How Philadelphia Residents Can Lower Their Cholesterol

Healthy cholesterol is essential when it comes to keeping your body in tip-top shape. But if you’re like 38 percent of American adults, you may be battling with high cholesterol. High cholesterol, which is caused when you have too much cholesterol in your blood, can lead to fatty buildup in the walls of your blood vessels. This fatty buildup in turn causes atherosclerosis, which has the potential to cause a heart attack or a stroke.

Thankfully, a healthy diet and exercise are among the ways you can lower your cholesterol. Philadelphia residents in particular benefit from living in a city that provides plenty of ways to help people lower their cholesterol levels. Read ahead for tips on how you can keep your levels in check.

Make regular doctor appointments to monitor your cholesterol levels.

Given that high cholesterol has no signs or symptoms, it is vital that you visit your doctor at least once a year to get your cholesterol checked. To check your cholesterol, your doctor can do a blood test known as a lipid profile to check your cholesterol levels. Some tests may require that you fast from food and drink for eight to 12 hours before your cholesterol test, so be sure to ask your health care provider beforehand. Once you’re aware of your cholesterol levels, you can make the steps necessary to lower your cholesterol.

Load up on fresh fruits and veggies at your local farmers market.

To keep your cholesterol in a healthy range, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that you limit foods high in saturated fat and instead choose foods that are low in saturated fat, trans fat, sodium (salt) and added sugars, and eat foods that are naturally high in fiber.

To refresh your diet, your local farmers market is a great place to start. Whether you visit a larger market such as Philadelphia’s Rittenhouse Farmers’ Market or a smaller, pop-up such as the once-weekly Chestnut Hill Farmers’ Market, you’ll find plenty of healthy food options. If you’re specifically aiming to lower your cholesterol, consider shopping for fresh fruits and vegetables, lean meats, beans, nuts, whole grains, olive oil and avocados.

Head outdoors for a calorie-crunching workout.

Regular physical activity can play a major role in lowering your cholesterol and maintaining a healthy weight. According to the CDC, for adults, the surgeon general recommends 2 hours and 30 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise, including brisk walking or bicycling, every week.

Although Philadelphia is quite the urban metropolis, the city boasts a number of walking trails. If you need a momentary break from the cityscape, the John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum features more than 10 miles of trails, allowing you to connect with nature at just about every turn. If you prefer to bike your way through the wildlife refuge, the 3.5-mile Wetland Loop allows you to do just that.

While Philadelphia’s “Rocky Steps” (made popular in the film “Rocky III”) have become quite the tourist attraction, the 72 steps certainly provide an extra workout for those who’d rather trek the city sidewalks.

Use GoodRx for virtual appointments and medications.

Serving as a convenient one-stop shop for both online visits with medical specialists and deep discounts on prescriptions, GoodRx is a simple tool you can use to keep your cholesterol in check. Using GoodRx Care, members can sign up for an appointment with a specialist as soon as today.

To help combat your high cholesterol, GoodRx Care is able to connect you with providers who can evaluate your history of high cholesterol. If necessary, your chosen provider can then help you get refills of cholesterol-lowering statin medicines.

To keep your experience as seamless as possible, GoodRx allows you to easily search for high cholesterol medications at pharmacies near you. Not only are you able to see the exact price of medications at your neighborhood pharmacy, you can also get free coupons for your prescription. Simply download the GoodRx app or show your pharmacist the coupon on your mobile device to save big.

Visit GoodRx today to save big on prescriptions, schedule a virtual visit with a specialist and more.