Effecting your blood by Nutrition

kizanne2

Last March I came talking about the effects of food on blood. Many people said you'll only effect if significantly by losing weight. I've spent 20 years trying to lose weight. IN the mean time I changed my eating and supplements to help.

I thought I'd update this for the people who said the only way to change my stats was lose weight. I'd love to lose weight but that hasn't happened yet. I have been using food as medicine and taking some supplements. I need to do a better job exercising. But your diet can change your blood stats. In the mean time I've improved my stats quite a bit. This is right after the holidays which I wasn't perfect (never am but did well mostly). Weight is almost unchanged (a pound or two higher actually)

OLD 3/2019 New 1/6/2020
total cholesterol 189 137
triglycerides 217 180
HDL cholesterol 34 49
LDL 112 52
ratio 5.6 2.7 Note this is associated with 1/2 the risk of heart attack.

My triglycerides fluctuate. (I test with a cardio check) many times hovering at 200. My HDL has improved greatly.
Something I've stumbled on and never read until I said hey.... Bone Broth. I believe it has raised my HDL. I'm 49 years old and have never had an HDL as high as 49. When I looked at my food intake I noticed that the week my HDL was higher I had eaten quite a bit of bone broth soup. Dr. Google agrees but I had never read that. I had already been taking fish oil, eating fish and avacado but that got me to around 41.

All my stats except triglycerides are now usually in line with the numbers doctors tell you they want. I am fairly certain to get the tri's down I have to make a few more changes and to exercise some more. I'm entering a very busy stressful week at work and then I have to get my blood drawn for an official blood test we will see how it turns out. I'm going to double check my home machine with the new lab results. I'm also going to try to keep the broth up this week and see if my HDL stays high.

So stay cheery and know your diet can absolutely effect your blood work.

corinasue1143

Congratulations. Yes, what you eat can definitely affect your bloodwork numbers. Also, luckily for you and your goals, the same eating changes that help those numbers can also help you lose weight! And exercise will raise your hdl even more while helping you lose weight and making you overall more healthy. Win-win-win!

Luke_rabbit

Congrats!

It's a pity if anyone said that diet changes alone have no effect on blood composition. Certainly the truth is that weight, exercise, diet, age, and genetics all influence our health and blood lipids, glucose, etc.

I'm someone whose weight makes almost no difference. I've had excellent blood work results when I am normal BMI, overweight BMI, and obese BMI.

For example, I don't believe my triglycerides have ever been over 100. My most recent (4/2019, slightly overweight BMI) was 42.

apullum

If someone told you that diet has no effect on blood lipid levels, that is incorrect.

Diet has little to no effect on blood cholesterol levels for most people (about 75%). However, if one has a form of high cholesterol that is genetic, then diet can play a role in lowering their cholesterol. We don't know whether this is the case for you or not, but it's a possibility.

For most people, weight loss if overweight and regular exercise have the greatest effect on lowering cholesterol.

NovusDies

apullum wrote: »

If someone told you that diet has no effect on blood lipid levels, that is incorrect.

Diet has little to no effect on blood cholesterol levels for most people (about 75%). However, if one has a form of high cholesterol that is genetic, then diet can play a role in lowering their cholesterol. We don't know whether this is the case for you or not, but it's a possibility.

For most people, weight loss if overweight and regular exercise have the greatest effect on lowering cholesterol.

Right. It depends on the person. I know a guy that is an obsessively "healthy" eater who also maintains a healthy weight and exercises but he cannot seem to catch a break on his blood work/health. He has high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and very recently diagnosed as pre-diabetic. Time will tell if cutting his carbs will help with the latest problem but nothing he has tried (and he has tried everything) seems to improve the rest. Maybe he will still find his silver bullet but he is definitely rolling a large boulder up his genetic hill.

lemurcat2

apullum wrote: »

If someone told you that diet has no effect on blood lipid levels, that is incorrect.

Diet has little to no effect on blood cholesterol levels for most people (about 75%). However, if one has a form of high cholesterol that is genetic, then diet can play a role in lowering their cholesterol. We don't know whether this is the case for you or not, but it's a possibility.

For most people, weight loss if overweight and regular exercise have the greatest effect on lowering cholesterol.

Absolutely. My dad was never an unhealthy weight, and has always been active, but many years ago he had bad cholesterol levels and his doctor advised him to try to change it with diet. He cut way back on sat fat (mainly by cutting out red meat and dairy fat, other than on special occasions), eating more whole grains, less dessert type foods, so on, and it worked.

lemurcat2

bold_rabbit wrote: »

Congrats!

It's a pity if anyone said that diet changes alone have no effect on blood composition. Certainly the truth is that weight, exercise, diet, age, and genetics all influence our health and blood lipids, glucose, etc.

I'm someone whose weight makes almost no difference. I've had excellent blood work results when I am normal BMI, overweight BMI, and obese BMI.

