High cholesterol and low carb?

Skyblueyellow
Skyblueyellow Posts: 225 Member
in Food and Nutrition
This is a question I thought of while reading another thread about high cholesterol. I see that a lot of people reduced saturated fats and increased fruits, veggies, beans, and whole grains.

So it got me thinking: how do you lower cholesterol (if weight loss and exercise aren't enough) without using medication if you need to eat a low carb and mod protein diet because of diabetes? Increasing foods such as beans and whole grains will raise blood sugar, but statins aren't a great med choice for diabetes because diabetes is already tough on the kidneys. Being overweight is tough on the liver. What to do?

My cholesterol was borderline high and I can't be on a statin because my kidneys are slightly compromised because of my diabetes. I'm working with my doctor and she is comfortable with me trying weight loss and exercise as a first intervention. I guess it just really bums me out. I'm 34 and I feel like I'm so much older when I think about this kind of stuff.

So far I'm down 15 lbs and I'm exercising 4-5 days a week. I weigh in on Friday mornings to help my weekend accountability. Today is day 57 (I believe) of logging. I know there isn't necessarily a lot of love for fitness trackers (Fitbit, etc) but being aware of how sedentary I was has allowed me to increase my steps from about 2,500/day to over 7,000/day.

Sorry for the ramble. Just thought perhaps I might get some ideas!

Replies

  • nvmomketo
    nvmomketo Posts: 12,019 Member
    Low carb is generally good for cholesterol and heart health... and diabetes for that matter. HDL tends to go up, and because carbs are often a factor in triglycerides, triglycerides tends to drop. LDL often stays about the same but it can go up or down. That often is not a concern because the LDL particle sizes tend to switch to a healthy size ad density.

    Have you read about cholesterol? Current thinking is that it is not a concern except for maybe low HDL or high triglycerides. Read Cholesterol Clarity or The Great Cholesterol Myth. Read Peter Attia's blogs on cholesterol. You'll soon see that a low carb diet is usually beneficial to cholesterol.

    Join the Low Carber Daily to see many stories from people who improved their blood glucose and cholesterol with the LCHF diet.
  • Skyblueyellow
    Skyblueyellow Posts: 225 Member
    @nvmomketo Thanks! I've been keeping up with research about cholesterol-laden foods not having a large impact on cholesterol. Honestly, I don't pay too much attention to the cholesterol I take in from foods. I eat eggs when I want, I'll eat beef when I want and I'll use butter over margarine. My doctor wasn't very concerned with the slight elevation in cholesterol either and is completely fine with me trying interventions not related to medication!

    Thanks so much :)
  • nvmomketo
    nvmomketo Posts: 12,019 Member
    I'm glad that you have a doctor who is up to date. :)
    Here's a link to the Low Carber Daily group that I mentioned. http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/394-low-carber-daily-forum-the-lcd-group Searching the group is tough but if you scroll through a few pages you'll see threads on labs improving.
  • littlechiaseed
    littlechiaseed Posts: 489 Member
    I don't understand what kind of diet that supports cutting down beans and veggies would be beneficial for someone with cholesterol issues.
  • nvmomketo
    nvmomketo Posts: 12,019 Member
    littlechiaseed wrote: »
    I don't understand what kind of diet that supports cutting down beans and veggies would be beneficial for someone with cholesterol issues.

    It could lower cholesterol? This is mainly true if starch intake was high to begin with.
  • Skyblueyellow
    Skyblueyellow Posts: 225 Member
    littlechiaseed wrote: »
    I don't understand what kind of diet that supports cutting down beans and veggies would be beneficial for someone with cholesterol issues.

    Think of it as less of "cutting down" and more like picking vegetables that are lower on the glycemic index (which tend to be less calorie-dense). It's about appropriately pairing foods together to spread those carbs out throughout the day to maintain stable blood sugar. You have to remember that I'm not eating low carb for fun, but because I have an underlying medical condition.
  • colors_fade
    colors_fade Posts: 464 Member
    Skyblueyellow wrote: »
    So it got me thinking: how do you lower cholesterol (if weight loss and exercise aren't enough) without using medication if you need to eat a low carb and mod protein diet because of diabetes? Increasing foods such as beans and whole grains will raise blood sugar, but statins aren't a great med choice for diabetes because diabetes is already tough on the kidneys. Being overweight is tough on the liver. What to do?

    Choose low GI carbs so your blood sugar doesn't elevate/spike. Then your diet doesn't have to be weighted so heavily toward one macro or another.

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