Key takeaways:
Too much cholesterol in the blood can lead to its buildup in the arteries of major organs like the heart and brain.
It can take a few weeks to several months to lower cholesterol levels with appropriate treatment.
Treatments to lower cholesterol include diet and lifestyle changes, exercise, and medications.
Table of contents
Definition
Healthy levels
Timeline
Lowering your cholesterol
Bottom line
References
You’ve probably heard the term “bad cholesterol” being blamed for heart attacks and strokes. If your healthcare provider has told you that your cholesterol is high, you may be wondering what you need to do to lower your cholesterol and how quickly you can do it to avoid these risks.
If you’re thinking about your cholesterol, you’re not alone. Almost 40% of adults in the U.S. have high cholesterol. But there are steps you can take to reduce your cholesterol and decrease your risk. Let’s take a closer look at the most effective ways to lower your cholesterol and how long it should take to see healthy changes.
What is cholesterol?
Cholesterol is a fatty substance that is used in every cell in your body. Cholesterol is useful when it’s found in the right places. Some of the important jobs that cholesterol does include:
Building cell membranes
Producing vitamin D
Making bile for digestion
Acting as a building block for all steroid hormones (like estrogen and testosterone)
Cholesterol comes from animal products in the diet. The liver also makes it. Cholesterol is carried around the body by special proteins in the blood called “lipoproteins.” The lipoprotein level is what’s measured when you have a cholesterol test. These lipoproteins include:
High-density lipoprotein (HDL): This is called “good cholesterol” because it takes cholesterol from your blood back to your liver. The liver then removes it from your body.
Low-density lipoprotein (LDL): This is called “bad cholesterol” because it can build up in your arteries, leading to heart disease and stroke. These buildups, known as plaques, can prevent proper blood flow to your organs and tissues.
Very-low-density lipoprotein (VLDL): This can also be found in plaques in the arteries. It attaches to triglycerides in your blood.
What are normal cholesterol levels?
A normal, or healthy, cholesterol level will vary based on your age and gender. As a general rule, for adults those levels are:
Total cholesterol: under 200 mg/dL
LDL: under 100 mg/dL
HDL for men: higher than 40 mg/dL
HDL for women: higher than 50 mg/dL
For people under 19 years old, normal cholesterol levels are:
Total cholesterol: under 170 mg/dL
LDL: under 100 mg/dL
HDL: higher than 45 mg/dL
Another test bundled with cholesterol on your lipid panel is “triglycerides.” Triglycerides aren’t made of cholesterol, but they can contribute to heart disease. Your triglycerides should be less than 150 mg/dL, regardless of your age or gender.
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How long does it take to lower cholesterol?
It can take several weeks to months to see a significant improvement in your cholesterol numbers. But the timeline will be different for everyone. How long it takes for you to lower your cholesterol depends on many factors, like:
Genetics: People with certain genetic conditions like familial hypercholesterolemia — which causes high cholesterol — may take longer to lower their cholesterol.
Treatment: Dietary changes alone may take longer to lower cholesterol than diet plus exercise. Medication often works the fastest, but it can take several months to figure out the best medication and dose for you.
Consistency: If you aren’t consistent with your diet, exercise, or cholesterol medication, it can take longer to lower your cholesterol.
Severity: Very high cholesterol can require adjusting doses or changing medications, and it may take more time.
How can you lower your cholesterol?
Lowering your cholesterol is often done using a comprehensive approach. Diet, exercise, and lifestyle changes are usually the first step. Medications are then added to this effort if necessary.
First, we’ll take a look at some natural treatments. Then we’ll go into medicinal treatments that may help you to reduce your cholesterol.
Diet
Some dietary changes can work to lower cholesterol in as little as 4 weeks. Adopting a plant-based diet with lots of fiber can help lower cholesterol, blood sugar, and blood pressure.
Two eating plans that can lower total cholesterol are the TLC (Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes) and DASH (Dietary Approach to Stop Hypertension) diets. Both eating plans limit:
Fatty cuts of meat
Full fat dairy
Processed foods
Added sugar
Instead, these meal plans recommend that you eat:
Whole grains
Fruits
Vegetables
Lean meats
Fish
On average, you can expect about a 5% drop in cholesterol following a low-fat eating plan. One downside to using diet alone to lower cholesterol is that the good HDL cholesterol can also decrease.