My tests have always been great for both cholesterol and blood sugar, as well as whatever else they test for, but I don't think that means weight makes no difference for me. I think I have been lucky enough that my weight hadn't affected it yet at the time I decided to lose (and perhaps that has something to do with diet and the amount of time I'd been overweight and exercise, and certainly I was genetically lucky). But I suspect that given enough time or enough weight or simply getting old enough, it would have made a difference.

kizanne2

NovusDies wrote: »

apullum wrote: »

If someone told you that diet has no effect on blood lipid levels, that is incorrect.

Diet has little to no effect on blood cholesterol levels for most people (about 75%). However, if one has a form of high cholesterol that is genetic, then diet can play a role in lowering their cholesterol. We don't know whether this is the case for you or not, but it's a possibility.

For most people, weight loss if overweight and regular exercise have the greatest effect on lowering cholesterol.

Right. It depends on the person. I know a guy that is an obsessively "healthy" eater who also maintains a healthy weight and exercises but he cannot seem to catch a break on his blood work/health. He has high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and very recently diagnosed as pre-diabetic. Time will tell if cutting his carbs will help with the latest problem but nothing he has tried (and he has tried everything) seems to improve the rest. Maybe he will still find his silver bullet but he is definitely rolling a large boulder up his genetic hill.

What some view as healthy doesn't necessarily effect blood sugar. I targeted things. Like I added Oatmeal, sources of omega's like flax seed, walnut, salmon, avacado. I had a fairly healthy diet before these changes. I read and targeted food specifically known to change the stats. But like I found out with Bone Broth. If you type in how to raise your HDL. That wasn't listed but once I noticed the trend and googled bone broth and hdl I discovered yeah it was known. I have eaten fairly healthy for many years and until March my stats were good. I have some issues that means even on reduced calorie I don't always lose weight (yes even with tracking, measuring and such). I do know with exercise this resistance seems to diminish and then the weight comes of very slowly. But that's my achilles heel is finding the time, desire and energy to exercise.

And I've been eating this way mostly since March with no weight loss. So while I'd love it to happen and keep striving for it. I'm focusing on bringing the blood into alignment as I lose weight because they say you have to lose 5-10% of you body weight to see an impact on blood that would be 10-20 pounds. When I do lose it usually is about 0.3 lb/week which would take 33 weeks. I don't want to wait that long to have good blood work. My mother died of heart disease and blocked arteries a few years after a triple bypass. I don't want that ever. I'm trying to get the desire for a 6 week ornish program. But I really don't have that kind or willpower.

My goal is after Saturday to do more exercise. I've done it before and it just doesn't stick. I have a condition that normal exercise can sometimes take 3 days to recover from. I'll be wiped for 3 days like some people are shortly after a good workout. Sometimes it doesn't wipe me out sometimes it does but it isn't a condition that will go away. My doctor says to expect it for life.

Nony_Mouse

kizanne2 wrote: »

NovusDies wrote: »

apullum wrote: »

If someone told you that diet has no effect on blood lipid levels, that is incorrect.

Diet has little to no effect on blood cholesterol levels for most people (about 75%). However, if one has a form of high cholesterol that is genetic, then diet can play a role in lowering their cholesterol. We don't know whether this is the case for you or not, but it's a possibility.

For most people, weight loss if overweight and regular exercise have the greatest effect on lowering cholesterol.

Right. It depends on the person. I know a guy that is an obsessively "healthy" eater who also maintains a healthy weight and exercises but he cannot seem to catch a break on his blood work/health. He has high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and very recently diagnosed as pre-diabetic. Time will tell if cutting his carbs will help with the latest problem but nothing he has tried (and he has tried everything) seems to improve the rest. Maybe he will still find his silver bullet but he is definitely rolling a large boulder up his genetic hill.

What some view as healthy doesn't necessarily effect blood sugar. I targeted things. Like I added Oatmeal, sources of omega's like flax seed, walnut, salmon, avacado. I had a fairly healthy diet before these changes. I read and targeted food specifically known to change the stats. But like I found out with Bone Broth. If you type in how to raise your HDL. That wasn't listed but once I noticed the trend and googled bone broth and hdl I discovered yeah it was known. I have eaten fairly healthy for many years and until March my stats were good. I have some issues that means even on reduced calorie I don't always lose weight (yes even with tracking, measuring and such). I do know with exercise this resistance seems to diminish and then the weight comes of very slowly. But that's my achilles heel is finding the time, desire and energy to exercise.

And I've been eating this way mostly since March with no weight loss. So while I'd love it to happen and keep striving for it. I'm focusing on bringing the blood into alignment as I lose weight because they say you have to lose 5-10% of you body weight to see an impact on blood that would be 10-20 pounds. When I do lose it usually is about 0.3 lb/week which would take 33 weeks. I don't want to wait that long to have good blood work. My mother died of heart disease and blocked arteries a few years after a triple bypass. I don't want that ever. I'm trying to get the desire for a 6 week ornish program. But I really don't have that kind or willpower.

My goal is after Saturday to do more exercise. I've done it before and it just doesn't stick. I have a condition that normal exercise can sometimes take 3 days to recover from. I'll be wiped for 3 days like some people are shortly after a good workout. Sometimes it doesn't wipe me out sometimes it does but it isn't a condition that will go away. My doctor says to expect it for life.

