Elevated cholesterol in the blood puts the whole organism at risk, because with time, settling on the walls of blood vessels, its excess turns into plaques that do not allow the oxygen to be transferred normally with the help of blood. Because of this, serious illnesses such as myocardial infarction and stroke can develop.
Methods of treating cholesterol
There is no most effective method that would work "alone". It is best to choose a combination of taking medicines and folk remedies, and also to change the way of life: to remove excess weight (if it is), to use less fat and trans fat, to abandon bad habits. A person first of all should help himself, rather than expect a "magic pill" that will relieve the ailment once and for all.
The fact is that the human body itself produces cholesterol, but over time the body's need for it decreases, and it continues to be produced in the same amount as before. And if at the same time gain weight, and even eat fatty foods, then naturally, the level of cholesterol in the blood once zashkalit above the norm.
The goal of treatment is to lower LDL. This is the so-called "harmful" cholesterol, which then clogs the blood vessels and makes them inelastic. At the same time, it is necessary to try to increase the level of HDL. this cholesterol helps to eliminate LDL.
Along with this, it should be remembered that if the level of cholesterol is lowered, then this will have a bad effect on brain function, nerve cells, immune system and hormones - this is also not the best prospect, so the goal of treatment is to balance cholesterol.
Elevated cholesterol - treatment with folk remedies
First of all, we refer to the diet of the people. It allows you to regulate the intake of cholesterol without drugs, but in some cases this is not enough.
Its essence is to constantly eat foods containing omega-polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats: so, eat 100 g of mackerel or tuna twice a week, and also enter nuts into the diet - they are related to fatty foods, but they contain useful fats , which are necessary for high cholesterol.
To deduce LDL, eat fiber at least 35 grams per day: it is in seeds, cereals, legumes, fruits, vegetables and greens.
Green tea is also useful - it helps increase HDL and lower LDL, but know that it lowers blood pressure.
In folk medicine, cholesterol is treated with herbs: linden flowers, of which powder is made and eaten for 1 tsp. per day for a month, tincture of propolis, 7 drops of which are diluted with warm water and drunk 3 times a day, as well as fresh alfalfa sprouts.
It is believed that 100% of the effect is given by the popular treatment of cholesterol, combined with diet.
Treatment of high blood cholesterol with medication
Treatment of "bad" cholesterol is often medicated, if the patient has diabetes mellitus, coronary artery disease or high blood pressure. Also, such treatment is necessary if the blood will find a high level of cholesterol: after all, dieting, playing sports and refusing bad habits (if any) take much longer to reduce this substance than tablets.
Treatment of high cholesterol begins with relatively large doses of statins - drugs that reduce LDL produced by the liver. These include:
- fluvastatin;
- pravastatin;
- rosuvastatin;
- atorvastatin;
- lovastatin and others.
Drug treatment of cholesterol may not be limited to taking only these drugs, it depends on the presence of other diseases or habits that aggravate the situation:
With high and average values of cholesterol in the blood treatment is directed, first of all, to prevent a stroke and a heart attack. These are serious life-threatening diseases, and therefore time in treatment plays an important role: in order to accelerate recovery, medications (besides statins) are also prescribed that remove cholesterol from the body-for example, sequestrants of bile acids (colestipol, cholestyramine, etc.).