So I was doing low carb....but now not sure?
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esaucier17
Posts: 694 Member
I did low carb years ago and had great success! I have always tried to "watch" my carbs. I was more serious the last few months but really wasn't losing much. I was losing 5 and gaining a few back losing a few more. I have stayed the same pretty much.
So I recently had a Dr. apt and had my yearly blood work done. My cholesterol is high, my glucose a tad high and the most concerning my cortisol levels are elevated. I knew they would be. I have been under a lot of stress and over the last year gained about 30 pounds (the pounds I have been trying to lose!) My Dr. want me to see an endocrinologist and of course, eat a low cholesterol diet. Which we all know means low fat. Doesn't really fit with the low carb thing. Now I am so confused. I have heard so many people say their health and blood work numbers got better and better on LC and mine are worse than they have ever been. Any input...thoughts?
So I recently had a Dr. apt and had my yearly blood work done. My cholesterol is high, my glucose a tad high and the most concerning my cortisol levels are elevated. I knew they would be. I have been under a lot of stress and over the last year gained about 30 pounds (the pounds I have been trying to lose!) My Dr. want me to see an endocrinologist and of course, eat a low cholesterol diet. Which we all know means low fat. Doesn't really fit with the low carb thing. Now I am so confused. I have heard so many people say their health and blood work numbers got better and better on LC and mine are worse than they have ever been. Any input...thoughts?
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There are so many people here who can share their wonderful changes in lab values. @GaleHawkins just did a post similiar but there have been many more. Personally, I haven't had blood work done yet, but plan to and expect the results to be positive.1
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how many carbs were you eating? if you gained 30 pounds in a year that would probably be the cause of the cholesterol and all that being high, not the low carb diet. You might have to lose that weight before seeing those numbers go down. maybe reduce your carbs even more if you were eating a lot.
its true my husbands cholesterol and triglycerides went down a ton since he started doing keto and lost 30lbs.5 -
@esaucier17 below is my lab history @RowdysLady mentioned. I eat just under 50 grams of carbs daily and most of them come from nuts. I have not lost weight in the last 1.5 years maintaining at about 200 on 2500 calories. LCHF jacking up the cholesterol level is not too common I think but my did jump 200 points but this year it is normalizing.
Pre LCHF (two years ago) labs were:
Total Cholesterol - 226
HDL - 38
LDL - 146
Triglycerides - 209
9 months of LCHF (one year ago) labs were:
Total Cholesterol - 404
HDL - 56
LDL - 323
Triglycerides - 121
17 months of LCHF (today) labs were:
Total Cholesterol - 257
HDL - 63
LDL - 186
Triglycerides - 36
The new doctor said keep doing what I am doing because it is working and that now Total Cholesterol has to be at >290 before they consider statins, etc. She was not hype pro LCHF but she said the numbers proved it was working for me. I think my numbers helped her better understand the first year of LCHF sending Cholesterol through the roof is NORMAL for some. I refused statins last year because I knew it was normal to shot up because the body takes a while to stop producing high cholesterol that is produced to protect against high inflammation.1 -
Dietary cholesterol is found in animal products, you can do LCHF as a vegetarian (or limited meat/dairy) and still reduce cholesterol consumption.0
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tcunbeliever wrote: »Dietary cholesterol is found in animal products, you can do LCHF as a vegetarian (or limited meat/dairy) and still reduce cholesterol consumption.
@tcunbeliever that is true but dietary cholesterol is only about 20% of the source found in our blood tests. 80% of it is made by the body because we die without enough. Cholesterol is not a bad thing per se.1 -
Right, what needs to be understood really is that high cholesterol isn't actually a bad thing. There really is no real science that supports the connection to high cholesterol and heart disease.
I think you should watch some of the videos by Peter Attia ASAP.
But, it also seems like you haven't been doing low carb for a while, so why would it be to blame? If your blood sugar is elevated, you're insulin resistant. Low carb high fat is the way to go. Or there's all the doctors medications of course... which NEVER produce a cure or reversal of symptoms. Ever. But, low carb can and does time and time again.1 -
GaleHawkins wrote: »@esaucier17 below is my lab history @RowdysLady mentioned. I eat just under 50 grams of carbs daily and most of them come from nuts. I have not lost weight in the last 1.5 years maintaining at about 200 on 2500 calories. LCHF jacking up the cholesterol level is not too common I think but my did jump 200 points but this year it is normalizing.
