3 Key Strategies for Improving Your Cholesterol Numbers

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States, yet 90% of the problem is preventable or treatable.

At LaSante Health Center, our team of multi-speciality providers, including cardiology specialists, views this statistic as an opportunity. We don’t always get to change the course of health, but we can with your cardiovascular health. 

And one of the best ways to prevent heart disease is to manage cholesterol. With that in mind, we dive into what cholesterol is, what the numbers mean, and key strategies for improvement.

A quick word about cholesterol

Cholesterol is a natural substance produced in your liver. This cholesterol helps with many different functions, such as building cells, making vitamin D, and making hormones.

Where problems with cholesterol rise is when you add more through your diet, which can create imbalances in your cholesterol numbers.

When we measure cholesterol, we’re measuring several different things, including:

• Low density lipoproteins (LDL), which carry cholesterol from your liver
• High-density lipoproteins (HDL)‚ which clean up excess cholesterol from your blood and bring it back to the liver
• Triglycerides, a type of fat in your body

When your LDL numbers are high, it can overwhelm the ability of the HDLs to cart off the excess. As a result, cholesterol can build up along the walls of your arteries, which is a dangerous condition that sets the stage for heart disease.

So, the goal is to have a good balance between your HDLs and LDLs: We want LDL numbers to be under 100, and we want HDL numbers to rise between 40 and 80. 

For reference, a total cholesterol number of 200 or more is considered high, and about 86 million Americans over the age of 20  qualify as having high total cholesterol.

Improving cholesterol numbers

Here are some strategies that could help you improve your cholesterol levels.

Diet matters — a lot

Since cholesterol issues largely stem from adding too much via your diet, that’s an excellent place to start if you want to improve your numbers. 

Some of the biggest offenders when it comes to bad cholesterol numbers include foods that are high in saturated fats, such as fatty meats and whole dairy products. 

You should also cut trans fats — found in fried foods and baked goods — from your diet.

Instead, focus on a more Mediterranean style of eating that includes:

• Lean proteins (fish and chicken)
• Vegetable and fruits
• Nuts
• Whole grains
• Unsaturated fats, such as olive oil

Steering your diet away from junk and processed foods and more toward raw and natural foods will greatly improve your cholesterol numbers.

Get moving

Exercise improves your health on almost every level, including cholesterol management. When you exercise, you can increase your HDLs to better manage and clear out your LDLs, keeping these numbers in healthier ranges.

We recommend trying to get at least 30 minutes a day of exercise.

The power of statins in managing cholesterol

Another way to improve cholesterol numbers is through statins, which are one of the most prescribed medications in the United States. Statins work by suppressing cholesterol production in your liver to keep numbers in check.

According to a recent study, about 87.5 million Americans can benefit from taking statins, yet only half are taking this potentially life-saving medication.

Bear in mind that statins aren’t a substitute for the other two strategies above. They’re designed to support these health efforts.

If you’d like a more personalized plan of attack for improving your cholesterol numbers, we invite you to call our Brooklyn, New York, clinic or use our online booking tool to set up an appointment. You can also visit our clinic during our hours of operation.  

Our team proudly serves the Flatbush and East Flatbush, Crown Heights, Park Slope, Little Haiti, Little Caribbean, and Prospect Lefferts Gardens communities.