Need help with Cholesterol
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pamloseweight
Posts: 1
I just found out my cholesterol is very high. Before taking medication, I thought I would try to go on a strict diet. Does anyone have any suggestions?
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Honestly, losing weight and exercise will lower cholesterol. I would recommend getting a food scale and tracking calories daily. Also start an exercise routine that is made up of resistance training and cardio. And lastly, look to get nutrient dense foods to include lean proteins, veggies, fruits, and whole grains. Just understand, that cholesterol in food doesn't have huge affects on cholesterol in your blood stream.0
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Did your doctor make recommendations? Like eating right and exercising?
Eat healthy:
http://www.fitness.gov/eat-healthy/how-to-eat-healthy/
Lower cholesterol:
http://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases_conditions/hic_Cholesterol/hic_How_to_Lower_Your_Cholesterol
http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/high-blood-cholesterol/in-depth/reduce-cholesterol/art-20045935
That's all generic, though. Generalized, for the average person. The best plan for YOU has to be determined by you and your doctor. You might even ask for a referral to a dietician.
Cholesterol will often be improved if you do what they tell you! It's not always un-changeable. Lots of hope there!
Good luck!
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Your high cholesterol should be impacted by a better diet, but keep in mind that it could be genetic, as well. My brother-in-law eats well, exercises and is a healthy weight but his cholesterol and triglycerides are through the roof. In his case, his doctor prescribed medication to help keep it under control. My husband's high cholesterol is a combination of being overweight and genetics. His doctor just "prescribed" a better diet, losing weight and fish oil capsules. I'd highly suggest you discuss your particulars with a health professional. High cholesterol really isn't something you should self-medicate for the long term.0
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Sometime back I ran some tests on myself. I measured my body fat every 2 weeks and had my cholestrol tested. The resuits showed that when I dropped my bf % from 25+% down to 22%, my cholestrol was within normal range without taking medication. The corresponding female numbers would be 10% more.
I was able to achieve that through creating a deficit on MFP and walking ~ 20 miles/week
Other formal research show the same relationship between body fat, exercise, and cholestrol levels.
FYI, I do still take the statins to help keep my arteries flexible as I grow older. I trust my heart. Not sure about my arteries.0 -
If the doctor does want to put you on statins have a talk with him about the side effects. My father has nerve damage.0
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Eat more fruits and vegetables, eat less meat and dairy.0
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I had borderline LDL ("bad") cholesterol when I had my annual check in May. I don't know yet how much my LDL has changed because of successfully losing 70 lbs and changing my diet, plus exercising more, but MFP does make it possible to really get to grips with your diet (and not just for weight loss - my husband manages his high blood pressure using MFP).
I changed my saturated fat target to 7% of total calories about a month ago, and I'm just figuring out how to achieve it (changing macros is a learning process and takes time and lots of practice). To figure out how to change the setting in MFP, multiply 7% by your total calorie target, and then divide by 9. This gives you the number of grams of saturated fat, which you can change in the custom diet settings.
I would strongly advise pre-logging all your meals in advance, so you can swap things out for better choices and avoid finding that you're always over your targets by the end of the day.
My diary is open if you want to take a look. I'm not consistently under my saturated fat target yet, since it's still a work-in-progress, but it's close. I actually don't focus on dietary cholesterol - I really like my morning egg for breakfast!!1 -
I started on this little journey a couple of years ago with the exact same issue. I will tell you that I still eat meat...I eat eggs every single day...I do not even look at my dietary cholesterol.
- I "cleaned" up my diet...more whole foods and meals prepared from whole foods...I still eat processed foods, just way less
- Less "junk"
- Lots of veg...like 6-8 servings per day and a couple servings of fruit...apples are a good choice for soluble fiber...
- Legumes have become a staple in my diet
- Oatmeal is a staple of my diet
- I eat more fish then I ever used to...I eat salmon about twice weekly on average and white fish usually once.
- I still eat fattier cuts of meat from time to time, but by and large my meat and poultry sources are of the lean variety
- Avocados and almonds are a staple of my diet and a substantial source of my dietary fat along with olive oil, avocado oil, and coconut oil
- I lost weight...about 40 Lbs
- I exercise regularly...pretty much 5-6 days per week both cardiovascular work and resistance training.
I started out with LDL around 150 and my HDL was around 20. My LDL is now 95 and my HDL is 50. You should definitely make efforts to correct things through diet and exercise...but pleas be aware that cholesterol issues are often hereditary0 -
EatsNotTreats wrote: »Have you tried eating grass-fed meats, wild fish, lots of above ground veggies as well as moderating fruits, and eliminating grains?
So you are describing a Paleo diet, but none of this will improve cholesterol.
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Actually, it might.EatsNotTreats wrote: »Have you tried eating grass-fed meats, wild fish, lots of above ground veggies as well as moderating fruits, and eliminating grains?
So you are describing a Paleo diet, but none of this will improve cholesterol.
There is evidence to suggest that a low carb diet will improve cholesterol levels; it did for me. My cholesterol has never been an issue but a few years back I was following a very low carb diet. From one year to the next, the lab work from my annual checkup showed my HDL (good) up about 25% and my LDL (bad) down by about the same. I returned to a more moderate diet about halfway through the following year and most of that reversed itself (but was still a little better than the first year).
