Many people have high levels of cholesterol in this country. Sometimes those numbers are very high and some are just borderline high. Many medical professionals like to prescribe statin drugs to lower these high levels, without a look at the long term side effects of statins. Statins work to blunt the production of cholesterol in the liver.
Some of the common side effects of statins include muscle loss, raised blood pressure and decreased mental function. Who wants these side effects? These side effects of statins can be debilitating and can really decrease the quality of life.
Instead of enduring the side effects of statins, why not take a TLC approach. By TLC, I mean Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes. Here are some of the choices to make within the Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes:
- Cut your daily calories from saturated fat to less than 7 percent.
- Eat less than 200 mg a day of cholesterol
- Increase your soluble fiber intake to 10-25 grams per day.
- Take in no more than 25–35 percent of daily calories from total fat (this includes saturated fat calories)
- Maintain a healthy weight by not overeating.
- Get at least 30 minutes of a moderate intensity physical activity, such as brisk walking, on most, and preferably all, days of the week.
- Add 2 grams per day of plant stanols and sterols to your diet. In most cases that will require some degree of .