Done Cholesterol Test, Do Not Want To Take Statin
Thanks for your query.
At these levels, a modification of the dietary habits would be definitely required if you don’t want a statin. You need to have plenty of fruits and vegetables, drink 3-4 litres of water in a day and limit the intake of following:
Dairy, nuts, oil, full fat food, red meat, all fried food and junk food like pizzas, fries, etc.
Also, is there a specific reason why you don’t want to receive a statin? If you have nothing against medical therapy as such, we could try other drugs in you but their side effect profile is more or less similar to a statin. These drugs would include ezetimibe, orlistat etc.
If after the dietary modifications for 6-8 weeks, your total cholesterol levels do not come down below 240, we would need to start treatment. This is a risk factor for heart disease which should not go untreated.
Let me know if you have any more concerns.
Best Regards,
Dr Arnab Maji