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You might need to have that thing shined up. I only lost about 10 pounds. I wasn't eating at a deficit for most of that time, just keeping my carb totals to under 50 grams per day. I've never actually been overweight.__drmerc__ wrote: »
Actually, it might.EatsNotTreats wrote: »Have you tried eating grass-fed meats, wild fish, lots of above ground veggies as well as moderating fruits, and eliminating grains?
So you are describing a Paleo diet, but none of this will improve cholesterol.
There is evidence to suggest that a low carb diet will improve cholesterol levels; it did for me. My cholesterol has never been an issue but a few years back I was following a very low carb diet. From one year to the next, the lab work from my annual checkup showed my HDL (good) up about 25% and my LDL (bad) down by about the same. I returned to a more moderate diet about halfway through the following year and most of that reversed itself (but was still a little better than the first year).
My magic crystal ball says that it was correlated to your weight loss /weight gain and not the types of foods you ate
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I got the same kind of results from lowered carbs (I went from ~200g/day to ~100g/day), but then I remembered I consciously increased fibre content as well which confounds even that n=1 sample.
You might need to have that thing shined up. I only lost about 10 pounds. I wasn't eating at a deficit for most of that time, just keeping my carb totals to under 50 grams per day. I've never actually been overweight.__drmerc__ wrote: »
Actually, it might.EatsNotTreats wrote: »Have you tried eating grass-fed meats, wild fish, lots of above ground veggies as well as moderating fruits, and eliminating grains?
So you are describing a Paleo diet, but none of this will improve cholesterol.
There is evidence to suggest that a low carb diet will improve cholesterol levels; it did for me. My cholesterol has never been an issue but a few years back I was following a very low carb diet. From one year to the next, the lab work from my annual checkup showed my HDL (good) up about 25% and my LDL (bad) down by about the same. I returned to a more moderate diet about halfway through the following year and most of that reversed itself (but was still a little better than the first year).
My magic crystal ball says that it was correlated to your weight loss /weight gain and not the types of foods you ate0 -
The book "Revers and Prevent Heart Disease" might help you.0
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Interesting. I actually can't eat much fiber. I have a digestive issue that forces me to keep my fiber around 10 grams per day so that wouldn't explain my cholesterol change, either.
I got the same kind of results from lowered carbs (I went from ~200g/day to ~100g/day), but then I remembered I consciously increased fibre content as well which confounds even that n=1 sample.
You might need to have that thing shined up. I only lost about 10 pounds. I wasn't eating at a deficit for most of that time, just keeping my carb totals to under 50 grams per day. I've never actually been overweight.__drmerc__ wrote: »
Actually, it might.EatsNotTreats wrote: »Have you tried eating grass-fed meats, wild fish, lots of above ground veggies as well as moderating fruits, and eliminating grains?
So you are describing a Paleo diet, but none of this will improve cholesterol.
There is evidence to suggest that a low carb diet will improve cholesterol levels; it did for me. My cholesterol has never been an issue but a few years back I was following a very low carb diet. From one year to the next, the lab work from my annual checkup showed my HDL (good) up about 25% and my LDL (bad) down by about the same. I returned to a more moderate diet about halfway through the following year and most of that reversed itself (but was still a little better than the first year).
My magic crystal ball says that it was correlated to your weight loss /weight gain and not the types of foods you ate0 -
I would ask them for a diet to help lower cholesterol first then get rechecked when they want you to be rechecked. If that doesnt work then you may need the meds(there are other things besides statins as well that are considered safer so talk to your doctor).I have ate healthier,exercised and so on and some of my numbers are still high and I have been doing this 27 months. some people no matter what they do have high cholesterol. I had high cholesterol before I was overweight so for me its hereditary(my grandma had it and a few other family members).
Talk to your doctor. I even followed their low cholesterol diet which I wasnt even eating the foods on their list to avoid and mine was still high. I went off my meds because they werent doing too much for me and causing me health problems(I have been on several statins to try) BUT, I would NOT recommend doing that unless your doctor says its ok.
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I was on the skinny noodle website, ordering more of my shirataki noodles - and, saw one of their posts regarding it helping with cholesterol. (the additional fiber was mentioned as part of its reasonings).
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Foods that contain cholesterol are dairy, eggs, and meat/fish/chicken. Increasing your whole foods consumption (fresh fruit/veg/ whole grains), and avoiding cholesterol containing foods, refined grains, added refined sugars, and added/refined oils will lower your cholesterol. Some author's to check out for reading material are McDougall, Barnard, Esselstyn, Campbell, Furhman. There's tons of info there, if you like to read. Those authors also have websites with quick info, some have menus as well. Good luck to you. It's totally doable.0
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Foods that contain cholesterol are dairy, eggs, and meat/fish/chicken.
Dietary cholesterol doesn't cause an increase in blood cholesterol, just as eating fat is unrelated to storing adipose tissue. This is one of those ridiculous things that people believed in the '70s and '80s but that science has repeatedly proven false. (Relevant Pubmed article, but there are hundreds more over the past 30 years: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7124663 )
In fact, most of the cholesterol in your body is created by your body itself (mainly the liver, but elsewhere as well).
The best way to lower your cholesterol is to lose weight and be active.
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