High Cholesterol Help

[Blondie Girl]

Hey guys, just got back from the Dr. yesteday - after a blood test showing I have major high cholesterol. The normal is 200 and below and I have 303!

Are the foods that are discussed in the diet thread and stuff like that are okay for high cholesterol?

Anyone had this happen and what did you do to get it down?

[gollum1234]

Flax seed, hemp oil, UDO'S choice oils will all help to combat high cholesterol. 1-2 tbls. a day.

[JJ]

Is high cholesterol hereditery in your family? And what's your diet currently like? I know my cholesterol was higher when I ate more processed foods and less protein and EFAs. But it wasn't as high as yours - my cholesterol was 189 on a higher carb, more processed food diet and is now 150 on a high protein, moderate fat, lower carb diet.

There's a lot of information out there about how controlling your insulin levels will help lower your cholesterol better than taking medication. You might want to check out the book Protein Power.

[Daisy_Girl]

Was it a 12 hour fasting test? If not, the foods you ate in the last 12 hours could have affected the test.

[Blondie Girl]

Originally posted by Daisy_Girl
Was it a 12 hour fasting test? If not, the foods you ate in the last 12 hours could have affected the test.

Nope, didn't eat 14hrs before the test...

[ironbitch]

Do you smoke? (keeping finger's crossed that you don't)

Re-read what JJ typed in regards to the diet and meds!

:-)

[ironbitch]

What was your HDL reading btw?

[Candi Barr]

Wow, that's high! You may or may not respond to a different diet. The only way to tell is to try for a few months and get re-tested. Oat bran, garlic, and niacin help some people. There is a lot of information out there, you'll probably want to start doing some reading. What is your diet now, and does heart disease run in your family?

[Blondie Girl]

Originally posted by JJFigure
Is high cholesterol hereditery in your family? And what's your diet currently like? I know my cholesterol was higher when I ate more processed foods and less protein and EFAs. But it wasn't as high as yours - my cholesterol was 189 on a higher carb, more processed food diet and is now 150 on a high protein, moderate fat, lower carb diet.

There's a lot of information out there about how controlling your insulin levels will help lower your cholesterol better than taking medication. You might want to check out the book Protein Power.

Hey,

Yes it's hereditery. I had high cholesterol when I was 18 and didn't check it again till now (25)

My diet - high carbs - pasta, fried foods like when I cook chicken and rice w/ oil.

Where can I get that book Proten Power?

[Candi Barr]

Another useful book is 'Fats That Heal, Fats That Kill: The Complete Guide to Fats, Oils, Cholesterol and Human Health' by Udo Erasmus. Be warned that some of his ideas are controversial. Giving up flour, sugar, and fried foods would probably be a good start. Next step is to get your fats from fish, nuts, olive oil or specialized oils like flaxseed, and your carbs from whole grains and vegetables with a little fruit. This is a popular book 'The New 8-Week Cholesterol Cure : The Ultimate Program for Preventing Heart Disease' by Robert E. Kowalski. It covers oat bran and niacin.

[Blondie Girl]

Originally posted by ironbitch
Do you smoke? (keeping finger's crossed that you don't)

Re-read what JJ typed in regards to the diet and meds!

:-)

Nope, no I don't - HDL means the amount I was for, 303 or is it a different number?

[MS]

303 would be yout TOTAL cholesterol, not just HDL. The ratio of LDL to HDL is just as important as the total.

In any event, I agree with the others....your best bet right now is to drastically reduce your carbs and especially refined carbs, reduce your saturated fats and increase the 'good' fats. Make sure most of the carbs you DO eat come from fresh fibrous veggies. You really need to control your insulin to win this battle. This is perhaps even more important in hereditary cases of hypercholesterolemia.

[ironbitch]

The levels of HDL AND LDL in the blood are measured to evaluate the risk of having a heart attack. LDL chol. of less than 100 mg is an optimal level. Most peeps range in the 130 mg. level.

Then of course there is Lp(a) which is a genetic variation of plasma LDL. A high level of Lp(a) is an important risk factor as well for developing fatty depsoits in arteries prematurely.

Good luck . I hope you can get this under control soon!

[BabyDoc]

If I were you (330 is HIGH) I would get on a statin agent (lipitor, zocor...) to lower it while you make the diet modifications. Especially if it is hereditary your chances of controlling it with lifestyle modification alone are very slim. Sure, drugs have side effects but so does very high cholesterol.

[wilson6]

What is your HDL and LDL levels?

What is your hs-CRP (high sensitivity C-reative protein) level?

What is your triglyceride level?

What is your homocysteine level?

Get those numbers and look into an HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor.

Sounds like familial hypercholesterolemia (heterozygous) particularly if LDL is elevated. This is usually due to a defect in liver LDL receptors and uptake.

Cutting carbs back will reduce triglycerides. Adding polyunsat fats will lower LDL to some degree. Sounds like a combo of diet and HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors will bring you into the normal range. I'd also be including an array of anti-oxidants, B-12 and folic acid, and fish and borage oil. You want to reduce inflammation (hs-CRP) and oxidation potential of circulating LDL and homocysteine levels.

W6