Cholesterol-Lowering Drugs Cholesterol helps your body build new cells, insulate nerves and produce hormones. But too much of it in your bloodstream can lead to coronary artery disease. Normally, the liver makes all the cholesterol the body needs.
Some people have a genetic predisposition to high blood cholesterol levels.
These people may need drug therapy in addition to diet to bring their cholesterol down to a safe level. It's found in food, but also available at high doses by prescription. The main side effects are flushing, itching, tingling and headache. Bile-acid sequestrants such as Questran work inside the intestine, where they bind to bile from the liver and prevent it from being reabsorbed into the circulation. Bile is made largely from cholesterol, so these drugs deplete the body's supply of cholesterol.