Exercise
Regular physical activity can help raise your good HDL cholesterol. More intense activity can also lower your total cholesterol, LDL, and triglycerides. In one small study, changes in cholesterol were seen in as little as 15 weeks with moderate exercise.
The American Heart Association recommends getting at least 150 minutes of moderate aerobic exercise throughout the week. Aerobic exercise can include:
Walking
Swimming
Cycling
Jumping rope
Dancing
You can also see cholesterol benefits from adding resistance training to your movement regimen. Resistance training is useful alone, but when combined with aerobic exercise it helps to lower cholesterol even more. You should aim for resistance training 2 times per week to see health benefits.
Lifestyle changes
Your lifestyle choices can impact your cholesterol levels. Research shows that changing one or more factors in your life can help you lower your cholesterol to some degree:
Quitting smoking
Managing stress
Getting enough sleep
Maintaining a healthy weight
These changes are often recommended along with a healthy diet, exercise, or medications. Dr. Vaughn Payne, a cardiologist and medical director with CVS Caremark advises “about 3 months of lifestyle modification, including dietary instruction and exercise advice.”
Medications
Dr. Payne recommends adding medication if there isn’t “satisfactory improvement in lipid levels” with diet, exercise, and lifestyle changes alone. He also notes that medications may be started sooner if you have known cardiovascular disease.
Some medications may begin to lower cholesterol within as little as 2 weeks. There are many effective medications that can help lower cholesterol levels.
Some of the most common types of medications used to lower cholesterol are:
Statins: These work by blocking the production of cholesterol. Examples are simvastatin (Zocor) and lovastatin.
Bile acid sequestrants: These medications trap cholesterol in the bile where it’s removed from the body. Examples are colesevelam (Welchol) and cholestyramine (Prevalite).
Niacin or nicotinic acid: This works to raise HDL and lower LDL and triglycerides.
PCSK9 inhibitors: These are injectable medications for very high cholesterol levels. They can be used alone or with statins. Examples are Repatha and Praluent.
The bottom line
Lowering high cholesterol can help prevent heart attacks, strokes, and other cardiovascular problems. Diet, exercise, and lifestyle changes can help lower cholesterol over a period of several months. If your cholesterol levels don’t improve after 3 months, you may need to consider a cholesterol-lowering medication. Your healthcare provider will help you choose the right path depending on your age, gender, and health history.
References
American Heart Association. (2018). Strength and resistance training exercise.
American Heart Association. (2020). Prevention and treatment of high cholesterol (hyperlipidemia).
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Caffrey, M. K. (2015). CDC: Half of those eligible for cholesterol drugs aren’t taking them. American Journal of Managed Care.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2023). Cholesterol-lowering medicines.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2023). Familial hypercholesterolemia.
Mann, S., et al. (2014). Differential effects of aerobic exercise, resistance training and combined exercise modalities on cholesterol and the lipid profile: Review, synthesis and recommendations. Sports Medicine.
MedlinePlus. (2020). Cholesterol.
MedlinePlus. (2020). Cholesterol levels: What you need to know.
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. (n.d.). Therapeutic lifestyle changes (TLC) to lower cholesterol.
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. (2022). Blood cholesterol treatment.
Nawrocki, J. W., et al. (1995). Reduction of LDL cholesterol by 25% to 60% in patients with primary hypercholesterolemia by atorvastatin, a new HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor. Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology.
Rosenthal, R. L. (2000). Effectiveness of altering serum cholesterol levels without drugs. Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings.
Stanton, K. M., et al. (2022). Moderate‐ and high‐intensity exercise improves lipoprotein profile and cholesterol efflux capacity in healthy young men. Journal of the American Heart Association.
Villines, Z. (2023). The best ways to reduce cholesterol, and how long it takes. Medical News Today.
Yokoyama, Y., et al. (2017). Association between plant-based diets and plasma lipids: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Nutrition Reviews.
Zampelas, A., et al. 92019). New insights into cholesterol functions: A friend or an enemy? Nutrients.
GoodRx Health has strict sourcing policies and relies on primary sources such as medical organizations, governmental agencies, academic institutions, and peer-reviewed scientific journals. Learn more about how we ensure our content is accurate, thorough, and unbiased by reading our editorial guidelines.
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