by Leigh Ann Otte

There are lots of ways to lower your cholesterol naturally: exercise, eating less saturated and trans fat, eating more fiber. But have you heard of plant sterols?

Manufacturers have been adding them to foods, and they’re a good option for a bit more help shoving that cholesterol number down, says registered dietitian Carol M. Bareuther. Learn more in this week’s featured article, “Eating Plant Sterols to Lower Cholesterol.”

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Leigh Ann Otte is the managing editor of MyFamilyDoctorMag.com and a freelance health writer. This information is not meant to be individual advice. Please consult your doctor for that. See our disclaimer here.

by James Hubbard, M.D., M.P.H.

A few months back, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommended drugs for some children to lower cholesterol.  Outrage, controversy and indignation followed.  Apparently this reaction took the AAP by surprise.  I am not sure why.

Authors of an opinion piece called “Storm Over Statins: The Controversy Surrounding the Pharmagologic Treatment of Children” take a look at this dilemma in the Sept. 25, 2008, issue of the NEJM.

They write:

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