View the Health Heart Book

Free

E-Newsletters

Subscribe to receive the latest updates on health topics. About our newsletters

  • Housecall
  • Alzheimer's caregiving
  • Living with cancer
Connect with others who've been there. Share stories. Learn. Join Mayo Clinic's
online community.

Prevention

By Mayo Clinic staff

The same heart-healthy lifestyle changes that can lower your cholesterol can help prevent you from having high cholesterol in the first place. To help prevent high cholesterol, you can:

  • Lose extra pounds and maintain a healthy weight
  • Quit smoking
  • Eat a low-fat, low-salt diet that includes many fruits, vegetables and whole grains
  • Exercise on most days of the week for at least 30 minutes
  • Drink alcohol in moderation, if at all
Alternative medicine
References
  1. Cholesterol. American Heart Association. http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4488. Accessed April 20, 2010.
  2. High blood cholesterol: What you need to know. National Cholesterol Education Program. http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/chol/wyntk.pdf. Accessed April 20, 2010.
  3. Executive summary of the Third Report of the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) Expert Panel on Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Cholesterol in Adults (Adult Treatment Panel III). National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/cholesterol/atp3xsum.pdf. Accessed April 19, 2010.
  4. Arsenault BJ, et al. Beyond low-density lipoprotein cholesterol: Respective contributions of non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels, triglycerides, and the total cholesterol/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio to coronary heart disease risk in apparently healthy men and women. Journal of the American College of Cardiology. 2009;55:35.
  5. Daniels SR, et al. Lipid screening and cardiovascular health in childhood. Pediatrics. 2008;122:198.
  6. Ford ES, et al. Concentrations of low density lipoprotein cholesterol and total cholesterol among children and adolescents in the United States. Circulation. 2009;119:1108.
  7. Cholesterol lowering drugs. American Heart Association. http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=163. Accessed April 19, 2010.
  8. Guyton JR, et al. Safety considerations with niacin therapy. Journal of the American College of Cardiology. 2007;99:22C.
  9. Koski RR. Omega-3-acid ethyl esters (Lovaza) for severe hypertriglyceridemia. Pharmacy and Therapeutics. 2008;33:271.
  10. Cooking for lower cholesterol. American Heart Association. http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=515. Accessed April 26, 2010.
  11. Kodama S, et al. Effect of aerobic exercise training on serum levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol. Archives of Internal Medicine. 2007;167:999.
  12. Poli A, et al. Non-pharmacological control of plasma cholesterol levels. Nutrition and Metabolism in Cardiovascular Diseases. 2008;18:1.
  13. Natural medicines in clinical management of hyperlipidemia. Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database. http://www.naturaldatabase.com. Accessed April 23, 2010.
  14. FDA warns consumers to avoid red yeast rice products promoted on internet as treatments for high cholesterol products found to contain unauthorized drug. Food and Drug Administration. http://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/2007/ucm108962.htm. Accessed April 26, 2010.
  15. Miller M, et al. Triglycerides and cardiovascular disease: A scientific statement from the American Heart Association. Circulation. In press. Accessed April 27, 2011.
DS00178 June 1, 2011

© 1998-2012 Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research (MFMER). All rights reserved. A single copy of these materials may be reprinted for noncommercial personal use only. "Mayo," "Mayo Clinic," "MayoClinic.com," "EmbodyHealth," "Enhance your life," and the triple-shield Mayo Clinic logo are trademarks of Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research.

Print Share Reprints

Advertisement


Text Size: smaller largerlarger