Various Ways to Reduce High Cholesterol, In Addition to Cholesterol Medication

Contents:

• Medical Video: LIVE IT: Reduce Cholesterol with Nuts
  
• Overview of cholesterol
  
• Know the difference in LDL and HDL
  
• Normal cholesterol levels in the body
  
• The cause of someone experiencing high cholesterol
  
• Symptoms of high cholesterol to watch out for
  
• It is dangerous if high cholesterol is not treated
  
• Lowers high cholesterol with natural cholesterol drugs
  
• 1. Change your eating habits
  
• 2. Lose weight
  
• 3. Do regular exercise
  
• 4. Stop smoking
  
• 5. Avoid stress
  
• Various choices of cholesterol-lowering foods
  
• Lowers high cholesterol with cholesterol drug statins
  
• Taking cholesterol-lowering drugs does not mean you can eat anything free
  
• 1. Fish oil
  
• 2. Psyllium
  
• 3. Niacin
  

Medical Video: LIVE IT: Reduce Cholesterol with Nuts

Cholesterol has been considered negative. Many people avoid cholesterol foods, can cause heart disease, he said. This may be true but it can't. But, do you know what cholesterol really is? Is it really as bad as you imagine? Find out all about cholesterol including, symptoms, causes, high cholesterol medications, to herbal cholesterol drugs in this article.

Overview of cholesterol

Cholesterol is a candle, like fat, which is found in all cells in the body. This substance may often be viewed negatively so far. Almost everyone thinks high cholesterol foods should be avoided. However, do you know that cholesterol is actually needed by the body?

Yes, the body needs these substances to make hormones (such as testosterone, cortisol, and estrogen), vitamin D, and bile acids to help digest fat from food. The body itself can actually make all these substances as needed, but this may only be in small quantities.

Most cholesterol in the body you might get from consuming food. The liver will produce more of this substance if you eat lots of foods that contain saturated fats and trans fats. This can then cause the cholesterol in your blood to be high.

Know the difference in LDL and HDL

Cholesterol moves through the bloodstream in the form of lipoproteins. Lipoproteins are made from internal fat and proteins on the outside. Well, there are two types of lipoproteins that carry cholesterol throughout your body, namely:

• Low density lipoprotein (LDL), also known as bad cholesterol. A high buildup of HDL in the body can cause arteries (which carry blood from the heart to the rest of the body) to become blocked. This can then cause heart disease or stroke.
• High density lipoprotein (HDL), also known as good cholesterol. HDL carries cholesterol from other parts of the body back to the liver. Then by the liver, this substance will be broken down and removed from the body. The amount of HDL that is higher than LDL in the body is a good thing for health and can help prevent you from chronic diseases.

Normal cholesterol levels in the body

It is important for you to check LDL and HDL cholesterol levels in the body. This is one step to prevent chronic diseases, such as heart disease and stroke. Cholesterol levels in the blood are at least measured once every five years for every person over 20 years old, this test is commonly called a lipid profile.

Lipid profile tests can show the amount of total cholesterol in the body, the amount of LDL, the amount of HDL, and the number of triglycerides. The limits for each type of test are:

• The contenttotal cholesterol good in the blood is less than 200 mg / dl, included in the high category if the levels reach 240 mg / dl or more.
• The contentLDLgood in the blood is less than 100 mg / dl, and will endanger your health if the levels reach 160 mg / dl or more.
• The contentHDL good in the body is 40 mg / dl or more, and can be said to be low if the level is less than 40 mg / dl.
• The contenttriglyceride good in the blood is less than 150 mg / dl, and is included in the high category if the level reaches 200 mg / dl or more.

The cause of someone experiencing high cholesterol

LDL and HDL levels in the body can be influenced by many things, including:

• The food you eat. Eating foods that contain saturated fat and trans fat can cause your LDL levels to increase. Examples of foods that contain high fat are, fried foods, chicken with skin, fatty meat, and fast food.
• Has excess weight. People who are overweight or obese tend to have high LDL levels.
• Age.The older a person is, the higher the LDL level will be. This may be influenced by changes in function and metabolism which are increasingly decreasing. So it is not surprising that older people will have a greater amount of LDL than younger people. LDL levels will begin to increase after you enter the age of 20 years.
• Lack of exercise. Exercise can help increase HDL levels and also make LDL less dangerous, by increasing the size of the particles that make up LDL.
• Family history. If your family member has a history of high cholesterol, you might experience the same thing. Thin people who have high blood cholesterol can also have high cholesterol too. So, this disease can not only be owned by fat people, don't get me wrong.