ME/CFS?

kizanne2

NCS/PD

tontondam

kizanne2 wrote: »

Last March I came talking about the effects of food on blood. Many people said you'll only effect if significantly by losing weight. I've spent 20 years trying to lose weight. IN the mean time I changed my eating and supplements to help.

I thought I'd update this for the people who said the only way to change my stats was lose weight. I'd love to lose weight but that hasn't happened yet. I have been using food as medicine and taking some supplements. I need to do a better job exercising. But your diet can change your blood stats. In the mean time I've improved my stats quite a bit. This is right after the holidays which I wasn't perfect (never am but did well mostly). Weight is almost unchanged (a pound or two higher actually)

OLD 3/2019 New 1/6/2020
total cholesterol 189 137
triglycerides 217 180
HDL cholesterol 34 49
LDL 112 52
ratio 5.6 2.7 Note this is associated with 1/2 the risk of heart attack.

My triglycerides fluctuate. (I test with a cardio check) many times hovering at 200. My HDL has improved greatly.
Something I've stumbled on and never read until I said hey.... Bone Broth. I believe it has raised my HDL. I'm 49 years old and have never had an HDL as high as 49. When I looked at my food intake I noticed that the week my HDL was higher I had eaten quite a bit of bone broth soup. Dr. Google agrees but I had never read that. I had already been taking fish oil, eating fish and avacado but that got me to around 41.

All my stats except triglycerides are now usually in line with the numbers doctors tell you they want. I am fairly certain to get the tri's down I have to make a few more changes and to exercise some more. I'm entering a very busy stressful week at work and then I have to get my blood drawn for an official blood test we will see how it turns out. I'm going to double check my home machine with the new lab results. I'm also going to try to keep the broth up this week and see if my HDL stays high.

So stay cheery and know your diet can absolutely effect your blood work.

Your new numbers are great. Was bone broth the only dietary change? What other changes, if any, have you made in your diet? Thanks.

kizanne2

No I made lots of changes. I target blood health instead of some of the things I had been doing for general health.

Omega / fiber/ anti-oxident/ health fat/ gut
I started most mornings with overnight oats made with 2 tblspn ground flax seed, 8 grams walnuts, 1/2 cup raw milk, 1/2 cup water, 1/2 cup blueberries. I don't eat that on weekends but it's my M-F go to.

healthy fats
I started incorporating avacado, mostly in a panera salad, sometimes other random meals that it would fit. Eat more salmon. Salads on weekends as a brunch with a cup of soup like chili, high fiber, beans.

Started eating Apple as my snack for the fiber. Black beans when I can for fiber. Ginger, tumeric for seasoning in lots of stuff.

Sami's Bakery Chia Chips very high fiber/low calorie.

I have a go to for week day lunch. It's a squash casserole with summer squash, egg white plus a little egg yolk, greek yogurt, cheese, tumeric, cumin, garlic, onion and I top it with a lean meat. See not 'diet' wise people will say cheese is empty calories or such but if you are trying to raise HDL some cheese is recommended. I actually spent a lot of time researching and building a menu I thought my husband and I would like. But one of the sites I like is eat this not that for specific results like the HDL page is here. https://www.eatthis.com/foods-raise-good-hdl-cholesterol/ You'll see high fiber, blueberries, greek yogurt, cheese, walnuts, flaxseed, oatmeal, salmon. So you see I just started using all the things that appealed to me. I researched more than just that page though. Some things like komboucha are hard to find on any list (or bone broth) but I just happened to have previously researched komboucha for safety and gut health previously and remember seeing a study where in chicken daily consumption actually cut the cholesterol by like 27% or something in chickens. I'm not a chicken but we both know that the government isn't going to pay for a komboucha study. Since I like it I just up my intake. I love having my own machine because I can keep track and hopefully I'll stumble across more things like bone broth that at least works for me.

Then frequently consume Komboucha, GT's or my homemade. Gut and cholesterol.

small square of dark chocolate each day.

Mostly gave up diet soda for water and hot tea. I didn't drink it everyday before but there is some question if the aspartame tricks your gut.

I do eat a variety of foods but come back to the flax, walnut, high fiber through various foods, komboucha regular.
So if I don't eat the oatmeal for breakfast maybe I just grab a frozen sandwich then I'll have some walnuts as snacks maybe or maybe not. THe more I stick to the long list of foods that are supposed to help in one way or another the more it seems to work. But even if I don't do those I will consistently go for high fiber, lean protein, or Omega fats like avacado, fish oil, walnuts, olive oil

I've recently done the bone broth because I can make a tasty, warm, low-calorie dinner that satifies in the cold. I just happen to notice the HDL side effect because I have my own blood tester. When it went higher than ever before I was mystified because do to vacation I didn't eat as much of my regular foods but hadn't changed that much either so..... As I washed 8 giant soup bowls I thought that's what I been eating and then googled it.
I add onions, mushrooms, bok choy, sometimes other veggies, a small amount of pasta and meat and eat like a giant bowl probably 2 cups or more. Very filling, tasty and nice in the cold weather.

