A healthy lifestyle is the first defense against high cholesterol. But sometimes diet and exercise aren’t enough, and you might need to take cholesterol medications. Cholesterol medications might help. Your doctor might suggest a single drug or a combination of cholesterol medications. Here’s an overview of benefits, cautions and possible side effects for common classes of cholesterol medications. Most cholesterol medications lower cholesterol with few side effects, but effectiveness varies from person to person. If you decide to take cholesterol medication, your doctor might recommend periodic liver function tests to monitor the medication’s effect on your liver. However, the U.
If you have high low-density lipoprotein LDL cholesterol, your health care provider may prescribe medicine in addition to lifestyle changes to control your LDL cholesterol level. Several types of medicines help lower LDL cholesterol. The chart below describes each type and how it works. All drugs may have side effects, so talk with your health care team, including your pharmacist, on a regular basis. Once your cholesterol levels have improved, your health care team will monitor them to ensure they stay in a healthy range. Your treatment plan for high cholesterol will depend on your current cholesterol levels and your risk of heart disease and stroke. Your risk for heart disease and stroke depends on other risk factors, including high blood pressure and high blood pressure treatment, smoking status, age, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol level, total cholesterol level, diabetes, family history, and whether you have already had a heart attack or stroke. Section Navigation.
Many side effects go away as your body adapts to the medication. Statins are known to be mediations effective in Show more related content. More Information Care Notes 1 related article Loading Sign up now. Show more related information. Your doctor may switch you to another medication or reduce your dosage.
Bile acid sequestrants help remove cholesterol from the blood stream by removing bile acids. This class of drugs, also known as HMG CoA reductase inhibitors, works in the liver to prevent cholesterol from forming. Only Generics.