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Some risk factors for lipid disorders, like family history or problems in your genes, cannot be changed. But, there are steps you can take to keep lipid levels in a normal range to lower your risk of problems. These include:

  • Eat a healthful diet. Choose a variety of different foods. Focus on fruits and vegetables, and whole grains and high fiber foods. Limit saturated and trans fats, and cholesterol.
  • Get regular exercise—Aim for 150 minutes a week of activity. Make exercise part of a daily routine by choosing things you like to do.
  • Keep your weight in a healthy range. Balance the calories you eat with those you burn off. Use food labels as a guide to make healthy choices.
  • Limit alcohol to 2 or less drinks a day for men and 1 or less drinks a day for women.
  • Talk to your doctor about the best ways to quit smoking. Quitting will also improve your overall health.
REFERENCES:

Grundy SM, Stone NJ, Bailey AL, et al. 2018 AHA/ACC/AACVPR/AAPA/ABC/ACPM/ADA/AGS/APhA/ASPC/NLA/PCNA guideline on the management of blood cholesterol. Circulation. 2018;Nov 10 [Epub ahead of print]. Available at: https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/pdf/10.1161/CIR.0000000000000625.

Hypercholesterolemia. EBSCO DynaMed Plus website. Available at:http://www.dynamed.com/topics/dmp~AN~T114250/Hypercholesterolemia. Updated April 16, 2019. Accessed May 29, 2019.

Hypertriglyceridemia. EBSCO DynaMed Plus website. Available at:http://www.dynamed.com/topics/dmp~AN~T115419/Hypertriglyceridemia. Updated November 28, 2018. Accessed May 29, 2019.

Preventing high cholesterol. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website. Available at: https://www.cdc.gov/cholesterol/prevention.htm. Updated October 31, 2017. Accessed May 29, 2019.

Prevention and treatment of high cholesterol (hyperlipidemia). American Heart Association website. Available at: https://www.heart.org/en/health-topics/cholesterol/prevention-and-treatment-of-high-cholesterol-hyperlipidemia. Accessed May 29, 2019.

Last reviewed March 2019 by EBSCO Medical Review Board Marcin Chwistek, MD  Last Updated: 5/29/2019