if you have high cholestrol, should you lower it natuarly or take the medicines

I was diagnosed with high cholesterol about a year ago. I knew that I likely would be diagnosed as I had fallen off the wagon my dieting and was eating a lot of fast food and other things. I told my physician to give me 6 months before taking the pills. I gave up fast food, full fat cheese, and many other high-cholesterol foods. I eat oatmeal at least once a day, walk a mile a day and eat better. The cholesterol dropped drastically! It is now on the high-end of normal and I feel confident that I can further lower it with my changes. Some people however, cannot change their cholesterol with just dietary/exercise, as their bodies do not break down cholesterol appropriately. These people do need the pills. I would say to ask your health care provider for advise.

My wife was having touble with High Cholestrol and the DR. wanted to put her on pills. She was holding off on the pills when a friend told her about eating Oatmeal porridge for breakfast every morning. This was the Oatmeal that you cook, not the instant stuff. SO she started cooking and eating the Oatmeal and when she went back to the Dr. some time later, her Cholesterol was back to normal. She is still eating it every morning and has continued to be healthy.

It really depends on if your problem is caused by poor eating habits or hereditary factors. My total cholestrol was at 243 a year ago. I also had high blood pressure at the time. I decided to get a little healthier and changed my eating habits. The benefits were my cholestrol dropped to 170 in 3 months, I no longer take meds for my blood pressure and I've lost 60 lbs and still losing. I do have a friend however who is a very healthy eater, not overweight at all and without medication has a total cholestrol of over 400. So does his father so his is hereditary and he has to take the medication.

I suppose it really depends on just how high the cholestrol is...Years and years ago, I was tested and found out I was in the "danger" zone, so way up high and my doctor wanted me to take Lipator --now I'm kind of leary of taking medications without knowing all the facts and before I got the prescription filled I read up on it...almost all cholesterol-reducing meds can affect the liver as that is where cholesterol is stored--so yes it could lower it but damage the liver at the same time. So what I did was a dramatic change in my diet...the doc tested me again in a month's time and now the reading was in borderline, kept at my new diet and got tested another month later and it was in the safety zone and has been ever since--So for me, all that was needed was a radical change in my diet...and I think a lot of other people could benefit as well...as a side benefit..I lost weight in the process!

I had once high colestrol in 2002. then doctor gave me pills. and i took them all and did some diet and execercise. it only took a week or two to get normal colestrol and untill now i am in good condition.