Supplements
fish oil to tackle HDL
small does of NIacin (just one a day)
Berberine ( a precusor to some of the prescription stuff but a supplement) (just one a day not like every meal like they recommend)
Vitamin D (I just always have a deficiency if I don't take it)
Vitamin
Ubiquitol (don't know if it is working)
Probiotic

I don't like taking pills but I like over the counter medicine less. Once everything is good and stable and I have time. I'll start removing some of them to see if it changes anything for me.

I will always take the daily vitamin and the vitamin D. And frequently take the probiotic. I also know the fish oil is helping.

I am fairly certain the berberine is helping but after my number are good, low and stable I'll try not taking it. Same with the NIacin and Ubiquitol.

kizanne2

The short of the above is lots of people may or may not be able to control what they eat. I've always had pretty good luck it just hasn't always resulted in weight loss or because it's so slow one week of birthdays or holidays wipes out a month of progress.

The best thing I did was research a great big list and say... I can do this. For instance I used to always eat a salad at Panera for brunch on Saturday. But now I add Avacado even if it doesn't come on that salad. I might subtract the dressing to make up the added calories. Or if I go to our other salad place I can get salmon on the top of my salad instead of chicken.

gremloBBPT

apullum wrote: »

Diet has little to no effect on blood cholesterol levels for most people (about 75%).

Wow, that surprises me. I would've guessed the opposite, that it affects blood cholesterol levels for most people. Interesting.

Well done @kizanne2! I'm glad you found success with this.

AnnPT77

I'm happy you found success, but doing many of those same things had really lackluster results for me. (There are a few I didn't do, like the bone broth, because I'm longtime vegetarian; but many of the rest I did, except substituting algae omega-3 for fish oil.)

My cholesterol dropped by a few points, my triglycerides more but not nearly enough, and HDL was pretty stagnant. After I lost weight, they all fell solidly into the normal zone. AFAIK, I have no genetic predisposition for high cholesterol.

I think the things you suggest will be worth trying for others, but weight loss is also a good thing to try (and has other beneficial side effects, too).

Results can be pretty individual.

Congratulations on your good outcomes! :flowerforyou:

kizanne2

AnnPT77 wrote: »

I'm happy you found success, but doing many of those same things had really lackluster results for me. (There are a few I didn't do, like the bone broth, because I'm longtime vegetarian; but many of the rest I did, except substituting algae omega-3 for fish oil.)

My cholesterol dropped by a few points, my triglycerides more but not nearly enough, and HDL was pretty stagnant. After I lost weight, they all fell solidly into the normal zone. AFAIK, I have no genetic predisposition for high cholesterol.

I think the things you suggest will be worth trying for others, but weight loss is also a good thing to try (and has other beneficial side effects, too).

Results can be pretty individual.

Congratulations on your good outcomes! :flowerforyou:

I agree weight loss would be great. I don't have any problem with weight loss as an idea but I'm not betting my life on it since I just haven't been all that successful and it takes a long time when you are much overweight.

I think the biggest bang for my effort has been.
I often eat 35 or more grams of fiber a day.
Bone Broth
Oatmeal with the flax, walnut, blueberries
Kombucha
Supplements - fish oil, berbine, niacin

The Omega's are tricky because one way is heart healthy and the other way is brain healthy which does not impact heart. It's the ratio of Omega 3's to Omega 6's so random Omega don't always help.

Omega 3's should be as high as possible as an anti-oxidant and omega 6 is an oxidant I believe.

I addition within the Omega-3's EPA should be higher than DHA some recommended ratios are 5:1 or 7:1. My current supplment has 900 mg. of Omega 3 and 647:253 in EPA to DHA. I'd like an even more optimal supplement but these are available at Sam's kinda cheap.

Have you given any of the above a shot (except of course the bone broth)?

Also by your picture it looks like you should have lots under control with exercise and weight loss. Though you really are what you eat in some cases.

And I"m very familiar with genetics that mess things up.

kizanne2

gremloBBPT wrote: »

apullum wrote: »

Diet has little to no effect on blood cholesterol levels for most people (about 75%).

Wow, that surprises me. I would've guessed the opposite, that it affects blood cholesterol levels for most people. Interesting.

Well done @kizanne2! I'm glad you found success with this.

Yeah this is the mantra I got from my post in March. Lose weight. (LIKE we don't have an entire site of people trying to do that with differing success levels.).

But let's think about this. There are many studies on certain things like Oatmeal and those studies show a wide success not just 25% of the people. What we don't have is eat food that MIGHT be helpful tested in a wide spread result like drugs. But hey Foods aren't that dangerous. Most people don't have the side effects of impotence, death, blindness, kidney problems from food (except alcohol on the liver LOL). There are certain food known to raise these bad stats like sugar, alcohol, fats and low value/ low fiber carbs. So why wouldn't there be foods to help?

