If your
doctor has found
that you have high
cholesterol, you
will likely be
advised to follow
a low saturated
fat and low
cholesterol
diet. You
will also be told
to exercise more
often and maintain
a healthy body
weight.
Many
doctors will
encourage you to
try these diets
and lifestyle
changes first
because they have
been proven most
effective in
controlling
cholesterol and
because
cholesterol-lowering
medications are
strong drugs that
may have side
effects.
If after a number of
months these diet and
lifestyle changes have
not lowered your
cholesterol
sufficiently though,
your doctor may suggest
more aggressive
treatment, which may
include
cholesterol-lowering
medication.
If you have been
advised by your doctor
to take
cholesterol-lowering
medication, you will
certainly want to
understand your
medication and the
other cholesterol
mediation choices which
are available to
you. This will
allow you to make
better informed choices
about your
treatment.
In general, the most
popular
cholesterol-lowering
medications used today
include:
•
Statins
Satins are drugs that
work by constraining an
enzyme known as HMG-CoA
reductase. This
enzyme regulates how
quickly cholesterol is
produced within the
body. By slowing down
this enzyme, satins are
able to lower
LDL-cholesterol levels
more effectively than
many other cholesterol
drugs which are
currently on the
market.
Actually, some
studies have suggested
that these
cholesterol-lowering
drugs may lower bad
cholesterol by up to
60%, which can be very
good news for people
with strongly elevated
LDL-cholesterol. Some
studies have also
proven that Statins can
contribute to lowering
triglyceride levels and
even slightly
increasing
HDL-cholesterol
levels.
All these benefits
make statins amongst
the most commonly used
medicines for lowering
cholesterol. The
Statins which are used
the most today are
pravastatin,
fluvastatin,
lovastatin,
simvastatin, and
atorvastatin.
If you do take
statins to lower your
cholesterol, you can
expect to see some
results in a few weeks.
You will have to take
your medications at
night, with your
food. Although
statins have fewer side
effects than many other
cholesterol-lowering
medicines, some
patients do sometimes
experience cramps, gas,
stomach upset,
constipation and other
digestive problems.
In many cases, these
symptoms go away by
themselves or at least
they become less severe
as the body adjusts to
the statins. In
some cases, your doctor
may suggest you take a
lower dosage in order
to control the side
effects.
Some more serious
complications from
statins include the
risks of muscle
problems as well as
liver problems.
These complications are
quite rare in patients
who take statins, but
if you do notice any
pain or unusual
symptoms whilst taking
statins, you might want
to seek medical help
straight away.
• Bile Acid
Sequestrants
Bile acid
sequestrants such as
cholestyramine,
colestipol, and
colesevelam attach
themselves to the bile
acids in your intestine
which contain
cholesterol. The body
then tries to get rid
of the cholesterol with
bowel movement rather
than with
absorption.
These drugs, even in
small doses, can lower
LDL-cholesterol to a
moderate amount - by up
to 20% in most
patients. Since these
drugs lower cholesterol
only to a modest
amount, they are often
combined with statins
for a more effective
treatment of high
cholesterol.
If you take these
drugs to lower your
cholesterol, you must
try to take them with
water or fruit juice
and with your
food. If you take
any other medication,
you’ll have to be
careful to take your
medication one hour
before or several hours
after the acid bile
sequestrants, as these
cholesterol-lowering
medications can affect
how other drugs are
absorbed by your
body.
Your doctor will
have to advise you when
to take your other
medications in order to
ensure that these
cholesterol medications
do not affect your
treatment of other
health conditions.
Usually, bile acid
sequestrates are
prescribed in doses
which are meant to be
taken once or twice a
day. If you take
these
cholesterol-lowering
medications, you need
to drink plenty of
water, since many
patients experience
unpleasant symptoms
which include gas,
nausea, constipation,
and feelings of
bloating when taking
bile acid
sequestrants.
• Nicotinic Acid
Nicotinic acid is a
vitamin which is also
known as niacin. It
helps to increases
HDL-cholesterol whilst
lowering triglycerides,
LDL-cholesterol, and
total cholesterol if
taken in large
amounts.
