Some of the conditions that have been associated to having high cholesterol are liver stones, liver failure, gall stones, heart disease, high blood pressure, strokes, blindness, angina, impotence, diabetes, and other ailments related to the circulatory system. In the United States, heart disease has been labeled the number 1 men and women killer…and having high cholesterol increases the likelyhood of getting it.

So What Can You Do if You Have High Cholesterol Levels?
The conventional strategy would be to find out your individual situation and determine how high it really is. If your ’serum’ cholesterols’ total is below 200, you’re cholesterol levels are safe. If you’re level is between 200 to 240, you’re what’s is considered as borderline. Anything above 240 is pretty high.

So after your laboratory results are completed and you’re diagnosed as having high cholesterol, your doctor will most likely prescribe you some drugs.

While there are drugs to effectively reduce or control high cholesterol, the problem is the side-effects. The most common ones are diarrhea, cramps, headaches, nausea, dizziness, muscle aches, liver inflammation and sleeping problems.

Lowering Your Cholesterol Without The Bad Side-Effects
If you’d like to take the natural approach, here are some herbal remedies which can help you lower your cholesterol:

• Niacin
• Policosanol
• Plant Sterols
• Cayenne Pepper
• Garlic (Allum Sativa)
• Guggul

Niacin
Also known as Vitamin B3, Niacin has been proven to lower LDLs (the bad cholesterol), lower triglycerides, and elevate HDLs (the good cholesterol).

Policosanol
Studies have shown that Policosanol to effective reduce cholesterol, reduce viruses, and also provide neural protection.

Plant Sterols
Plant Sterols are naturally-occuring substances found in certain plants. Studies have shown that they reduce absorption of cholesterol in the intestines which in effect reduce cholesterol levels. During these tests, it was found that LDLs were reduced, while HDL levels were unchanged.

Cayenne
Herbalists have used cayenne as a powerful tonic. It contains a stimulant called capsaicin which promotes circulation and stimulates the heart.

Garlic – Allum Sativa
Chinese herbalists have used garlic to treat a variety of disorders and infections. Scientific studies have later shown garlic as being a remedy for lowering cholesterol and normalizing high blood pressure.

Guggul
Also known as Commiphora Mukul and Indian Bedellium, the Guggul resin has been found to reduce cholesterol and lower the risk of coronary artery disease and strokes.

References

¹ http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=536