Pre LCHF (two years ago) labs were:
Total Cholesterol - 226
HDL - 38
LDL - 146
Triglycerides - 209
9 months of LCHF (one year ago) labs were:
Total Cholesterol - 404
HDL - 56
LDL - 323
Triglycerides - 121
17 months of LCHF (today) labs were:
Total Cholesterol - 257
HDL - 63
LDL - 186
Triglycerides - 36
The new doctor said keep doing what I am doing because it is working and that now Total Cholesterol has to be at >290 before they consider statins, etc. She was not hype pro LCHF but she said the numbers proved it was working for me. I think my numbers helped her better understand the first year of LCHF sending Cholesterol through the roof is NORMAL for some. I refused statins last year because I knew it was normal to shot up because the body takes a while to stop producing high cholesterol that is produced to protect against high inflammation.
Thank you so much for your input. Your results are impressive!0 -
Sunny_Bunny_ wrote: »Right, what needs to be understood really is that high cholesterol isn't actually a bad thing. There really is no real science that supports the connection to high cholesterol and heart disease.
I think you should watch some of the videos by Peter Attia ASAP.
But, it also seems like you haven't been doing low carb for a while, so why would it be to blame? If your blood sugar is elevated, you're insulin resistant. Low carb high fat is the way to go. Or there's all the doctors medications of course... which NEVER produce a cure or reversal of symptoms. Ever. But, low carb can and does time and time again.
Oh I totally think my cholesterol is high due to my weight gain not eating low carb. I was just confused if I should continue to try low carb since my dr wants me to eat low cholesterol and LC is really not. I appreciate all your input and advice!0 -
esaucier17 wrote: »Sunny_Bunny_ wrote: »Right, what needs to be understood really is that high cholesterol isn't actually a bad thing. There really is no real science that supports the connection to high cholesterol and heart disease.
I think you should watch some of the videos by Peter Attia ASAP.
But, it also seems like you haven't been doing low carb for a while, so why would it be to blame? If your blood sugar is elevated, you're insulin resistant. Low carb high fat is the way to go. Or there's all the doctors medications of course... which NEVER produce a cure or reversal of symptoms. Ever. But, low carb can and does time and time again.
Oh I totally think my cholesterol is high due to my weight gain not eating low carb. I was just confused if I should continue to try low carb since my dr wants me to eat low cholesterol and LC is really not. I appreciate all your input and advice!
I am also going to look up those videos...thanks
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GaleHawkins wrote: »tcunbeliever wrote: »Dietary cholesterol is found in animal products, you can do LCHF as a vegetarian (or limited meat/dairy) and still reduce cholesterol consumption.
@tcunbeliever that is true but dietary cholesterol is only about 20% of the source found in our blood tests. 80% of it is made by the body because we die without enough. Cholesterol is not a bad thing per se.
My mom was telling me that too....that cholesterol isn't as bad as people think. Hers is high also and her dr wanted her on statins but she is refusing and said she will control with her diet and exercise.2 -
tcunbeliever wrote: »Dietary cholesterol is found in animal products, you can do LCHF as a vegetarian (or limited meat/dairy) and still reduce cholesterol consumption.
I was thinking about this. I feel like I need more veggies in my life anyway and I can be very creative :-)1 -
I've also read that cortisol can block your efforts to lose weight. Are there any things that you can do in your life to reduce your stress? (I know, easier said than done!).
Here's a good article about cortisol:
https://intensivedietarymanagement.com/closer-look-cortisol-hormonal-obesity-xxxx/1 -
My total went up on LCHF but it was almost all HDL so my ratio improved. I haven't been low carb in about a year but I just got my blood work drawn for work so I'll be interested to see how things have changed. Honestly, losing those lbs is likely going to bring your numbers down regardless of which diet you choose.0
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Licorice root or nervous fatigue tcm are herbs that will help with handling stress.1
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I've also read that cortisol can block your efforts to lose weight. Are there any things that you can do in your life to reduce your stress? (I know, easier said than done!).
Here's a good article about cortisol:
https://intensivedietarymanagement.com/closer-look-cortisol-hormonal-obesity-xxxx/
Also, salt is supposed to be very good for the adrenal glands. And salt is a requirement of a low carb diet. Maybe you can kill twobirds with one stone?
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Be careful about statins, too. Studies (that of course our healthcare system ignores) show that people on statins live 10-20 years (or somewhere in that range, I can't remember the specific number of years) less than people with high cholesterol. I heard that on the Keto Talk podcast. Breakdowns of cholesterol are important, too. There are two types of LDL, one is good and one is bad. Your LDL could be high, but if it's the good of the two types (the large "fluffy" ones) rather than the bad type (small, sticky, artery-clotting ones), then you have nothing to worry about. Also, a high HDL can raise your total cholesterol, but it is supposed to be higher.0
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esaucier17 wrote: »esaucier17 wrote: »Sunny_Bunny_ wrote: »Right, what needs to be understood really is that high cholesterol isn't actually a bad thing. There really is no real science that supports the connection to high cholesterol and heart disease.
