Ensure you’re taking your cholesterol medicine correctly
It’s important for people with high cholesterol to take their medication as prescribed. Still, it can be a challenge to keep up with it all. These expert strategies can help you create a medication routine that fits your life.
If you have high cholesterol, you might already know that you should limit certain foods, quit smoking, and carve out time for exercise. While lifestyle improvements play a fundamental role in keeping your cholesterol levels stable (and preventing a dangerous buildup of plaque in your arteries), the most important thing you can do to stay healthy is take your medications as prescribed by your doctor.
Stick to these four steps to ensure that your cholesterol medications work for you:
Step 1: Learn about your prescriptions
When your doctor prescribes and reviews the medications you’re taking, it’s important to pay close attention and learn as much as you can about them. Bring a notepad and a pen to your next appointment, with these six questions written down:
- How exactly should I take the medicine? This includes the dose, the time to take it, and whether it’s better taken with or without food.
- If I forget to take a dose, what should I do?
- Should I watch out for any side effects?
- Will this medicine interact with any other drugs or supplements that I’m taking? Are they dangerous to take together?
- How will I know if the medicine is working?
- Is there a generic version I can use to save money?
Step 2: Follow your doctor’s orders
Take your medication exactly the way your doctor advises. Skipping a dose, taking a different amount, or stopping a prescription altogether can affect your cholesterol levels and raise your risk of a heart attack.
Taking your medication as prescribed will not only lower your cholesterol, but it will also decrease your chances of experiencing a heart attack or stroke.
Call your doctor if you’re experiencing any side effects. Ask your doctor how often you should be examined while taking cholesterol medicine.
Step 3: Make taking your pills a habit
If you are taking more than just cholesterol medication, make an easy-to-read chart with the names of your medications and the times of day to take them. If possible, pair taking them with other daily habits, such as making your morning coffee, brushing your teeth, or feeding a pet. You can also set an alarm on your clock, phone, or computer. Ask your doctor if there is a certain time of the day you should take your cholesterol medication.
Keep your medications together in one place, out of reach of children. To avoid dealing with multiple pill bottles, try a pillbox that organizes your medications for each day of the week and the time of day you take them. Call your pharmacy to see if you can have your prescription automatically refilled (or mailed to you) to save time and money.
Step 4: Make healthy lifestyle tweaks
Remember that cholesterol medications don’t take the place of exercising regularly, staying tobacco-free, maintaining a healthy weight, limiting alcohol, and following a healthy diet. These smart moves have been proven to reduce blood pressure and high blood sugar and lower your risk of a heart attack. They can also improve your life expectancy. In fact, a recent study revealed that maintaining these habits can increase life expectancy by up to 14 years.
Inspired to make some healthy upgrades in your own life? Talk to your health care team about what you can do to continue thriving for years to come.