WebMD Eating oats is linked to an average 7% drop in LDL cholesterol, research shows. Of course if that only effected 25% of the people that would mean the people it did effect would have had a 28% drop!!!! LOL. I digress but foods can certainly change it for the better.

kizanne2

I won't post every website I visited when I was researching. But I found this one interesting.

https://freestylefarm.ca/2014/07/21/did-kombucha-tea-lower-cholesterol/

Kombucha out does Lipator in a person. Granted just one person. I had read a chicken study there are some animal studies that it lowered it as much as 50%.

AnnPT77

kizanne2 wrote: »

AnnPT77 wrote: »

I'm happy you found success, but doing many of those same things had really lackluster results for me. (There are a few I didn't do, like the bone broth, because I'm longtime vegetarian; but many of the rest I did, except substituting algae omega-3 for fish oil.)

My cholesterol dropped by a few points, my triglycerides more but not nearly enough, and HDL was pretty stagnant. After I lost weight, they all fell solidly into the normal zone. AFAIK, I have no genetic predisposition for high cholesterol.

I think the things you suggest will be worth trying for others, but weight loss is also a good thing to try (and has other beneficial side effects, too).

Results can be pretty individual.

Congratulations on your good outcomes! :flowerforyou:

I agree weight loss would be great. I don't have any problem with weight loss as an idea but I'm not betting my life on it since I just haven't been all that successful and it takes a long time when you are much overweight.

I think the biggest bang for my effort has been.
I often eat 35 or more grams of fiber a day.
Bone Broth
Oatmeal with the flax, walnut, blueberries
Kombucha
Supplements - fish oil, berbine, niacin

The Omega's are tricky because one way is heart healthy and the other way is brain healthy which does not impact heart. It's the ratio of Omega 3's to Omega 6's so random Omega don't always help.

Omega 3's should be as high as possible as an anti-oxidant and omega 6 is an oxidant I believe.

I addition within the Omega-3's EPA should be higher than DHA some recommended ratios are 5:1 or 7:1. My current supplment has 900 mg. of Omega 3 and 647:253 in EPA to DHA. I'd like an even more optimal supplement but these are available at Sam's kinda cheap.
I
Have you given any of the above a shot (except of course the bone broth)?

Also by your picture it looks like you should have lots under control with exercise and weight loss. Though you really are what you eat in some cases.

And I"m very familiar with genetics that mess things up.

I eat more than 35g of fiber most days (often lots more)
I eat oatmeal with flax, walnuts and mixed berries (including blueberries) pretty much every day
I haven't found kombucha I don't find repellant, but I eat 2 and usually more varied raw fermented/probiotic foods most days
I take algae omega-3s rather than fish oil, a similar product but vegetarian
I pay attention to omega-3/omega-6 balance in my overall diet
My supplements include niacin, but not berberine (I assume you meant berberine, not berbine)

I've been very active athletically for 15 years, working usually 6 days of most weeks, with decent intensity, even while obese . . . and even while my blood lipids were awful.

I did many/most of these dietary things while I was obese, but admittedly am more consistent generally with nutrition now: Logging makes that possible, and easy. My sat fat intake is probably lower now, as part of lower overall calories, but I don't/didn't eat meat at all, and eat few eggs. (I've been vegetarian for 45+ years.)

My lipids are all fine now, without major dietary composition changes. I know of no genetic factors involved in my prior unfavorable lipid profile: As far as I know, neither parent was diagnosed with anything like that, although those things were less commonly diagnosed/treated when they were living (I'm pretty old, 64; and my mother was 43 when I was born: They didn't die young, both were in their 80s.

The only really significant change, then to now, bad lipid profile to normal lipid profile, was weight loss and the things associated with it (like lower intake of all types).

AnnPT77

kizanne2 wrote: »

gremloBBPT wrote: »

apullum wrote: »

Diet has little to no effect on blood cholesterol levels for most people (about 75%).

Wow, that surprises me. I would've guessed the opposite, that it affects blood cholesterol levels for most people. Interesting.

Well done @kizanne2! I'm glad you found success with this.

Yeah this is the mantra I got from my post in March. Lose weight. (LIKE we don't have an entire site of people trying to do that with differing success levels.).

But let's think about this. There are many studies on certain things like Oatmeal and those studies show a wide success not just 25% of the people. What we don't have is eat food that MIGHT be helpful tested in a wide spread result like drugs. But hey Foods aren't that dangerous. Most people don't have the side effects of impotence, death, blindness, kidney problems from food (except alcohol on the liver LOL). There are certain food known to raise these bad stats like sugar, alcohol, fats and low value/ low fiber carbs. So why wouldn't there be foods to help?

WebMD Eating oats is linked to an average 7% drop in LDL cholesterol, research shows. Of course if that only effected 25% of the people that would mean the people it did effect would have had a 28% drop!!!! LOL. I digress but foods can certainly change it for the better.

Perhaps part of the communication difference is what we're seeing as a significant drop. (I agree that you've seen a significant drop, no question.)

I'd have to go back to check numbers, but I think I did mention that I saw a small improvement from just dietary changes before weight loss.

