High Cholesterol

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Order Statins Online

You can order statins to treat high cholesterol from Simple Online Pharmacy. Simply complete a medical assessment form and our doctor will assess your suitability for the medicine. If your order is approved, our doctor will pass a prescription to our pharmacy team. Our pharmacy team will check the prescription and dispatch it securely to your delivery address. 

We offer a number of statins including atorvastatin, simvastatin, and rosuvastatin. We also offer the brands Lipitor and Crestor. Statins are effective medicines at lowering cholesterol and can be prescribed to reduce the risk of developing heart disease. Visit the NHS website for more information on statins.

You can be sure you are receiving your medication from a trusted online pharmacy and online doctor in the UK.

High Cholesterol Treatments

High Cholesterol treatment options

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    Simvastatin

    Simvastatin

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    Atorvastatin

    Atorvastatin

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    Lipitor

    Lipitor

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    Pravastatin

    Pravastatin

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    Rosuvastatin

    Rosuvastatin

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    Fluvastatin

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Overview

What is high cholesterol?

Cholesterol is a fatty substance known as a lipid. It is an important substance that the body uses for a number of crucial functions.  

The cholesterol in your blood comes from two sources:

  • Produced by your liver
  • From your diet

Cholesterol is carried in the body by proteins and these are called lipoproteins. The two types of lipoproteins are:

  • Low-density lipoprotein (LDL)
  • High-density lipoprotein (HDL)

LDL is known as ‘bad’ cholesterol. The reason for this is that high LDL levels in the blood can cause cholesterol to build up in artery walls. On the other hand, high HDL levels reduce the risk of cholesterol build-up and HDL is known as ‘good’ cholesterol.

High ‘bad’ cholesterol levels lead to a build-up of fatty deposits on artery walls called atherosclerosis. This can reduce blood flow and potentially cause blood clots. A lot of evidence shows that high levels of LDL cholesterol increase the risks of:

  • Coronary heart disease (including heart attacks and angina)
  • Transient ischaemic attack (TIA - also called a ‘mini-stroke’)
  • Stroke
  • Peripheral arterial disease

Although high ‘bad’ cholesterol levels are an important risk factor for the above diseases, there are many other factors that increase the risk of developing heart disease.

There are no symptoms in people with high cholesterol, it is only diagnosed by measuring cholesterol levels from a blood sample.

A cholesterol test measures the following:

  • LDL cholesterol
  • HDL cholesterol
  • Total cholesterol
  • Triglycerides

Causes

There are many factors that can contribute to high cholesterol. Some of these are factors that you cannot change such as:

  • Increasing age
  • A family history of high cholesterol or coronary heart disease
  • Ethnicity - people of certain ethnicities can be at an increased risk
  • Sex - men are more likely to have heart attacks than women  

Certain medical conditions can also increase your chances of having high cholesterol. These include diabetes, high blood pressure, liver disease, and kidney disease.

Lifestyle Factors

There are a number of lifestyle factors that increase your risk of heart disease and high cholesterol:

  • Being overweight or obese
  • Eating an unhealthy diet (especially one high in saturated fat)
  • Lack of exercise
  • Smoking
  • Excessive consumption of alcohol

These lifestyle factors are important causes of high cholesterol because they are factors that people can change to lower their cholesterol and reduce the risk of heart disease.

Treatments

Lifestyle Advice

Keeping a healthy lifestyle is a key way of preventing or reducing high cholesterol. There are a number of changes you can make: 

  • Diet - improving your diet can reduce the amount of cholesterol that comes into your body from the food you eat. Try to follow the NHS balanced diet advice, whilst reducing your intake of saturated fat.
  • Exercise - aim to do some type of physical activity every day. Read the adult guidelines for exercise for more details and ideas.
  • Stop smoking - this can improve your cholesterol levels and have many other health benefits at the same time. For more information on how to stop smoking you can speak to your GP, visit the NHS Stop Smoking Service or visit our Stop Smoking page.
  • Alcohol - try to reduce your alcohol consumption or keep consumption within the recommended limits.

Statins

Statins are a family of medicines that are used to lower cholesterol levels. Statins are one of the most commonly prescribed types of medicine in the UK. They have been shown to be effective at reducing cholesterol levels and are the drugs of first choice in treating high cholesterol.

Our doctors are able to prescribe various statins:

  • Simvastatin
  • Atorvastatin
  • Rosuvastatin
  • Fluvastatin
  • Pravastatin
  • Lipitor (the brand version of atorvastatin)
  • Crestor (the brand version of rosuvastatin)

The statins differ in their strength and ‘intensity’ at reducing cholesterol. Examples of high-intensity statins are:

  • Atorvastatin 80mg
  • Rosuvastatin 40mg
  • Simvastatin 80mg

The effects of other types of statins such as pravastatin and low doses of fluvastatin are usually not as strong. Certain factors such as your cholesterol test results can determine how strong a statin you should take.

