Need help on blood work numbers
tomsarno
Posts: 105 Member
I went to the doctors and my cholesterol was high and unchanged from 5 months ago. My A1C was also the same and I am on Metformin. I lost 20lbs additional pounds since then and a total of 95lbs from my heaviest in life. The doc asked what I have been eating and the list is short because I was not heavy from binging and uncontrollable cravings, but rather just lack of planning and obtaining the right food. I have no trouble sticking to an eating plan. I eat lots of Kidney Beans, Salad, Eggs, Tuna, Chicken Breast, Beef, Almonds and Protein Shakes. I never eat bread, pasta, rice or potatoes. I lift heavy and often. The Doc said NG to the beans (too high in sodium) eggs are bad for cholesterol, Tuna should be limited due to Mercury, avoid red meat, Nuts are high in fat and the shakes are not 'real food' so he would not suggest them.
Chicken and salad? I am loosing weight and building strength. If I had to, I could eat only chicken and salad but there must be another way.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Chicken and salad? I am loosing weight and building strength. If I had to, I could eat only chicken and salad but there must be another way.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
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Replies
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Canned foods typically have a lot of sodium. If you buy dry beans and cook them yourself, you can control the amount of sodium.
Limiting tuna is not the same as never eating tuna.
Nuts are high in fat, but mostly in the type of fats are typically associated with lowering cholesterol. This seems an odd recommendation for someone trying to lower cholesterol.
Eggs are tricky. For most people they will not have a significant impact on blood cholesterol levels, but since yours is not going down, it might be a good to limit them.
Why only salad? You could eat cooked vegetables as well. And you could sometimes eat other fish that are lower in mercury. Most smaller white fish are pretty low.
Do you eat any grains? Adding oats might help lower your cholesterol.0 -
Forgot to add that I am allergic to shellfish and have a hard time eating any fish other then Flounder and fish with a similar taste. Examples of grains I can find when out of the house during the day? I have a microwave and a debit card as my only nutritional tools.0
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Forgot to add that I am allergic to shellfish and have a hard time eating any fish other then Flounder and fish with a similar taste. Examples of grains I can find when out of the house during the day? I have a microwave and a debit card as my only nutritional tools.
Some people add oats to their smoothies, though I honestly don't know what that tastes like as I don't do smoothies. You could also look for packaged granola, though most of that tend to be high in sugar so you'd have to be selective in your choice. Oats can be cooked in the microwave.
I don't really know the mercury content of different fishes without looking it up, but a general rule is the larger or longer living the fish, the higher the mercury content.0 -
Beans are not inherently high in sodium. Canned beans are very high in sodium. I recommend buying dried beans and cooking them yourself. Vegetarian meat substitutes have no saturated fat and are high in protein. Mock-ground beef + beans & veggies served with whole grain toast = extremely heart healthy, as long as you don't douse it with salt.
As for getting more grains, I love eating baggies of cheerios. Oatmeal with cranberries/any berries/cinnamon. Whole wheat goldfish crackers are surprisingly delicious.
Use olive oil instead of butter for cooking. It's lower in saturated fat.
If you drink heavily or smoke, that could also be preventing you from reaching your cholesterol goals.0 -
Eggs are not bad for cholesterol. We've known this for over 30 years. Find a new doctor who is knowledgeable about diet. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/71246630
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xmichaelyx wrote: »Eggs are not bad for cholesterol. We've known this for over 30 years. Find a new doctor who is knowledgeable about diet. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7124663
Actually, this in not always true. For most people dietary cholesterol has only a minimal impact on blood cholesterol. But for some, it can have a substantial impact.0 -
I was told that eggs eaten before the test effect the readings and not give an accurate indication of health0
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Eggs are great for improving your lipid profile. They increase HDL and lower LDL. They might elevate total cholesterol in some, but elevated total cholesterol is a less important indicator of cardiovascular risk than your LDL/HDL ratio. Do you happen to know what that was? Has it changed at all? Were your triglycerides elevated?
Also, what was your A1C?
