The High Cholesterol Club :(

Hi all.

I have high cholesterol, too. A lot of my family members have it plus diabetes and the women in my family (including me) have thyroid issues. I've skated by the diabetes for now, but because I'm only 21 I have my mother constantly nagging at me when I visit home from college. I've started to cut out a lot of the bad stuff in my diet, but I only hope that could help.

I'm just relieved that I'm not the only twenty-something in the world with high cholesterol. I thought I had something seriously wrong (not that it isn't, but you know what I mean) with me.

I am unfortunately a member of this club...I just went to the doctor on Tuesday and he noted that it had been over a year since I had labwork, so he ordered some blood tests. I was anxious to see the results, because over the past year and a half, I have lost 50 pounds and literally gone from the couch to running half marathons. My cholesterol was "borderline" high when tested in 10/2009 (prior to lifestyle changes), so I couldn't wait to see how my lifestyle changes had effected my numbers. Well...much to my shock and dismay, my cholesterol has GONE UP!! WTH!!! I can not believe it. Total went from 260 (10/09) to 262 now. HDL (which I know is good) went up at least, 65 (10/09) to 94 now. For whatever reason, I do not have my prior LDL or Triglyceride numbers, but they are now LDL 153 and Tri 130, which are high. I know that part of it is hereditary, as my parents and grandparents had a history of high cholesterol and heart disease, which was a major motivation for my lifestyle changes, but even with all the hard work I have put into changing my health, it is not reflecting in my numbers...frustrating!! Any ideas??

I am a Type II Diabetic and had a cholesterol level of 266, probably higher when I was fatter. About six months ago, my Dr. threatened me with having to inject insulin, so I started watching what I was eating and three months ago, my cholesterol was down to 163, but my HDL was 38, still 2 points too low. About three months ago, I started eating organic fruits and veggies and stopped buying processed/packaged foods. Within the last week, I got a complete physical with blood work (results of cholorestrol and triglycerides aren't back yet), and I have been taken off three of my high blood pressure meds, one of my diabetes meds and ½ of my high cholesterol med. I am now on an 1800/day calorie and low sodium diet. Eight days ago, I started walking 1.5 miles a day. My goal is to get rid of my last diabetes med, my last high blood pressure med and my cholesterol med. If a fat old man can do it, almost anyone can

Way to go CRody!! Those are awesome results!! Please post when you have your cholesterol results back. Keep up the good work...it is paying off!!
Tammy

I found out I had high cholesterol a little over a month ago. Dr. says its probably genetic. Total was 379, LDL 185. SO i have been on statins, and i completely changed my way of life. Labs came back on Monday, Total is 145, LDL 72!!!! However, I do not believe the meds are that effective. I think my lifestyle change did a lot to help too. So, what did I change? I eat no real cheese, milk, whole eggs, butter. I limit myself to 2g of saturated fat a day, usually in the form of ground turkey breast. I have been drowning everything in olive oil, and other good fats. I have better oats brand oatmeal, the abundance line, for breakfast and lunch normally. It has flaxseeds and other healthy goodies, but it so much better tasting than Quaker. I take flaxseed oil, and a multivitamin each day. I increase my intake of soy protein. I eat a lot of soy cheese, soy milk, and fake meat. You can actually make it delicious! I am completely up for a recipe exchange. In fact this afternoon I will post my pizza recipe, a total of 2.5g of sat fat in the entire 12inch pizza, 200 calories per slice! and delicious. For now I am off to the farmers market, i need more apples to make apple butter

I recently found this article that might be of interest to others with cholesterol issues...

Berkeley Wellness Report

http://www.berkeleywellnessalerts.com/alerts/healthy_heart/Cholesterol-Lowering-Supplements198-1.html?ET=bwalerts:e1028:143024a:&st=email&s=EEA_110916_001

November 9, 2010

If you have high cholesterol, you may be tempted to try a "heart-health" supplement. Some have evidence to back their use, but others are questionable.

Sterols or stanols: These plant compounds interfere with the absorption of dietary cholesterol. The standard dose (2 grams, or 2,000 milligrams, a day) lowers LDL (“bad”) cholesterol by 9% to 20%. The government’s cholesterol guidelines and the American Heart Association recommend foods fortified with sterols/stanols. There are also sterol and stanol supplements, which vary in composition and dosage. The FDA allows labels on foods or supplements to claim they reduce the risk of heart disease if they supply at least 400 milligrams of sterols per serving or dose, for a daily total of at least 800 milligrams. Our take: Worth trying.