At one point, I know my LDL was at 156 (I think that may not have been its highest). A 7% drop would've left it at 145, and it did drop to 146 while I was still obese, with changes in diet. But that's not enough. After losing around 50 pounds, it dropped to around 90, which is solidly normal.

My bigger deal was triglycerides, at one point over 400; now 97. HDL is 66, total is 175, but with the high HDL, ratio is 2.65, which is just fine.

I'm glad you were able to work it out with dietary changes, and sorry you've struggled with weight loss. For me, dietary changes didn't get my doctor out of "you should take a statin" territory, but weight loss - which I found pretty straightforward, once I set my mind to it - took care of the problem quite readily, for me.

We're all different, whether it's genetics or just what comes easily or is more difficult, or some combination, I guess.

Best wishes!

NovusDies

I already knew from a blood test that showed I do not have the genetic marker that changing my diet would probably not improve my cholesterol. Considering how good my diet already was (45+ grams of fiber each day and fish and plants as my primary protein) it was even less likely. I did it anyway because it did not add any real burden to my weight loss. I dedicated a sizable chunk of my daily calories to additional things meant to improve cholesterol for 4 months. The needle did not move.

If you are among the people that have genetics that respond to dietary cholesterol that is great that you have found a hopefully sustainable way to keep it controlled. The normal advice is still going to favor weight loss and exercise.

Assuming you need to lose weight I hope you have not given up hope for losing it. You have been very diligent and methodical to improve your cholesterol through food. I have to believe that you can find your path forward for weight loss too.

kizanne2

I have not given up weight loss, as I do need to lose weight, lots. But with cholesterol, I mess up and eat too much of the wrong things for the week of christmas to new years and I can be back on track in a week or so. With weight. I can wipe out 3 months of diligent food choices.

So right now due to my bad blood I"m focusing on the blood for eating. Don't get me wrong my typical day (80% or more of the days) is a calorie deficit. On days I go over it isn't that much.

I do know that exercise would help. That is my weakness. I stay very busy. I literally worked from 7 am to 2:30 am yesterday with a small 2 hour break for driving home (to work more) finish my bone broth, make dinner, feed animals and watch a show to relax. Not all days are like that but I just don't have the motivation. I go through cycles. I don't give up on exercise either. For close to 9 months I suffered from bone spurs and had to get orthodic shoe and stretch for my feet to even be tolerable to walk on. That is now past so I'll be back at it soon. I also Bowl. Sometimes I do Circuit and weight training. If I did the exercise I'm sure I'd lose weight and improve my blood so it's my goal for January is get back in the habit.

BUT I have to admit that weight loss has been an ongoing failure for me. So since the blood is health related and I don't have too much trouble controlling what I eat. That's what I'm tackling. If I put my hopes on weight loss and it doesn't happen or happens really slowly then I'd be looking at statins or putting my arteries at risk. Neither of those do I want to do.

NovusDies

Assuming you were losing about a pound a week for 3 months it would take eating 42,000 calories above maintenance during a holiday week to wipe it out. You can seemingly wipe it out due primarily to temporary water retention that shows a spike on the scale but that never lasts.

You have certainly had a rough spell and that work load is no joke. I am glad you have found a way to improve your health despite your challenges.

kizanne2

No I don't lose a pound a week. I never have even when exercising hard. Which my current health exercising too hard only makes me exhausted for days so it's not an option. I have to do mild activities like walking at 3.5 mph, circuit, weight lifting.

I lose about 0.4 pounds a week at 1200 calories and I can't live on less than 1200 and not interested. I usually eat around 1400 calories and that gives me about 0.2 pounds per week. So one bad holiday week can easily wipe that out.

Heck. My monthly weight fluctuation due to hormonal variation is 3 pounds so the 0.2 pounds per week can take forever to see yet alone drop 5 to 10% of my body weight.

It just is what it is. I know to lose more I have to come up with exercise but mild exercise you'll burn 100 or 200 calories in 1/2 hour x 7 days (which I'll probably only make 3 - 4 days) is and extra 0.25 pounds. As a bonus though it does help a little more than that. But still now we are at 0.5 pounds per week.

I eat healthy, and mostly in moderation. Mostly 1400 calories a day. I only say Mostly cause not many people can claim to always be on target. But today. I've had my breakfast of oatmeal and blueberries, I have my lunch of Squash Casserole, I've had 48 ounces of water. So that's 800 calories. For dinner I'll be eating at Panera and I'll have 620 calories for dinner with a soup and salad combo. I'll have a small square of dark chocolate (50 calories) and 50 calories of high fiber chia chips. Plus 3 hours of bowling. and 8000 steps. A whopping total of 1520 but I have some exercise throwing a 15 pound ball 60 times, 30 times getting in and out of a chair (modified squats) plus the 8000 steps.

