My HDL cholesterol is 62, LDL 163, triglyceride 88 and total cholesterol 263. Do I need a medication ?

I am 49 years old, male, no diabetes, systolic blood pressure 120.

Your HDL and triglyceride numbers are very desireable. It is recommended that your HDL, which is your good cholesterol, be more than 40, with normal ranges being between 40 and 60. I would not be concerned with the HDL being over 60, since this is the good cholesterol which plays a vital role in keeping your LDL bad cholesterol in check. It is recommended that tryglycerides be under 150, so this number is also very good. However, your LDL bad cholesterol is pretty high. It is recommended that this number be under 100 to be in a healthy range. I would try diet to reduce it before I got on any medications. There are those that will tell you that diet has little affect on cholesterol and that your numbers are what they are because of your genetic make up. Although heredity does play a role, a healthy diet is equally significant and can usually keep cholesterol numbers within disired ranges if you are diligent regarding your dietary intake. Lots of fruits and vegeatables, lean protien, a moderate amount of fish and nuts to provide omega 3 nutrients which have been shown to help with cholesterol numbers. If after about 120 days of altering your diet I would consider taking a statin medication if your cholesterol numbers do not show significant improvement.. However, I highly recommend you try altering your diet first, as many statin medications have undesireable side effects.

I think the reason so many of us take statins is that people do not have the will power and dicipline to eat right. Simple life style changes can put the stop to most diseases, but most people simply don't have the ability to make them and rely on our pharmaceutical industry to provide a pill for what ever ales them, when in fact they are empowered to heal themselves with life style changes if they simply had the dicipline to make them.

try to change your diet first...medication can cause other problems

yes you do. Good Luck.
I have bad cholesterol and vytorin keeps it in check.

yes

it wouldn't hurt to get your LDL and total cholesterol down. You could also try diet change first.

Assuming that you do not have a family history of premature cardiovascular disease in father mother sister or brother most likely no you do not need a medication. Present goals are complex and often yield inconsistent values: triglycerides < 150 - total chol < 200 - HDL > 45 - LDL < 160 - chol/HDL ratio < 4.5 - LDL/HDL ratio < 3.5. When in doubt however there is a better approach and that is to measure LDL directly, to measure triglyceride, LDL, and HDL sub particles - this testing is widely available and inexpensive - about $50 cost to the physician.