Side Effects

Side effects can be different for different people. For example, one person might find simvastatin has no side effects whilst another person may need to stop taking simvastatin because of the side effects.

There are some side effects that are common for most statins. These include:

  • Sleeping problems
  • Nausea
  • Diarrhoea or constipation
  • Indigestion
  • Headache
  • Muscle pain
  • Dizziness

If you find your statin is giving you side effects, you should discuss these with your doctor. Your doctor may decide to switch you to a different statin to see if the side effects subside with the new statin.

Statins may rarely cause dangerous muscle side effects. For this reason, if you notice any muscle weakness, ache, pain or fatigue whilst taking a statin you should notify your doctor immediately.

Statins may also affect the liver. Your GP will give you a blood test usually every 12 months to check your liver is healthy and unaffected by statin use.

Other Medicines

Other high cholesterol medication can sometimes be prescribed instead of statins:

  • Ezetimibe (can be used alongside a statin)
  • Fibrates (e.g bezafibrate, fenofibrate)
  • Injectable treatments like PCSK9 inhibitors

FAQ

What is high cholesterol?

Cholesterol is a fatty substance known as a lipid. It is an important substance that the body uses for a number of crucial functions.  

High ‘bad’ cholesterol levels lead to a build-up of fatty deposits on artery walls called atherosclerosis. This can reduce blood flow and potentially cause serious problems such as a heart attack or stroke.

What can cause high cholesterol?

There are many factors that can contribute to high cholesterol. Some of these are factors that you cannot change such as:

  • A family history of high cholesterol or coronary heart disease
  • Sex - men are more likely to have heart attacks than women
  • Ethnicity - people of certain ethnicities can be at an increased risk
  • Increasing age

The following lifestyle factors can increase your risk of heart disease and high cholesterol:

  • Lack of exercise
  • Smoking
  • Being overweight or obese
  • Excessive consumption of alcohol
  • Eating an unhealthy diet (especially one high in saturated fat)

What should you not eat when you have high cholesterol?

An important food type to avoid is saturated fat. Try to check food labels when you are grocery shopping and keep an eye out for high amounts of saturated fat. A number of foods contain saturated fat such as ice cream, sausages, cakes, butter, cheese, pastries, and chocolate.

As well as avoiding saturated fat, you should try to eat a healthy, balanced diet that contains plenty of fruit and vegetables.

What should I do if my cholesterol is high?

There are a number of lifestyle changes you can implement to reduce your cholesterol levels such as:

  • Improving your diet as mentioned above
  • Take regular exercise
  • Stop smoking
  • Reduce your alcohol consumption or keep it within the recommended limits

What are the side effects of statins?

Some side effects are common to most statins such as:

  • Nausea
  • Headache
  • Muscle pain
  • Indigestion
  • Dizziness
  • Sleeping problems
  • Diarrhoea or constipation

Rare side effects include muscle problems and liver problems. More information can be found on the NHS website.

What foods should be avoided when taking statins?

Drinking large quantities of grapefruit juice can affect the way some statins work. Due to this, you should not drink grapefruit juice when taking certain statins e.g atorvastatin. Search for the patient information leaflet for your specific statin to see whether you can drink grapefruit juice whilst taking it.

Consuming large amounts of alcohol while taking statins should be avoided.

Can I order statins online?

Yes, you can order statins online from our UK registered online pharmacy and doctor service. You will need to complete an online medical questionnaire when ordering your statin. This can be reviewed by our doctors who will authorise a prescription if suitable. The prescription is sent to our pharmacy team who dispatch the medicine to your address.

    Simvastatin

    Medication Simple Online Pharmacy
    10mg x84 £14.99
    20mg x84 £14.99
    40mg x84 £14.99
    80mg x84 £14.99

    Atorvastatin

    Medication Simple Online Pharmacy
    10mg x84 £14.99
    20mg x84 £14.99
    40mg x84 £14.99
    80mg x84 £14.99

    Lipitor

    Medication Simple Online Pharmacy
    10mg x84 £45.99
    20mg x84 £87.99
    40mg x84 £87.99
    80mg x84 £99.99

    Pravastatin

    Medication Simple Online Pharmacy
    10mg x84 £9.99
    20mg x84 £10.99
    40mg x84 £12.99

    Rosuvastatin

    Medication Simple Online Pharmacy
    5mg x84 £15.99
    10mg x84 £15.99
    20mg x84 £18.99
    40mg x84 £21.99

    Crestor

    Medication Simple Online Pharmacy
    5mg x84 £29.99
    10mg x84 £31.99
    20mg x84 £56.99
    40mg x84 £79.99

    Fluvastatin

    Medication Simple Online Pharmacy
    20mg x84 £15.99
    40mg x84 £17.99

    High Cholesterol Treatment Comparison