If your AIC hasn't changed and it is elevated, you are insulin resistant. It is going to take time is improve this. I would be careful about not eating a large amount of carbohydrates in any one meal (beans are actually pretty high in carbohydrates), limit them overall, and I would maybe even look into intermittent fasting or no carbs at dinner to allow your body to switch burning ketones, at least occasionally or overnight.
This is just my opinion, so do you own research. I probably would also get a doctor more informed on current nutrition, maybe even talk to one who specializes in diabetes.0 -
I think eating more whole grains will help lower your cholesterol, especially LDL. I eat whole grains every day (oatmeal for breakfast and usually brown rice with lunch or dinner) and my cholesterol has never been better. I can't eat eggs because they make me sick so maybe that helps too, but I eat anything and everything else!0
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I eat no grains and as many eggs as I want (3 dozen per week or so). Been doing this about 8 months. My lipid profile taken a couple of weeks ago was stellar. My total cholesterol was normal, my LDL/HDL ratio was 1, my triglyceride/HDL ratio was 0.75 mg/dL.
Here's a reference point for some of those numbers:
Here are the basics:
Given that my HDL was 85, it falls into very low risk across the board:
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If you haven't met with a registered dietitian recently, you can ask your doctor for a referral. She'll look at what you're currently eating and make suggestions for changes to your food choices so you can reach your health goals. ~Lynn /Glucerna0
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Forgot to add that I am allergic to shellfish and have a hard time eating any fish other then Flounder and fish with a similar taste. Examples of grains I can find when out of the house during the day? I have a microwave and a debit card as my only nutritional tools.
Good job and Congratulations on losing weight and following your plan.
(*) 
It is true that the shakes can count as "processed" food for some people (your doctor specifically) but I do not understand why he is being difficult when clearly you are successful about losing weight.
Can you eat rice cakes bought at a regular grocery store? Bread?
Check out some ethnic restaurants.
In my neighborhood Cuban restaurants sell rice, beans, and corn.
(Corn counts as a grain although I apologize for not 100% understanding.)
Asian restaurants would be happy to sell you cooked rice.
Sardines and salmon are low-ish in mercury. You might not like the taste of sardines but I am pretty sure that you will like salmon as I find it much milder than tuna.
If you eat flounder you probably eat Tilapia as well -- very little mercury.
My grocery store sells Frozen black eyed peas -- much lower in sodium than canned.
Regarding beans: I practically live off beans. They are easy to dump in a crockpot with some water over night. After I cook them, I can keep them in the fridge for a few days.
BUT beware please that kidney beans have a toxin that home cooks need to be aware of:
http://www.livestrong.com/article/471606-are-red-kidney-beans-toxic/
http://extension.psu.edu/food/preservation/faq/raw-kidney-beans
Apparently, one needs to thoroughly cook the beans (high temperature). So when I use the crock pot I use beans other than kidney.
I use these instead: black beans, chick peas, lentils.
In addition to salad you can use the broad range of vegetables: Eat lots of broccoli, swiss chard, kale, spinach, romaine, cabbage, mushrooms, asparagus, avocados, okra, cauliflower, bell peppers, snow peas, eggplant, zucchini, yellow squash, winter squash, brussels sprouts. Many of these can be eaten raw -- no fancy preparation.
Can you explain for us what you mean by the microwave and the debit card?
If you have no way to cook your food except in the microwave we can give specific instructions for that.
It would be nice if you had access to a better doctor who knows more about blood sugar:
-Internist
-Endocrinologist
-Diabetologist0 -
It sounds like you are already on the right track... If I were you I'd be getting a second opinion as his recommendations seem shaky. Eggs are high in good cholesterol not bad you could definitely do with some more whole grains though for B vitamins etc. Oats in your smoothies could help this, I usually use about a quarter of a cup or 5grams, use a decent blender though to get it smooth. Beans are great, try getting the dry ones in a packet though if you're worried about sodium and just rehydrate them in water. I would limit the tuna to 3 small cans a week though (95g can) as they can contain mercury. Red meat is also fine as long as you don't go nuts with it (as with anything). Did he say which type of cholesterol was high? you have both good and bad cholesterol levels and it is important to know which was high as some doctors don't actually test for this.0
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Oh also, frozen stir fry veggies are a must if you only have a microwave, you can chuck them in a bowl with some soy sauce and nuke them until cooked. You can also buy 90 second brown rice you can do in the microwave 0
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What is your A1c and how many grams of carbs are you eating per day?0
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GlucernaBrand wrote: »If you haven't met with a registered dietitian recently, you can ask your doctor for a referral. She'll look at what you're currently eating and make suggestions for changes to your food choices so you can reach your health goals. ~Lynn /Glucerna
^^^^^this
I get so much mixed information. I am going to start with what the dietician told me and see how my numbers go.0 -
Cholesterol is a tricky one. For most people, you just have to maintain a healthy weight and exercise and you're good. For others, it's more complicated.