I think you should watch some of the videos by Peter Attia ASAP.
But, it also seems like you haven't been doing low carb for a while, so why would it be to blame? If your blood sugar is elevated, you're insulin resistant. Low carb high fat is the way to go. Or there's all the doctors medications of course... which NEVER produce a cure or reversal of symptoms. Ever. But, low carb can and does time and time again.
Oh I totally think my cholesterol is high due to my weight gain not eating low carb. I was just confused if I should continue to try low carb since my dr wants me to eat low cholesterol and LC is really not. I appreciate all your input and advice!
I am also going to look up those videos...thanks
Here's his blog. It gets quite technical though. http://eatingacademy.com/nutrition/the-straight-dope-on-cholesterol-part-i
An Attia video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dAWdHYSrh7M
And a recent discussion of his on what CAD actually is: http://eatingacademy.com/
Consider reading Cholesterol Clarity, or the Great Cholesterol Myth. There are others out there too. They may reassure you that LCHF can be very good for cholesterol.
And ditto @karebear5891. If worried about LDL, you should look into what type of LDL you have. Pattern A or B?2 -
My advice is to choose a diet that you can stick to and get the weight off. The blood work should take care of itself at less weight. Particularly, if your sugars are high, LCHF can bring those down well. High sugars do not come from this diet. And, in my world, diabetes is harder to deal with than high LDL. We have many proofs in this group of how well LCHF works.
We are all stuck between the medical community who is trained and informed by the past. And they have 'masters' that they have to answer to. The dietary studies of the past (and present) are in question both because of greater understanding of how little we really know, and often, because of agendas of the financiers. Some clarity is coming and like the others here, IMO we will be eating less carbs and more fats, by national decree, than we have done. (But the dietary guideline people will have to eat a lot of crow first and that will take time.)
But I share your difficulty now. In rural Canada, where I live, you really cannot 'fire" your doctor. There just are not that many to be had. So, I have to work within the current system. However, I found Dr Sarah Hallburg quite convincing when she was interviewed about high LDL and the LCHF diet on DietDoctor.com. She said that, yes, about the low density LDL, the medical community is generally in agreement that this isn't good. She pointed out that, for these people, low carb high fat can be done without being extremely high fat. She suggested for those of us with LDL issues, a diet higher in complex carbs and more moderate in fats may be prudent. You can still lose weight. I have upped my fiber to offset the increase in my carbs. And lowered my fats quite a bit. I am still losing weight and I have meet my doctor's requirements of keeping my sugars low and lowering my fats.
But as I said, choose something you can live with and stick to it to lose the weight. If you choose LCHF, I won't worry too much about the fat at the beginning. You can "tinker" with it as you get more used to the diet.2 -
I appreciate everyone's input here. Sometime next year I plan to go to the Doc to have my lipid panel (if that's what it is called) done again to see where I stand across the board.
@esaucier17 , I successfully lost my excess 60 pounds via ~40% carbs, ~30% proteins and ~30% fat so it can be done. Acknowledging I have no health issues that generally make weight loss more difficult. Admitting that I was always hungry @ 40/30/30 which hasn't been the case on keto.
In the beginning I had high BP and somewhat high cholesterol. In the end, despite eating less than 200mg of cholesterol per day, my lipid panel showed an INCREASE in cholesterol. It wasn't what I would call extreme but total went from 209 to 234. HDL went DOWN and LDL went up. Bummer. I may have reported my #s incorrectly elsewhere but finally (yesterday) pulled out my old health records because of interest regarding LCHF and cholesterol.1 -
I appreciate everyone's input here. Sometime next year I plan to go to the Doc to have my lipid panel (if that's what it is called) done again to see where I stand across the board.
@esaucier17 , I successfully lost my excess 60 pounds via ~40% carbs, ~30% proteins and ~30% fat so it can be done. Acknowledging I have no health issues that generally make weight loss more difficult. Admitting that I was always hungry @ 40/30/30 which hasn't been the case on keto.
In the beginning I had high BP and somewhat high cholesterol. In the end, despite eating less than 200mg of cholesterol per day, my lipid panel showed an INCREASE in cholesterol. It wasn't what I would call extreme but total went from 209 to 234. HDL went DOWN and LDL went up. Bummer. I may have reported my #s incorrectly elsewhere but finally (yesterday) pulled out my old health records because of interest regarding LCHF and cholesterol.
@kpk54 weight wise you are moving in the right direction so just monitor your blood work. Cutting carbs more typically increase HDL and decrease LDL in a major way over time. I spent 40 years screwing up my health by my WOE so it is taking a few years to turn the tanker around.
Keep up the good work. 1
