at the right ratio with omega-3 fatty acids.

White fish meat

Fish primarily from the deep sea have a high content of fatty layers. Fatty fish such as salmon, sardines, herring, mackerel and bass fish contain Omega-3 fatty acids and high lipoproteins. By consuming it, will make HDL cholesterol levels in the blood increases. Ideally, fish should be eaten several times a week.

Nuts

Nuts are known as vegetable intake is rich in fat. The fat components in nuts are supplemented with fiber and vegetable protein elements that will work to increase the content of lipoproteins in cholesterol stored in the body. Almonds, hazel nuts, walnuts, peanuts and other types of nuts have the same benefits. In addition to containing high fiber, unsaturated fat components also have sterol components that work to block the body’s absorption capacity of bad cholesterol.

Red Onion

Eating one-half of raw red onion per day will increase HDL significantly. In order to more easily consumed, slices of raw red onion can be mixed with a variety of foods such as salad or omelet.

Healthy fiber food

Increase fiber in the diet associated with elevated HDL levels. Include fruits (especially purple skin) and vegetables, including green leafy vegetables. Vegetables and fruit are best consumed in whole pieces. Do not cook fruits and vegetables until very mature, because it can trigger decreased levels of nutrients and fiber in fruit vegetables. Smoothing it into a juice or smoothie will damage the fiber content in vegetables and fruit.

Why Smoking is Bad for Our Health?

The two scariest health problems nowadays are Cancer and Cholesterol.

We all understand that cigarettes cause lung cancer. How about cholesterol? 
Does smoking effect our cholesterol levels?

Cigarette doesn’t contain cholesterol, but it’s bad for our cholesterol levels. Smoking lowers HDL cholesterol while raises LDL cholesterol.

The bad cholesterol, LDL (Low Density Lipoproteins) is responsible in transporting cholesterol from the liver through the blood stream to all over the body where the cholesterol is extracted from the LDL and used by the body’s cells for various purposes.

The good cholesterol, HDL (High Density Lipoproteins) is responsible in transporting the excess or unused cholesterol from the body’s tissues back to the liver, where the cholesterol is broken down then disposed.

When there’s too much unused cholesterol remains in the bloodstream, it’ll get accumulated and may buildup fatty deposits on the blood vessel walls. When the fatty deposits buildup is inside a coronary artery, it blocks the blood flow to the heart, causing a heart attack.

A chemical found in cigarettes called acrolein stops HDL transporting fatty deposits to the liver, making LDL even more toxic to blood vessels, increasing deposits of plaque in the arteries and inflammation, which will accelerate the fatty deposits buildup and narrowing the arteries.

Plaque restricts blood flow throughout the body and after years can burst and create a blood clot, which reduces or blocks blood flow to the heart, causing a heart attack. Blood clots can also travel throughout the body, causing a stroke if blood flow to the brain is blocked. This means smoking is a major risk factor for both heart attacks and strokes.

Quit smoking has detrimental effects on the blood pressure and platelets will correct very quickly. Heart attack risk drops by an estimated 30 percent within a year of quitting. 5 to 10 years after quit, the risk of heart attack is almost the same as if we had never smoked.

Can Cholesterol Diseases be Cured ?

If you have just been diagnosed with high cholesterol, you might be worried. Along with your age, genes, and other factors, high cholesterol is a major contributor to heart disease, heart attacks and strokes. But you can’t turn back time or pull out unhealthy genes from your DNA.

Don’t be discouraged, you can still change your cholesterol value by changing your lifestyle!

An objective marker for cholesterol conditions is the examination of triglycerides, HDL, LDL, and total cholesterol. So, besides the total cholesterol figure, you should also know the detailed lipid profile (triglycerides, HDL, LDL). High cholesterol is caused by high fat consumption. In addition there are hereditary factors. The thing that can be done is to change the pattern of life. Exercise hard, recommended at least 5 times a week and eat lots of fruits and vegetables. Reduce fast foods.

Avoid foods high in cholesterol. Foods that are high in cholesterol, especially foods that contain saturated fat such as ready-to-eat foods (such as chicken nuggets, burgers, sausages) and types of meat, milk, butter, bread, liver, some types of seafood such as shrimp, crab, oyster, squid and shells. And of course processed meats such as sausages.