Soluble fiber supplements: The government’s cholesterol guidelines recommend fruit, vegetables, and grains rich in soluble fiber, including psyllium, a seed grain sold as a laxative and fiber supplement. Psyllium can lower LDL cholesterol by 5% to 15% and has other heart-healthy effects; you have to take the standard dose three times a day to get the greatest effect. Beta glucan, found in oats and barley, is another soluble fiber that lowers LDL cholesterol. Many supplements provide beta glucan or other soluble fibers, but have not been adequately studied. Our take: Psyllium is a good option, as part of a heart-healthy diet. Get other soluble fibers from foods, rather than supplements.

Red yeast rice extract: Made by fermenting red yeast on rice, the extract contains a statin compound, lovastatin, so it does improve cholesterol levels. But the effect is less predictable, since the supplements are not standardized. In fact, a new analysis of 12 red yeast rice supplements, reported in the Archives of Internal Medicine, found that the products varied widely in how much active ingredient they contained. Moreover, a potentially harmful substance was detected in three products. Keep in mind, also, that red yeast rice supplements can cause the same side effects as statin drugs. Our take: It may be effective, but it’s safer to take a prescription-quality statin under medical supervision. A generic statin may not cost much more and is covered by insurance.

Fish oil supplements: The omega-3 fats in fish have a variety of potential cardiovascular benefits, but do not lower cholesterol. In fact, they may raise both LDL and HDL cholesterol slightly. Our take: If you have heart disease or high triglycerides, talk to your doctor about omega-3 supplements, but don’t take them to lower your cholesterol.

Garlic: Studies have yielded inconsistent results. There are many types of supplements, with different amounts of garlic components. A well-designed study at Stanford University found no benefit on cholesterol from two popular supplements or raw garlic. If there is an effect, it’s probably small. Our take: Garlic supplements are not rec­om­mended; eat garlic if you like it, but not to lower cholesterol.

Guggul extract (guggulipid): Guggul is a gummy resin from a tree. Despite some positive research from India, two well-designed studies (from the U.S. and Norway) found no lowering of LDL cholesterol, but did note frequent side effects, mostly gastrointestinal. It can interfere with certain drugs. Our take: Not recommended.

Policosanol: Usually derived from sugar cane or beeswax, policosanol has been studied mostly in Cuba, where it’s been found to improve cholesterol levels. But independent studies from Germany and Italy found it ineffective. Potential side effects include gastrointestinal upset and rashes; it can affect blood-clotting medication. Our take: Not recommended.

Keep in mind: Cholesterol-lowering drugs have been well studied, have impressive results, and their side effects, mostly rare, are known. You can be sure of what’s in the drug, in contrast to dietary supplements, which are not well-regulated. But if you have high cholesterol and want to try one of these supplements, tell your doctor, so the effects can be monitored.

Grr, so i created the nutritional data for my pizza but didn't select sharing with everyone else. Bummer. I will just tell you what is in it, and you can adjust as necessary. Approximately 200 calories for one slice, 1.5 g of sat fat in the whole pizza! Hope you have a trader joes near you. I played around for quite awhile until i found a good mix of flavors, so you dont feel that you are missing out, or having "healthy" pizza.

Start with one bag of trader joes premade garlic and herb pizza dough. you will cook according to the directions on the bag.
i top it with one jar of trader joes fat free pizza sauce, i like saucy pizza, feel free to use a lot less if you like
on top of that, trader joes frozen, grilled corn kernels, or just frozen sweet corn.
a heaping handful of small mushrooms of your choice, chopped or diced
albertson's turkey pepperoni, one serving, 15 slices, its enough to make one layer on the pizza
canadian bacon, the brand i had was sat fat free, and one serving was 3 slices. i don't remember the brand, so that might affect your calorie count
top it off with half a block of trader joes soy mozzarella, just shred it right onto the top, it melts pretty well. I added a tbls of regular parmesan over that in case the mozzarella wasn't cheesy.

you do want to cut it while it is hot though. if you have never used soy cheese, it doesn't act like regular cheese, so after it cools it will harden a little and all your goodies squish out if you try to cut it cold, and have a lot of sauce under it.

if anyone has found any yummy cheese substitutes let me know, im trying lots of them out right now. if you are missing mac and cheese, amys kitchen makes a great low cholesterol dairy free mac and cheez, frozen in individual portions. no real cheese but its delicious, and ooey gooey like real cheese.