I'm one of the unfortunate souls who has crappy high cholesterol due to genetics. The first time I had it checked in my 20's it was terrible! I've never been overweight. I've always eaten very wholesome, low processed foods, lean meats, high fiber, etc. and I'm fairly athletic. I had no risk factors, other than an extremely stressful job.
A few years ago I decided to see if dropping a few pounds would make a difference. I already had a technically healthy BMI, and OK body fat %, but it was at the high end of healthy and I could stand to lose a few, aesthetically speaking.
I didn't see my cholesterol drop until I got my weight down to the low end of the healthy range for my height. I guess maybe my body wants me to be a little on the thin side? Around the same time I retired from my hell job
so maybe that was a factor as well.
Even after getting my BMI just below 20, my cholesterol is still borderline high, but NOW my good to bad ratio is awesome, so it's all good and my doctor's happy.
Good luck figuring out what works for you, OP. You'll get there! 0 -
My readings are in Australian notation. After suffering an infarction, I took my total chol from 5.5 (marginally over) to 2.2 (damn near as low as you can go) by cutting fats, especially offal fats and adding oat bran to my diet. During this time my BMI was 40 and my final HDL:LDL ratio was 1:1.2.
Even though I have now lost 23Kgs and now have a BMI of 32 my HDL:LDL is unchanged. My doctor wants me to INCREASE my cholesterol in an attempt to raise the HDL:LDL ratio to 2:1. He suggests olive oil.
From this I interpret that the ratio is more important than the total.0 -
Be aware that cholesterol numbers can be heavily influenced by genetics. So even if you do all the right things your numbers can be high. I used to eat a low fat vegan diet and my total cholesterol was still 200! It's even higher now that I eat animal products again. I have to wonder my parents' numbers were, they put butter on everything in copious quantities, ate red meat all the time and tons of full fat dairy. They died of cancer but had no signs of heart disease.
- The number one thing to avoid is trans fat in any form.
- You should limit saturated fat. Dietary sources of saturated fat are animal products such as meat (including poultry), egg yolks, dairy, fish and tropical oils like palm oil and coconut oil.
- Eat plenty of fiber. You can even take a fiber supplement like metamucil three times a day and knock a few points off your cholesterol numbers that way. Whole grains have a lot of fiber.
- If you eat dairy go for low fat or nonfat versions. Soy milk is a good substitute for whole milk if you don't like skim milk. Soy milk has less fat and it's most polyunsaturated. It also has protein unlike almond or coconut milk.
- You can eat egg whites or egg substitutes like Egg Beaters.
- Beans are good for you. Minimize the sodium by rinsing canned beans before using. I have seen bags of cooked beans in the freezer section. Or make your own beans at home from dried beans. Once you've cooked them then you can freeze them in portions to use later. You can make them on the stove or in a crockpot. (Check out warnings about cooking kidney beans and red beans, they must be boiled for at least 10 minutes.)
- There are many soy foods out there besides soy milk. Breakfast patties, crumbles, burgers, tofu dogs, tempeh, tofu, edamame, soy protein shakes, etc... Find stuff you like and can substitute for animal products. Also you can get Nayonaise, which is soy based substitute for mayonnaise.
- On the subject of protein shakes you can get shakes made with soy, hemp, or pea protein. If you're lifting they are very useful to get that extra protein.
- Eat whole grains for the extra fiber.