Genetics can control cells so that they don't get rid of LDL in the blood quickly or can also cause the liver to produce too much LDL. Therefore, if you have high cholesterol offspring, you should control the factors that can be changed (such as maintaining food intake and exercise).

Symptoms of high cholesterol to watch out for

Many people do not know that they experience this condition, especially if they have never had a checkup. Usually he knows that he has this condition along with the diagnosis of other diseases, such as coronary heart disease, heart attack, or stroke. Of course, this is late to prevent the disease from appearing.

Actually there are no specific signs or symptoms caused if someone has this condition. Checking HDL and LDL levels is the only way to find out if you have high cholesterol levels or are still within normal limits.

For this reason, you are advised to check lipid profiles regularly to prevent the development of chronic diseases that can be caused by the condition. Remember, prevention is better than cure.

It is dangerous if high cholesterol is not treated

High cholesterol can cause atherosclerosis, where plaque buildup occurs in the walls of the arteries. This can clog the bloodstream partially or completely and cause coronary heart disease.

If atherosclerosis occurs in the arteries that supply blood to the heart (coronary arteries), you may feel chest pain (angina) and other symptoms of coronary heart disease.

Over time, plaque can rupture and cause blood clots to form on the surface of the plaque. If the blood clot is large enough, this can block the flow of blood to the heart and make the heart muscle lack of oxygen. If the blood flow does not recover quickly, the heart muscle begins to die and a heart attack can occur.

Plaques can also form in arteries in other parts of the body, besides the heart, such as arteries that carry oxygen-rich blood to the brain and limbs. This can cause blocked blood flow and cause problems, such as carotid artery disease, peripheral arterial disease, and stroke.

Lowers high cholesterol with natural cholesterol drugs

Don't worry, if you are one of those people who have these conditions, there are still many things you can do to reduce LDL and increase HDL so you avoid the risk of chronic diseases. By doing the methods below, you don't need to take cholesterol-lowering drugs.

1. Change your eating habits

The most effective natural cholesterol drug is to pay attention to the food you eat. Because the level of HDL and LDL in the body is influenced by the food you consume everyday. For that, you need to control the food intake you eat so that HDL and LDL levels are maintained.

It's best to avoid foods that contain saturated fat or high trans fats. Both types of fat can increase LDL in the blood. Examples of foods that should be avoided or limited to consumption are innards, fatty meats, butter, cream, oily or fried foods, high-fat milk, and others. Various of these foods can be natural cholesterol drugs.

2. Lose weight

People with excess body weight tend to have LDL that is higher than HDL. This is because usually obese people often overeat and rarely exercise. In order to avoid high cholesterol, it is recommended that you lose weight if you have excess weight. Yes, losing weight is one of the most effective natural cholesterol drugs.

No need to lose weight until thin. Simply lower your weight until you reach a normal weight. This effect of weight loss is very positive for your LDL and HDL levels. Just losing 5 kg of weight can reduce cholesterol levels to 8 percent.

Do this weight loss in a healthy way, so that not only is the weight of water reduced but also the weight of fat. You simply target a decrease in your weight of 0.5-1 kg per week.

3. Do regular exercise

In order for you to lose weight, you must exercise regularly. In addition, regular exercise can also help increase HDL levels and reduce LDL and triglyceride levels. This is what makes exercise a natural cholesterol-lowering drug. Do exercise for at least 30 minutes per day or 150 minutes per week so you can feel this benefit.

4. Stop smoking

Smoking can reduce HDL in the body, so LDL levels can continue to increase. In addition, smoking can also hurt your blood vessel walls. Quitting smoking can also be a natural cholesterol drug that can help control high cholesterol. Therefore, you should stop smoking if you want to avoid various diseases due to high cholesterol.

5. Avoid stress

When stressed, it turns out LDL levels can increase, you know. For that, as a natural cholesterol-lowering drug you should avoid stress. Find fun activities that can make yourself calm, so avoid stress. In addition, you also need to meet your sleep needs. Lack of sleep can make the body stressed.

Various choices of cholesterol-lowering foods

As mentioned above, food is one of the natural cholesterol drugs that can help reduce cholesterol. If you don't want high LDL, then you have to eat more foods that contain good fats (unsaturated fats) than bad fats (saturated fats and trans fats). These foods can be natural cholesterol drugs that you can consume daily without fear of the side effects they cause.

Some examples of food sources of unsaturated fats that can be natural cholesterol drugs to help reduce high LDL levels are:

• Olive oil
• Salmon, tuna, sardines, herring, or other fish rich in omega-3 (but, should not be processed by frying)
• Avocado
• Walnuts, almonds, cashews, soybeans, and other nuts

In addition to foods high in unsaturated fats, high-fiber foods are also cholesterol-lowering foods and natural cholesterol drugs. Fiber can help reduce LDL and increase HDL. Fiber in food can block the absorption of this substance by the body and help remove it from the body through feces.

