Cholesterol

Lesa_Sass

I refuse the drugs as they horrible! I use fish oil, flax seed and eat a largely vegetarian diet and watch my dairy intake.

There are some really good vegetarian products out there that are actually quite good. Quorn products are wonderful.

If you are interested in any veggie type products, let me know and I can send you a list of the stuff we like (hubby has to have food that tastes like food) and what to stay away from.

Good luck and I hope you bring it down.

orchidsand

I refuse the drugs as they horrible! I use fish oil, flax seed and eat a largely vegetarian diet and watch my dairy intake.

There are some really good vegetarian products out there that are actually quite good. Quorn products are wonderful.

If you are interested in any veggie type products, let me know and I can send you a list of the stuff we like (hubby has to have food that tastes like food) and what to stay away from.

Good luck and I hope you bring it down.

I love quorn!!!

gingerb85

I have a family history of high cholesterol and heart disease on my dad's side. His mother died of heart disease. My dad is a small man, thin and active and always has been. But 10 years ago, his cholesterol was over 400. They tried medication, low fat diet, etc. After a year, his cholesterol had dropped about 30 points, but at 400, 30 points didn't make a huge difference. After reading about different diets and cholesterol, my dad decided to give a vegan diet a six month trial. At the end of six months, his cholesterol levels had dropped DRAMATICALLY. From a vegan diet alone, as he had stopped taking the cholesterol-lowering meds. He has remained vegan since then and his cholesterol is less than 150. He has never gone off his diet, not cheated even one time since. He says that even now, his mouth still waters at the thought of a good New Orleans roast beef po'boy (he is from NO), but that his love of his family and desire to stick around for as long as possible far outweighs the temporary yumminess that po'boy and so he sticks to his vegan diet.

You could call it coincidence since he is just one person. But MY cholesterol has been over 200 since I was 25 years old. I'm almost 47. While never placed on meds for it, I knew it was coming. And three years ago, I started having heart problems. So two years ago, I decided to follow in my dad's footsteps and become vegan. Less than 18 months on a vegan diet, my cholesterol dropped to 168. I feel wonderful. My anemia has disappeared (yes, anemic while eating a meat based diet, no anemia on a plant based one and I do not take iron supplementation). I have more energy and feel better than I have in years. Unlike my dad, I do not dream of roast beef po'boys. I was never a huge meat fan, but I did love fish. But I've traded it in for low cholesterol and a drastically reduced risk of heart disease.

gingerb85

Oh - and regarding oatmeal, I have eaten oatmeal for the past 10 years almost every single morning. Old fashioned, rolled oats cooked with skim milk, no butter. That was my go-to breakfast. Never dropped my cholesterol a bit. Dropping all animal products and making my oatmeal the same way only subbing almond milk for the dairy worked for me.

agentscully514

This is correct. In a large scale study funded by the NIH (not quackery by any definition), a low carb diet was better than a low fat diet at improving cholesterol over the long term.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/17/AR2008071701058.html
http://www.dukehealth.org/health_library/news/9412

Reduce carbs (sugar in particular). I will get a lot of hate for saying this. Oh well. People really need to stop blaming saturated fats.

wildhehr2

It's been awhile, but I thought I'd update. Just got my bloodwork back. In three months, my cholesterol went from 220 to 174 and my LDL went from 170 to 110. All I did was 1000mg of fish oil 2x a day, added more fiber, and made sure I exercised regularly. Not saying it'll be that easy for everyone, but you may not have to do anything too drastic.