- Chicken of the Sea makes skinless boneless salmon in cans, looks just like tuna fish cans and you don't have to worry about mercury. Sardines are another canned fish that are low in mercury, also mackerel. You can get sardines in tomato or mustard sauce too.
- Plant sterols can lower cholesterol. Smart Balance makes several products (margarine, peanut butter, others) which contain these. Or you can take them as supplements.
- Guggul is a supplement that is supposed to reduce cholesterol. (See the book The 8 Week Cholesterol Cure for a list of supplements).
- Obviously eat lots of veggies and some fruits.
- Nuts are okay in moderation because the fats are mostly monounsaturated. But they are caloric so weigh them or count them out. 10 almonds is a good serving size.
- Here are links to 2 government plans for reducing cholesterol thru diet.
• DASH diet - http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/hbp/dash/new_dash.pdf
• TLC diet - http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/chol/chol_tlc.pdf0 -
Knowing your total cholesterol is only knowing part of the picture. As someone else noted, what is your LDL? What is your HDL? What are your triglycerides? Do you know the partical size of your LDL and HDL? These are all factors that need to be known and considered.I went to the doctors and my cholesterol was high and unchanged from 5 months ago.
As for the eggs, maybe switch to Eggbeaters. 1 cup = 130 calories and 0 cholesterol. A registered dietician can give you better advice, but I don't think removing the nuts or tuna from your diet is the answer. They contain heart-healthy fats. I do have one question: Is it fresh tuna or tuna from a packet? If in a packet, how is it packaged: in oil or water? Salmon is also a good heart healthy fish. Also, do you eat a lot of fresh fruits and vegetables? They're high in fiber which helps lower your cholesterol.
Lastly, you didn't mention how much cardio you're doing. There are multiple studies that show running/jogging more than 21 miles a week helps raise your HDL cholesterol (the good one).
In short, there's more to this than just a number. There are a lot of factors that come into play, including genetics.
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That's going to limit what you can cook...tomsarno wrote:Examples of grains I can find when out of the house during the day?
I have a microwave and a debit card as my only nutritional tools.
Rinse the canned beans to remove a lot of the salt.
Someone's mentioned cooked beans in the frozen foods section.
Couscous is a fast grain (basically pour boiling water over it & let it sit for 3-5 minutes).
Amaranth & quinoa have lots of protein, but take longer to cook, so I'm not sure how it would work in the microwave.
Instant or quick-cooking oatmeal, with a tablespoon of oat bran or ground flaxseed mixed in.
Someone's already mentioned pre-made brown rice.
Whole-grain bread (I like Brownberry), whole-wheat tortillas.
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BTW, congrat's on your weight loss so far!
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I have reversed all of the blood work detected variables from the "red zone" to the lower end of the acceptable range. Here are some tips that work:
To lower cholesterol - minimize saturated fat & cholesterol in fat, its the saturated fat that contributes to cholesterol more than cholesterol itself.
Sodium is not the enemy entirely. Your body needs it as an essential electrolyte. If you are now exercising and sweating a lot, drinking a lot of water, you need the daily RDA of around 2300mgs of sodium or your blood pressure will start dropping too far and you will start getting light headed. But, if you are not active and just trying to eat right, you can do OK with just 1500 mgs of sodium
For a high A1C, implying you being hyper glycemic, you really need to exercise (cardio+weight training) to burn off that extra glucose in your blood. But, from a nutrition standpoint, here is what works:
use MFP to plan your meals the day before and then execute on that plan
don't use it as an after the fact calorie tracker
eat 3 major meals - breakfast, lunch, dinner and 2 minor meals or snacks in between
part each meal 2-3 hours apart and eat around the same time each day
limit your carbs to no more than 55-65 grams per major meal and about 20 grams per snack meal
include about 20-25 grams of protein and about 10 grams of good fats (nuts, avocado, olive oil ,etc) in each major meal
note - proteins and fats slow down the break down of glucose and will help your condition
chose all your carbs from the low and medium glycemic index food categories. just google for glycemic index foods and it will give you the foods to chose from. Low to Medium glycemic index means it won't spike your blood glucose upon eating. A1C is primarily affected by post meal spikes in your blood glucose.
