Dyslipidemia: Causes and treatments

October 23, 2025

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Dyslipidemia, also known as high cholesterol or triglycerides, is an increasingly common condition, especially in women over 30 or during menopause. Although it may go unnoticed, it increases the risk of cardiovascular disease if it is not detected and treated in time.

In this article, you will discover what dyslipidemia is, its causes, most noticeable symptoms, and the most effective treatments for keeping your cardiovascular health under control.

Introduction

Heart health often receives less attention than it deserves, especially among women. However, cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death among women worldwide, and one of the factors that most influences their development is dyslipidemia, an abnormality in blood cholesterol or triglyceride levels (World Health Organization, 2023).

What is concerning is that dyslipidemia has no clear symptoms, unlike other cardiovascular diseases. You may feel well, maintain an active lifestyle, and still have elevated levels of LDL (“bad”) cholesterol or triglycerides without knowing it. Therefore, it is necessary to understand its causes, prevent it, and treat it in time, as this is a form of self-care and active prevention.

What is dyslipidemia and how does it affect women?

Dyslipidemia occurs when there is an imbalance in the body's fats, “bad” cholesterol (LDL) is elevated, “good” cholesterol (HDL) is low, or triglycerides exceed normal levels. This imbalance can damage the arteries and increase the risk of a heart attack or stroke (Mach et al., 2023).

Women go through stages in which their risk is particularly elevated:

During menopause, estrogen levels fall and LDL cholesterol tends to rise. Remember that estrogens are cardioprotective.
During pregnancy, temporary lipid abnormalities may occur.
In young women, high stress levels, restrictive diets, and lack of sleep also affect lipid balance.

Recognizing these stages of life, which are accompanied by hormonal and physiological changes, helps you take action in time and avoid health problems.

Most common causes and risk factors

Although genetics may play a role, most cases of dyslipidemia are due to lifestyle factors.

The most common among women include:

An unbalanced diet, excessive ultra-processed foods, sugars, and saturated fats.
Sedentary lifestyle, office jobs, or routines involving little physical activity. Fewer than 8,000 steps a day is a sign that you are sedentary.
Chronic stress, which raises cortisol levels and disrupts fat metabolism.
Hormonal changes such as menopause, oral contraceptives, or polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).
Smoking and alcohol lower HDL Cholesterol and increase triglycerides. They also increase oxidative stress.
Other diseases such as type 2 diabetes, hypothyroidism, or kidney disease (Grundy et al., 2019).

Most of these factors can be easily modified through small changes in lifestyle and, primarily, nutrition.

Symptoms and warning signs

Dyslipidemia often progresses without many symptoms, but the body sends visible or everyday signals that can serve as warnings. So pay attention, because you should know them.

In women, some common symptoms include:

Tiredness or heaviness even after sleeping well.
Chest pain or pressure during exertion or stressful situations.
Dizziness or a feeling of “brain fog” when standing up quickly.
Increased abdominal fat, especially around the waist.
Oilier skin or the appearance of small yellow spots (xanthelasmas) near the eyes.
Cold hands and feet or a tingling sensation.
Slow digestion or a feeling of heaviness after meals.
Difficulty recovering after training or a constant feeling of exhaustion.

These signs do not always indicate dyslipidemia, but when they coincide with a family history or a sedentary lifestyle, it is advisable to have blood tests assessing cardiovascular parameters, although we’ll discuss this in the next section.

Diagnosis and healthy parameters

The diagnosis is made through a fasting blood test that measures:

Total Cholesterol
LDL (“bad” Cholesterol)
HDL (“good” Cholesterol)
Triglycerides

According to current guidelines, the ideal values for avoiding cardiovascular risks should look like this:

Parameter	Ideal value
Total Cholesterol	< 200 mg/dL
LDL-c	< 100 mg/dL (or < 70 mg/dL if there is high risk)
HDL-c	> 50 mg/dL
Triglycerides	< 150 mg/dL

Table 1. Healthy cardiovascular values. Adapted from (Mach et al., 2023)

A quarterly checkup makes it possible to anticipate potential future problems. Remember that health begins not with treatment, but with prevention.

And if we’re talking about treatments, let’s see how we can treat dyslipidemia.

Natural treatments and lifestyle changes

The first step is always adjust daily habitsIn women, these changes not only improve Cholesterol levels, but also energy, sleep, and hormonal well-being.

Healthy and balanced diet

Eating well is non-negotiable, especially in these circumstances, so you’ll be able to keep some practical recommendations such as:

Avoid trans and saturated fats.
Increase your intake of fruits, vegetables, and legumes.
Choose healthy (unsaturated) fats such as olive oil, avocado, and nuts.
Include omega-3s (oily fish or supplements) for their cardioprotective effect.
Follow a Mediterranean or DASH diet; both have strong supporting evidence (Estruch et al., 2022).

Regular physical activity

Movement is a therapeutic tool, so the movement goal should be around 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week and two strength-training sessions (Piercy et al., 2018).

This will improve HDL cholesterol and reduce triglycerides, thereby lowering cardiovascular risk.

Stress management and restorative sleep

Poor sleep or living with chronic stress disrupts hormonal balance and promotes increased lipid levels. Incorporate breaks, breathing techniques, yoga, or leisurely walks, or supplements such as ashwagandha help keep stress under control and improve both sleep quality and sleep latency.

Pharmacological treatments: when they are necessary

If lifestyle changes are not sufficient or cardiovascular risk is high, the doctor may prescribe certain medications, such as:

Statins: reduce hepatic cholesterol production (Silverman et al., 2016).
Fibrates: useful when elevated triglycerides predominate (Fruchart et al., 2019).
Ezetimibe: blocks intestinal cholesterol absorption (Cannon et al., 2015).
PCSK9 inhibitors, including more recent and effective therapies for resistant cases (Sabatine et al., 2017; Ray et al., 2023).

Each treatment is individualized and must be prescribed by a doctor, taking the person's circumstances and risks into account.

What Is Dyslipidemia and How to Prevent It Moremuscle

Conclusion

Dyslipidemia represents one of the main modifiable risk factors in the development of cardiovascular disease, which are responsible for a high burden of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Their frequently asymptomatic nature highlights the importance of early diagnosis and regular monitoring of the lipid profile, especially in women, whose bodies change throughout the different hormonal stages of life (Mach et al., 2023).

Current scientific evidence shows that the combined intervention of lifestyle modifications (based on a balanced diet, regular exercise, stress management, and smoking cessation) together with the rational use of pharmacological therapies (when necessary) is the most effective strategy for reducing LDL cholesterol levels, improving the overall lipid profile, and decreasing long-term cardiovascular risk (Grundy et al., 2019; Estruch et al., 2022; Piepoli et al., 2021).

Ultimately, addressing dyslipidemia requires a comprehensive, multidisciplinary approach focused on health education, prevention, and adherence to treatment.

Bibliography

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