Much cholesterol high can cause various problems health. The World Health Organization aka WHO reports that high cholesterol levels increase the risk of heart disease and heart disease stroke. WHO estimates, high cholesterol levels cause 2.6 million deaths worldwide.
According to the Directorate of Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Diseases (P2PTM), cholesterol is a fatty compound produced by various cells in the body. About a quarter of the cholesterol produced in the body is produced by liver cells.
The body needs cholesterol to stay healthy. However, high cholesterol levels can increase the risk heart disease, stroke, and poor blood circulation. Therefore, it is important to monitor cholesterol levels regularly.
Causes of High Cholesterol
According to the Ministry of Health, the normal value for total cholesterol is less than 200 mg/dL. Cholesterol levels that are more than 240 mg/dL are high and dangerous.
Some of the causes of high cholesterol are:
- The habit of eating unhealthy foods (having high levels of saturated fat), such as egg yolks, butter, biscuits, cheese, cream, or coconut milk.
- Lack of exercise or activity.
- Smoking habit.
- Too many alcoholic drinks.
- Obesity.
- Having certain diseases, such as hypertension or high blood pressure, diabetes, an underactive thyroid gland (hypothyroidism), liver disease, and kidney disease.
- Age increase. In old age, the risk of high cholesterol which triggers atherosclerosis is also greater.
Characteristics of High Cholesterol
According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, high cholesterol doesn’t actually cause symptoms, so many people don’t realize it. The only way to know cholesterol levels is to have a blood test.
High cholesterol increases the risk of heart disease, so when cholesterol levels rise, a number of symptoms of heart disease can appear. quote Healthline, characteristics of high cholesterol The potential causes of heart disease are:
- Chest pain.
- Nauseous.
- Extreme fatigue.
- Hard to breathe.
- Pain in the neck, jaw, upper abdomen, or back.
- Numbness or feeling of extreme cold sensation.
The Relationship of Cholesterol and Heart Disease
Cholesterol is divided into two, namely: low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or bad cholesterol, and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) or good cholesterol. High LDL cholesterol in the blood can increase the risk of coronary artery disease and other heart diseases.
According to the United States National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP), high LDL cholesterol causes a buildup of artery walls. Over time, the buildup causes hardening of the arteries. As a result, blood vessels become narrow and blood flow to the heart is slowed or blocked.
Blood carries oxygen to the heart, if oxygen cannot reach the heart, you may suffer from chest pain. If the blood supply to part of the heart is completely cut off by a blockage due to high cholesterol levels, the result is a heart attack.
High Cholesterol Treatment
Cholesterol lowering drugs belongs to the category of hypolipidemic drugs, which are types of drugs to reduce the level of lipids and lipoproteins (lipid-protein complexes) in the blood. The use of cholesterol-lowering drugs in pharmacies must use a doctor’s prescription.
According to the Food and Drug Supervisory Agency (BPOM), there are several categories of high cholesterol treatment, namely:
1. Statin
Statin stsu inhibitor reduktase HMG-CoA (HMG CoA reductase inhibitor) is the most commonly used cholesterol-lowering drug. Statins can reduce the incidence of cardiovascular disease and mortality in adults. Some of the statin-type cholesterol-lowering drugs are lovastatin, pravastatin, simvastatin, fluvastatin, rosuvastatin, and atorvastatin.
2. Fiber
Fibrates are a type of drug to lower blood triglyceride levels by reducing the production of VLDL or very-low-density lipoproteinnamely particles carrying triglycerides circulating in the blood.
Although fibrates may reduce the risk of coronary heart disease in patients with low HDL cholesterol or high triglycerides, statins should be the drug of first choice.
Fibrates can cause a syndrome resembling myositis, which is inflammation of the muscles, especially if the patient’s kidney function is impaired.
The combination of fibrates with statins should be used with caution because of the increased risk of muscle effects, particularly rhabdomyolysis, a potentially life-threatening syndrome resulting from breakdown of skeletal muscle fibers with leakage of muscle contents.
Fibrates should be used with monitoring of kidney function and creatinine kinase (an enzyme found in muscle). Some types of fibrates cholesterol-lowering drugs are bezafibrate, fenofibrate, and gemfibrozil.
3. Niacin
Niacin or nicotinic acid is an organic compound and a form of vitamin B3, which is an essential nutrient for humans. Niacin is used as a cholesterol-lowering drug and can be produced by plants and animals from the amino acid tryptophan.
Niacin is recommended for use in conjunction with statins when the statin alone is not enough to control high cholesterol lowering.
According to BPOM, the benefits of niacin are limited by its side effects, especially vasodilation (widening of blood vessels). At doses of 1.5 to 3 grams per day, niacin can lower cholesterol and triglyceride levels by inhibiting their synthesis. Niacin also increases HDL cholesterol (good cholesterol).
Therapy with niacin should be started gradually in increasing doses to reduce the incidence and severity of side effects that may occur during the initiation of therapy. The recommended dosage is:
- 375 mg once a day before bed for the first week.
- 500 mg once a day before bed for the second week.
- 750 mg once daily at bedtime for the third week.
- 500 mg two tablets at bedtime for 4-7 weeks, if tolerated may be increased to 1000 mg two tablets at bedtime.
After the 7th week, if a response of 1000 mg once daily is sufficient, it can be increased to a dose of 1500 mg once a day. Then the dose can be increased to 2000 mg once a day.
4. Bile acid binder
Bile acid binders (bile acid sequestrant) is a drug that works by binding bile acids and preventing their reabsorption. Thus, there is an increase in the conversion of cholesterol to bile acids in the liver.
The result will increase the activity of LDL receptors in liver cells, thereby increasing the breakdown of LDL cholesterol from plasma. Types of drugs that include bile acid binders are cholestyramine, colestipol, and kolesevelam.
5. Ezetimibe
Ezetimibe (cholesterol absorption inhibitors) is a class of compounds that prevent the absorption of cholesterol from the small intestine into the circulatory system. Ezetimib can inhibit the absorption of cholesterol in the gastrointestinal tract.
These cholesterol-lowering drugs are used as an adjunct to dietary manipulation in patients with primary hypercholesterolemia in combination with statins or alone (if statins are insufficient).
Thus an explanation of the characteristics of high cholesterol and its treatment. Keep in mind that these drugs must use a doctor’s prescription and consultation first.
–