Eat more fiber in your meal. DO NOT worry about natural sugar, much of found in fruits. What matters is your total carb consumption limited to the range mentioned above. Do avoid added or direct sugar intake though.
Also, all the good fats found in fish oil, walnuts, almonds, pistachios, olive oil, avocado, etc. also help with cholesterol.
Consume one dose of flax seed, it helps with cholesterol
Lose weight and stay active with at least 30 minutes of cardio daily.
If all of this does not make sense, see a registered dietitian and she will repeat it for you!!
Good luck!!
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GlucernaBrand wrote: »If you haven't met with a registered dietitian recently, you can ask your doctor for a referral. She'll look at what you're currently eating and make suggestions for changes to your food choices so you can reach your health goals. ~Lynn /Glucerna
^^^^^this
I get so much mixed information. I am going to start with what the dietician told me and see how my numbers go.
Good for you! It is shocking and scary how many MFP members tell others to ignore medical professionals. As if logging food and losing weight trumps years of medical training. It is so dangerous.0 -
Total cholesterol was 250 with hdl 52 which is up 7 from last time and triglycerides are 80 which is down 16. A1C is a 5.8. weight down 14lbs in 3 months, down 67lbs in 18 month and down 93 from life time high. The doctor was just being a dick telling me I was not eating as good as I thought I wass and not exercising as much as I should.0
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Listening to your RD is an excellent strategy, and hopefully you have some follow-up visits with her so that you can ask more questions. ~Lynn /Glucerna0
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Total cholesterol was 250 with hdl 52 which is up 7 from last time and triglycerides are 80 which is down 16. A1C is a 5.8. weight down 14lbs in 3 months, down 67lbs in 18 month and down 93 from life time high. The doctor was just being a dick telling me I was not eating as good as I thought I wass and not exercising as much as I should.
Sorry that you have to deal with him. Geez.
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That's going to limit what you can cook...tomsarno wrote:Examples of grains I can find when out of the house during the day?
I have a microwave and a debit card as my only nutritional tools.
Rinse the canned beans to remove a lot of the salt.
Someone's mentioned cooked beans in the frozen foods section.
Couscous is a fast grain (basically pour boiling water over it & let it sit for 3-5 minutes).
Amaranth & quinoa have lots of protein, but take longer to cook, so I'm not sure how it would work in the microwave.
Instant or quick-cooking oatmeal, with a tablespoon of oat bran or ground flaxseed mixed in.
Someone's already mentioned pre-made brown rice.
Whole-grain bread (I like Brownberry), whole-wheat tortillas.
On the oatmeal - you can make steel-cut or rolled oats in the microwave, too, you just have to experiment a bit. I mention because the texture of instant is totally different and for some (like me) it's a deal breaker.
For Silver Palate brand steel-cut oats, for example, you mix oats and water (plus any seasonings/sweeteners) as usual then nuke for 10min on 50% power (lower on a more powerful microwave). You want the mixture to be simmering the whole time - or as close to it as a microwave can get. They come out just as nice as if you'd made them the long way on a stove.0 -
Need2Exerc1se wrote: »GlucernaBrand wrote: »If you haven't met with a registered dietitian recently, you can ask your doctor for a referral. She'll look at what you're currently eating and make suggestions for changes to your food choices so you can reach your health goals. ~Lynn /Glucerna
^^^^^this
I get so much mixed information. I am going to start with what the dietician told me and see how my numbers go.
Good for you! It is shocking and scary how many MFP members tell others to ignore medical professionals. As if logging food and losing weight trumps years of medical training. It is so dangerous.
Not to put too fine a point on it, but I've only seen that recommendation given when the OP is either talking about a general practitioner, who typically has a one semester course in nutrition, not years' worth - and frequently with outdated information at that - or OP has described blatantly incorrect or outdated advice coming from said doctor.
I wouldn't recommend following anyone's advice, doctor or no, on anything impacting your health without doing a little research first. Doctors are human. Not all of them were at the top of their class. They occasionally make mistakes, and they occasionally make suggestions in areas where they don't know their you-know-what from a hole in the ground. Simply double-checking the info given can save you a world of trouble.0
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