lower cholesterol and increasing protein - is that possible?

BrianSarkadi

Hi, I have just joined premium MFP and the Simple Start Challenge. My goal this year is to lower my cholesterol over the next 6 months, and run a half marathon. I am confused with my Protein goal which seems to be 160Grams a day as I weigh 100KG and am an Active Exerciser. Can you raise your protein intake AND lower your cholesterol?

ChickenKillerPuppy

I have been trying to lower my cholesterol while maintaining a healthy protein intake and it’s a little challenging and involves a fair amount of label reading and research to manage less saturated fat and more fiber while still getting enough protein.

I eat a lot of lentils, fish, beans, fruits, nuts, chicken, veggies, and supplement dishes with tofu where I can. You can do it! It just takes a little effort to keep the saturated fats low, getting fiber in your diet, and thinking about where you are getting your protein.

As with anything, if this is new, make small sustainable changes that you can maintain so maybe just switch out one or two things, get used to those changes, and then make additional changes.

AnnPT77

Do you mean your dietary cholesterol, or your serum cholesterol level?

I'm assuming you mean serum cholesterol? If so, are you currently overweight? Have you long been active, or is that new? Do you have family history of high cholesterol?

For me, my cholesterol levels dropped from high to normal alongside loss down to a healthy weight, and have stayed there as I maintain a healthy weight . . . but I don't have familial hypercholesterolemia. For some people, increasing exercise reduces cholesterol to some extent, but I was already quite active for over a decade while obese, so that didn't do it for me. With a genetic disposition to high cholesterol, the situation can be different.

ChickenKillerPuppy's advice is good in either case, but the surrounding issues do matter.

If you mean dietary cholesterol, that's not necessarily a big deal if no genetic predispositions, though her advice will help lower it. Generally, choosing calorie-efficient protein sources will give you lower-fat protein, which may be helpful. In that sense, this may be useful:

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10247171/carbs-and-fats-are-cheap-heres-a-guide-to-getting-your-proteins-worth-fiber-also

If you're questioning whether the gram goal is reasonable, then it maybe matters how much (if any) weight you might wish to or need to lose. Some of us (including me) think that 0.6-0.8g protein minimum daily per pound of healthy goal weight is a good rule of thumb . . . that would be 1.32-1.76g per kg of healthy goal weight. If overweight, we don't need bunches of extra protein to support our fat mass - it's needed to maintain our lean mass, primarily.

If you want a more precise evidence based estimate, there's this estimator:

https://examine.com/nutrition/protein-intake-calculator/

and this document that talks about the reasoning/evidence behind it:

https://examine.com/guides/protein-intake/

That's a site with a generally good reputation for being neutral and following the science. (Among other things, they don't sell protein supplements or anything like that.)