That's a good day and if i keep at those days I'd see 0.3 or 0.4 pounds drop a week. But I don't bowl each day.
For me calories in versus calories out still works the problem is my daily caloric burn rate is about 1600 (it doesn't match the online calculator but that's a depressed metabolism) and I just don't like living on less than about 1400 calories. Slow and steady for a long time. Then bam a vacation or a very stressful week or holidays or a moment of weakness and I pay for it with weeks of work. I lose very slowly but due to my conserved eating I also gain slowly as well. I have been within the same weight for 20 years since my daughter was born.

But I never give up. And deep down I know I just have to get into the exercise because even though it isn't the cure all it is important and for me it's the only way to gain calories out.

I also know that if I am consistent at it my metabolism kinds works better during the non-workout times as well which helps.

AnnPT77

kizanne2 wrote: »

No I don't lose a pound a week. I never have even when exercising hard. Which my current health exercising too hard only makes me exhausted for days so it's not an option. I have to do mild activities like walking at 3.5 mph, circuit, weight lifting.

I lose about 0.4 pounds a week at 1200 calories and I can't live on less than 1200 and not interested. I usually eat around 1400 calories and that gives me about 0.2 pounds per week. So one bad holiday week can easily wipe that out.

Heck. My monthly weight fluctuation due to hormonal variation is 3 pounds so the 0.2 pounds per week can take forever to see yet alone drop 5 to 10% of my body weight.

It just is what it is. I know to lose more I have to come up with exercise but mild exercise you'll burn 100 or 200 calories in 1/2 hour x 7 days (which I'll probably only make 3 - 4 days) is and extra 0.25 pounds. As a bonus though it does help a little more than that. But still now we are at 0.5 pounds per week.

I eat healthy, and mostly in moderation. Mostly 1400 calories a day. I only say Mostly cause not many people can claim to always be on target. But today. I've had my breakfast of oatmeal and blueberries, I have my lunch of Squash Casserole, I've had 48 ounces of water. So that's 800 calories. For dinner I'll be eating at Panera and I'll have 620 calories for dinner with a soup and salad combo. I'll have a small square of dark chocolate (50 calories) and 50 calories of high fiber chia chips. Plus 3 hours of bowling. and 8000 steps. A whopping total of 1520 but I have some exercise throwing a 15 pound ball 60 times, 30 times getting in and out of a chair (modified squats) plus the 8000 steps.

That's a good day and if i keep at those days I'd see 0.3 or 0.4 pounds drop a week. But I don't bowl each day.
For me calories in versus calories out still works the problem is my daily caloric burn rate is about 1600 (it doesn't match the online calculator but that's a depressed metabolism) and I just don't like living on less than about 1400 calories. Slow and steady for a long time. Then bam a vacation or a very stressful week or holidays or a moment of weakness and I pay for it with weeks of work. I lose very slowly but due to my conserved eating I also gain slowly as well. I have been within the same weight for 20 years since my daughter was born.

But I never give up. And deep down I know I just have to get into the exercise because even though it isn't the cure all it is important and for me it's the only way to gain calories out.

I also know that if I am consistent at it my metabolism kinds works better during the non-workout times as well which helps.

Do you use a weight trending app (like Happy Scale for iOS, Libra for Android, Trendweight, etc.)?

If not, I'm wondering if that might not be a help.

I hear what you're saying about having a lower calorie allowance, so a narrow margin to lose while staying satiated. But, like Novus, I'm thinking that - especially in context of your tendency to have relatively large hormonal water weight fluctuations - your temporary periods of eating above maintenance are having more a really discouraging effect on scale weight via water retention, and less an effect of actual fat gain. (Even wiping out 3 months of 0.2 pounds a week is going to require a cumulative 8,400 calories not just above your routine weight loss calorie goal, but above your maintenance calories.

Just a thought. Wishing you success!

lemurcat2

kizanne2 wrote: »

gremloBBPT wrote: »

apullum wrote: »

Diet has little to no effect on blood cholesterol levels for most people (about 75%).

Wow, that surprises me. I would've guessed the opposite, that it affects blood cholesterol levels for most people. Interesting.

Well done @kizanne2! I'm glad you found success with this.

Yeah this is the mantra I got from my post in March. Lose weight. (LIKE we don't have an entire site of people trying to do that with differing success levels.).

But let's think about this. There are many studies on certain things like Oatmeal and those studies show a wide success not just 25% of the people. What we don't have is eat food that MIGHT be helpful tested in a wide spread result like drugs. But hey Foods aren't that dangerous. Most people don't have the side effects of impotence, death, blindness, kidney problems from food (except alcohol on the liver LOL). There are certain food known to raise these bad stats like sugar, alcohol, fats and low value/ low fiber carbs. So why wouldn't there be foods to help?

WebMD Eating oats is linked to an average 7% drop in LDL cholesterol, research shows. Of course if that only effected 25% of the people that would mean the people it did effect would have had a 28% drop!!!! LOL. I digress but foods can certainly change it for the better.

I used to be pretty obese (over 200, and I'm 5'3), and yet I never had any bad blood tests.