Consume more low cholesterol foods including:

Fish, poultry (chicken, duck) without skin, and pieces of meat that do not contain fat. Food cooked by baking or boiling is better than fried

Avoid processed foods such as sausages, bacon, salami. Limit food types such as liver, kidneys, brain

Use low-fat milk, low-fat cheese, low-fat yogurt. Use low-fat margarine compared to butter. Limit egg yolks, egg white can be eaten freely

Eat vegetables and cut fruit (not juiced) and foods made from wheat such as oatmeal, wheat bread

Foods such as raw onions, salmon, almonds, olive oil, avocados are recommended

Eat lots of foods that contain vitamin C (papaya, grapes, oranges, broccoli) and vitamin E (wheat, almonds, peanuts)

The desired normal number is <200 mg/dL. For that, for the first 3 months it is recommended to make lifestyle modifications with good diet, rest and exercise. After that, in 3 months a re-examination was conducted to determine the next step whether the drug should be given. If cholesterol levels are higher than normal it can indeed cause an increased risk of heart disease.

Statin Medication to Lower Cholesterol

If within a few months cholesterol does not go down, even though you have practiced a healthy lifestyle, the doctor can advise you to take cholesterol-lowering drugs.

There are several types of cholesterol-lowering drugs with different functions. One of the drugs that lower blood cholesterol levels that can be prescribed by doctors is a statin drug that inhibits the enzymes in the liver to form cholesterol.

Statins are cholesterol-lowering drugs that work by inhibiting the HMG-CoA enzyme, which synthesizes cholesterol in the body. The drugs that are classified in this group and are often used are: (Generic Name – Brand Name)
Atorvastatin – Lipitor
Simvastatin – Zocor
Rosuvastatin – Crestor
Pravastatin – Pravachol
Fluvastatin – Lescol

The best time to take Statin drugs is at night. This is because the body begins to synthesize cholesterol when its intake from outside decreases, that is, at night before going to sleep. All drugs in the statin class should be taken at night except Atorvastatin (Lipitor) and Rosuvastatin (Crestor). Both of these drugs have a longer working effect so they can be consumed at any time. Other drugs (Simvastatin (Zocor), Pravastain (Pravachol), and Fluvastatin (Lescol)) have a shorter working effect. As a result if consumed in the morning or during the day the drug has stopped working when the body begins to produce cholesterol.

Statin use should be balanced with regular exercise (such as walking 30 minutes every day) and reducing fatty foods, high energy and high in salt. Fiber foods such as fresh fruits and vegetables must be reproduced to improve body health.

Side effects to watch out for in consuming statins are muscle pain, cramping, numbness, or muscle weakness. This symptom occurs after consuming statins (can also be directly years after taking this medicine) and not due to other things such as exercise, fever, flu and so on. If this happens, consult your doctor or pharmacist. If this symptom is also accompanied by fever and not feeling well, then the use of this drug must be stopped immediately and go to the hospital.

Treatment of high cholesterol usually begins with a healthy lifestyle, such as designing a healthy diet and regular exercise. If this method does not work, for example because blood pressure is already very high and the risk of complications of other diseases, doctors can prescribe cholesterol-lowering drugs for routine consumption.

Some types of statin drugs that doctors can give are simvastatin, atorvastatin, or rosuvastatin. But there were some people who were intolerant of statins and experienced side effects after taking the drug, including stomach ulcers, muscle aches, and headaches. Statins can be combined with ezetimibe which inhibits the absorption of cholesterol from food and bile in the intestine. But for people with high cholesterol who cannot take statins because of their side effects, ezetimibe can be consumed without statins.

Other drugs that can be given to patients with high cholesterol are bile acid binding drugs. Cholesterol is used in making bile acids, which are needed to digest food. If bile acids are bound, the body will use excess cholesterol to form more bile acids, so that cholesterol levels in the blood will decrease. Examples of bile acid inhibitors are cholestyramine.

To reduce high triglyceride levels, doctors can give fibrate and niacin. Fibrate reduces the work of the liver in producing lipoproteins with very low density, thereby reducing triglyceride levels. While niacin inhibits the ability of the liver to produce bad cholesterol. At present, niacin is only recommended for people who cannot take statins. Other treatments that can reduce triglyceride levels are supplements of omega-3 fatty acids that can be purchased freely.

Before deciding to take cholesterol medication, you must consult a doctor to get the right medicine according to the symptoms that are felt. Remember, avoid buying and taking cholesterol medication carelessly without a doctor’s prescription.