Different non-statin ways to lower 'bad' cholesterol—like special diets, pills, or even surgery—seem to cut heart attacks and strokes just as well as statins, as long as they lower cholesterol by the same amount.

Lowering 'bad' cholesterol by a certain amount reduces your risk of heart attacks and strokes — and it doesn’t matter if you use statins or other pills like ezetimibe; they both work about the same to protect your heart.

If you're at low risk for heart problems and take a statin to lower your 'bad' cholesterol by a small amount, you're about 11% less likely to have a heart attack or stroke over the next five years — out of 1000 people like you, roughly 11 fewer will have a major heart or blood vessel problem.

Taking statins to lower your 'bad' cholesterol by a specific amount can cut your chance of having a heart attack or stroke by about 1 in 5—even if you’ve never had heart problems before and are considered low risk.