In actual fact, this
medication can reduce
bad cholesterol levels
by up to 20%. In many
cases, patients start
with a small dose of
nicotinic acid and then
have their dosage
slowly raised in order
to heighten the
cholesterol-fighting
power of this
medication.
Patients who take
this medication need to
have a cautious
doctor’s supervision,
because nicotinic acid
can have a number of
serious side effects,
including hot flashes,
interactions with high
blood pressure
medicine, nausea,
diarrhea, vomiting,
indigestion, gas, liver
problems, gout, and
high blood sugar.
If you have any
other medical
conditions, your doctor
might decide that
nicotinic acid is too
risky because of these
possible side
effects.
Nicotinic acid can
be taken with meals in
order to reduce side
effects such as hot
flashes and some
doctors even suggest
that patients combine
the drug with aspirin
or another drug for the
same reason.
• Fibrates
Fibrate’s function
is to decrease
triglyceride levels and
raise
HDL-cholesterol.
They are less effective
in lowering
LDL-cholesterol and
that is why they are
used more often by
people who have heart
disease rather than
high cholesterol.
Nevertheless, in
some cases, they are
given in conjunction
with
cholesterol-lowering
drugs to keep a
patient’s heart healthy
whilst lowering
cholesterol to
acceptable
levels. Fibrates
that are often
prescribed to lower
cholesterol include
medicines such as
Gemfibrozil.
Usually, Fibrates
are taken in the
morning and at night,
half an hour before
eating. Amongst the
most common side
effects of these drugs
are various stomach
ailments, a higher risk
of gallstones, and an
effect on medications
being taken to thin the
blood. If you are
taking medications
intended to thin the
blood, your doctor will
want to take special
precautions if you are
also being prescribed
fibrates.
• Hormone
Replacement Therapy
Hormone replacement
therapy is meant
to treat the symptoms
and health effects
caused by menopause in
women. Most of the
time, it involves
taking estrogen or a
combination of estrogen
and
progestin. This is
meant to offset the
risks that occur when
women’s production of
estrogen drops after
the menopause.
Amongst the effects
of hormone replacement
therapy is a lowering
of bad cholesterol
levels, which do often
rise in post-menopausal
women. Among the
other benefits of
hormone therapy is a
reduction in instances
of hot flashes and a
reduced risk of
osteoporosis and heart
disease, some of
the most common risks
to menopausal and
post-menopausal
women.
However, some
experts do disagree
whether hormone
replacement therapy is
as effective as
cholesterol-lowering
drugs in reducing bad
cholesterol-levels in
women. To make things
even more complicated,
hormone replacement
therapy has also come
under fire for adding
to the risk of some
cancers, as well as
gallbladder diseases
and blood clots as well
as other potential
risks.
Women should speak
to their doctors about
the risks and/or
potential benefits of
hormone replacement
therapy in order to
determine whether the
treatment is
appropriate for them or
not.
• Other drugs
Some doctors can
prescribe drugs meant
to offset or treat
heart disease as well
as lower
cholesterol. Some
doctors, for example,
could suggest that
patients take obesity
medications instead of
cholesterol-lowering
medications because
obesity may be
perceived to be
responsible for higher
cholesterol.
In many cases, if
any underlying
condition can be
causing the elevated
cholesterol, that
condition may be
treated to improve
cholesterol levels as
well as overall
health.
It’s important to
remember that
cholesterol-lowering
medications aren’t a
complete solution in
themselves. Even
if you are taking
doctor-prescribed
cholesterol medication,
you’ll still need
to:
• Control certain
conditions such as
diabetes, smoking, high
blood pressure, and
other health aspects
that may affect your
cholesterol and heart
health.
• Follow a diet
which is healthy, low
in salt and saturated
fat, and low in food
cholesterol.
• Follow a good
exercise routine.
• Lose weight if you
aren’t at your ideal
weight.
These heart-healthy
choices can reduce or
eliminate your need of
cholesterol-lowering
medication. Even
if they don’t, by
following these simple
steps you will help
your medication to work
more effectively,
ensuring that your
cholesterol is under
control more quickly
and more
effectively.
Cholesterol
medication alone
doesn’t usually work to
reduce bad cholesterol
levels and increase
good cholesterol
levels. Your best
plan for that is to
follow a lifestyle
which is healthy.
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