Vegetables and fruits are a group of foods that contain high fiber while being the best natural cholesterol drug. In addition, oatmeal and foods made from whole wheat also contain fiber which is quite high, making it suitable as a natural cholesterol drug that you can consume daily.

Lowers high cholesterol with cholesterol drug statins

In addition to changing lifestyle, another way to reduce cholesterol is to take cholesterol-lowering drugs. Reporting from WebMD, cholesterol-lowering drugs can reduce LDL faster by 50 percent compared to other methods. Therefore, it is not surprising that many people prefer to use cholesterol-lowering drugs to reduce LDL compared to changing lifestyle.

High cholesterol drugs work by blocking substances that the body needs to make cholesterol, reduce triglyceride levels in the body, and help absorb cholesterol and remove it from the body. One of the commonly used high cholesterol drugs is statins, including atorvastatin, lovastatin, simvastatin, pravastatin, and rosuvastatin.

But just like other drugs, this high cholesterol drug can also cause side effects. Side effects can vary in each person, depending on the type and dose of statin drugs consumed. Even so, the most common side effects of using these cholesterol-lowering drugs are dizziness, digestive problems, muscle and joint pain, type 2 diabetes mellitus, to muscle and liver damage.

Your risk of experiencing side effects of high cholesterol drugs can increase if the drug is consumed in large quantities at once, has kidney or liver disease, or has a small posture. Women and older people over 65 also experience a higher risk increase.

After knowing the side effects of statins, do you still want to use high cholesterol drugs? Whether or not you need to use high cholesterol drugs basically depends on the cholesterol level in your body. You should always consult your doctor first if you want to take high cholesterol drugs to reduce your LDL levels.

Taking cholesterol-lowering drugs does not mean you can eat anything free

Cholesterol-lowering drugs can indeed help you reduce high cholesterol levels in the body. However, don't just rely on cholesterol-lowering drugs. You still need to keep HDL and LDL levels normal by applying a healthy lifestyle as explained above.

Most people feel safe to eat any food after they take cholesterol-lowering drugs. In fact, taking high cholesterol drugs does not mean you can ignore a low cholesterol diet. You also have to pay attention to your fat and carbohydrate intake because these two nutrients can increase cholesterol levels in the blood.

So, even though you have taken high cholesterol drugs, you still have to adopt a healthy lifestyle to help reduce your cholesterol levels.

You should also know that once you start taking high cholesterol drugs, you will usually continue to take the drug. Even if you stop taking cholesterol-lowering drugs and your cholesterol level is in the normal range for a while, your cholesterol levels may increase again at any time. This can be prevented only if you change your diet, exercise, stop smoking, and leave other bad habits.

Use of supplements as a natural cholesterol drug

If you are afraid of the side effects of high-cholesterol statin drugs, cholesterol herbal medicines might help control cholesterol levels in your body. But if you decide to take cholesterol herbal medicine in addition to treatment, consult your doctor who handles you first.

Because, not all content of herbal cholesterol drugs is safe for your body and has the possibility to be able to react negatively to the drugs you are taking. In addition, only doctors or nutritionists can recommend whether or not you should take this supplement as a natural remedy for your cholesterol.

Here are some types of supplements that can be used as natural cholesterol drugs.

1. Fish oil

Omega-3 levels in fish oil, namely EPA and DHA, have been shown to reduce triglyceride levels by up to 30 percent, minimize swelling and blood clots, and increase good cholesterol (HDL). This is what makes fish oil widely used as a herbal medicine for cholesterol.

However, high levels of mercury and pollutants in some types of fish oil also need attention. Choose herbal cholesterol drugs that have been clinically tested free from heavy metals such as mercury and lead and other environmental poisons, including polyclorinate biphenyls or PCBs.

2. Psyllium

Psyllium or better known as Plantago ovata is a plant that only grows in India. However, this herb has long been consumed as a supplement derived from natural dietary fiber sources. This plant is also a type of soluble fiber that can dissolve cholesterol and reduce triglycerides and total cholesterol, especially for people with type 2 diabetes. This herbal cholesterol drug can be an alternative choice to help you reduce cholesterol levels in the blood.

3. Niacin

Niacin is a vitamin B supplement that can increase good cholesterol (HDL) and reduce bad cholesterol (LDL) by 30 percent. This supplement needs to be taken in large doses so that the effect can be felt, which is as much as 1 to 3 grams a day. Because it must be given with high doses, you should consult a doctor first before taking this cholesterol herbal medicine.