I also ate a pretty healthy diet (but for the excess cals) both before and after I was obese (I'd changed my diet and lost some weight earlier, but regained for a variety of stress/depression/emotional eating type reasons, and then just not being able to bring myself to care enough to lose it given other things going on in my life). Despite that, I did most of the things you are talking about (but for the bone broth, but I made and cooked with stock, so don't know that there was a reason to drink it).

I ate lots of veg, fatty fish, avocado, nuts and seeds, and from logging had a good omega-3 to 6 ratio (cooking mostly at home from whole foods tends to do that, as lots of the fat used in pre-made supermarket items tends to be higher in omega-6). I also got a decent amount of exercise from walking, although I had let that fall off more than I should have. I didn't do kombucha, but I did enjoy lots of fermented foods from yogurts to kimchi and sauerkraut and really anything pickled.

I suspect that although I was lucky enough to have good test results despite being fat (my doctor always seemed surprised), that given enough time I would have eventually developed some obesity-related issues, which is part of why I lost weight.

Now, I also feared I would not lose weight, which is why I found it more helpful to frame it for myself as about being as healthy as possible, no matter what -- I focused on process goals (doubling down on eating a healthy diet, counting cals and looking at macros, and especially increasing my activity and getting into training for various events, and I also worked on life balance stuff that I continue to struggle with). My idea was that I wasn't going to focus first on being thin (which I was not convinced was under my control) but on the things I could control.

Unsurprisingly, however, focusing on those things led to weight loss.

I think if you have frustration and feelings of failure wrapped up with weigh loss efforts in the past it makes sense to focus on some other things that feel more under your control for a while, but I wouldn't write off weight loss as unimportant in the long run or impossible for you.

kizanne2

I certainly don't write it off and unimportant or impossible. I'm not going to bet my health on it at this point. I've been obese for 20 years with only slight variations. My whole life doctors have been shocked how 'healthy' I am. The nurse always was shocked when my blood pressure is 90/70. My stats have been good cholesterol and sugar. But I'm getting to be close to 50 now and things are slowing, imflamation is coming on. The blood was a wake up call. Over all it wasn't great but many have way worse. I get my blood tested each year sometimes more depends on annual visits or blood donations or Sam's blood days and now of course I have my own tester. My blood only was out of wack about 6 months before the test that i decided to do something. And I got most of the numbers under control in less than a month.

I don't drink the bone broth. I also don't but 'store broth' I get actual marrow broth and slow cook it using a stand bone broth recipe that help leach the nutrients and collegen out of the bone. This is high in glycine which is been shown to have impacts. So just any broth or soup isn't the same. It's that nutrition thing again. I am fairly positive it has had 8 point impact on HDL. and Fish oil 900 mg with EPA:DHA ratios have impacted it by about 6 points. It is hard to say definitively obviously. I'll be checking my blood fairly regular with my home machine and I'll be consuming bone broth if the trend stay I'll call it. In the spring I'll probably eat less bone broth because I won't be having soup for dinner as much. If the numbers go down that is certainly a trend (at least for me).

The Komboucha is another big impact item when I consume it regular. I make my own when I have it on had I have 16-20 oz / day and my cholesterol seems to drop. When I get to busy to make it then it goes up. The other interventions have kept the cholesterol in normal range even when I'm not cosumming Kombucha but I"ve see as low as 123 for total on it.

I am not stopping the losing weight, I just thought there are so many people who like me may not take the weight off. But they might want to know that it is possible to not use drugs and improve your numbers.

I know 7% isn't a big dent but that's the impact of one food change. There's some addition to do.. Also the farmer who committed to Komboucha 3 times a day actually beat his Lipator numbers! I was hoping to focus this thread on nutrition as I had no idea about the bone broth but It's have a big impact (at least it seems like it the long run will tell me more). You won't find it on a cutesy list top 20 foods. So maybe that information might help someone. Not everyone, maybe only 1 person but thinking about a choice of weight loss or drugs that may damage your mind and other parts of your body when you have earnestly spent a lot of time on a weight loss diet to no real avail. Means you find another way or you take Drugs.

I am currently on plan and did well through the Winter break without much problems. So I am currently losing weight. No much but bit by bit. And yes I do trend lines. But it is still discouraging when you've been good and things reverse for whatever reason. And yes I might do a better job because I'm associating it with my health. But let's get real. From March to now there isn't a signficant difference in my weight and technically I'm up like a pound. So if just eating for my heart was going to work I'd be down 9 pounds even at a slow rate. A 3 week vacation (well 1 week not a vacation but travel with 40 teens) did not help. Thanksgiving didn't help and the start of the school year didn't help. But I'll keep plugging. In the meantime I'll hope to discover more foods I enjoy that have a bigger impact than most 'healthy' food.

During the winter I eat a lot of the brassica family and they pack a punch too. So if I can make it past This Saturday which will be very stressful. I'll probably be good til March. I'll be getting Lab tested in a week or two and I'll be able to see if the changes show in the 'real' labs and how close they are. I just have to not blow it with bad foods this week. Diet soda is one of my stress relievers that I don't drink too often so it's going to be hard to pass it up when I'll be looking for it everyday. But one day down 4 more to go.