Treatment of hyperlipidemia
How is hyperlipidemia (high cholesterol) treated? Some people can just change their lifestyles to improve their cholesterol numbers. For other people, that’s not enough and they need medication. Things you can do include: Exercising. Quitting smoking. Sleeping at least seven hours each night. Keeping your stress level well managed. Eating healthier foods. Limiting how much alcohol you drink. Losing a few pounds to reach a healthy weight. What medications are used for hyperlipidemia? People who need medicine to treat their high cholesterol usually take statins. Statins are a type of medication that decreases how much bad cholesterol is circulating in your blood. Your provider may order a different type of medicine if: You can’t take a statin. You need another medicine in addition to a statin. You have familial hypercholesterolemia, a genetic problem that makes your bad (LDL) cholesterol number extremely high.