<p>I know three people who were told they had fibromyalgia. Turned out all 3 had gallbladder trouble. Two had stones and one had a cyst in their gallbladder. The pain disapeared after surgery. Can you tell I don’t trust doctors?</p>
<p>If you are concerned about cholesterol (and there has never been a study linking cholesterol to improved cardiac or overall mortality rates in women), then here is the important stuff in a nutshell.</p>
<p>The two things that best correlate with improved cardiac risk are lower triglycerides and higher HDL (“good cholesterol”). LDL (“bad cholesterol”) is only a risk factor to the extent that it is the small dense particle size as opposed to the harmless large, fluffy particle size.</p>
<p>I would NEVER agree to take a statin without a complete cholesterol profile: triglycerides, HDL, LDL, and LDL pattern type. If you doc isn’t cooperative, you can get the test yourself for $69 (with a $10 off coupon) at an Any Lab Test Now walk-in storefront (lots of Pacific NW locations):</p>
<p>[Wellness</a> blood tests, complete blood count, cholesterol test, thyroid hormone test, blood pressure, urinalysis, cancer screen, cardiac risk, nutritional panel Wellness Tests, VAP® Cholesterol Test](<a href=“http://www.anylabtestnow.com/tabid/66/ProductID/3419/Default.aspx]Wellness”>http://www.anylabtestnow.com/tabid/66/ProductID/3419/Default.aspx)</p>
<p>Here’s the test:
<a href=“http://www.atherotech.com/images/vapliterature/pdfs/Vap_Sample.pdf[/url]”>http://www.atherotech.com/images/vapliterature/pdfs/Vap_Sample.pdf</a></p>
<p><a href=“http://www.atherotech.com/images/vapliterature/pdfs/VAP_Test_Explanations.pdf[/url]”>http://www.atherotech.com/images/vapliterature/pdfs/VAP_Test_Explanations.pdf</a></p>
<p>They draw a blood sample at the walk-in storefront, overnight it to the lab in Alabama, and fax or e-mail you your results usually within 24 hours.</p>
<p>Or, get your doc to run the lab test that at least gives you your HDL, triglycerides, and calculated LDL. If your HDL is high and your triglycerides are low, then you almost certainly have the large fluffy safe LDL particle size and the LDL number is pretty much irrelevant.</p>
<p>BTW, a new report from the massive Women’s Health Initiative study shows that women taking statins have a higher association with developing type 2 diabetes, even after adjusting for weight, diet, exercise, and so forth:</p>
<p>[Michael</a> R. Eades, M.D. » Statins and diabetes](<a href=“http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/statins/statins-and-diabetes/]Michael”>http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/statins/statins-and-diabetes/)</p>
<p>[Arch</a> Intern Med – Abstract: Statin Use and Risk of Diabetes Mellitus in Postmenopausal Women in the Women’s Health Initiative, January 23, 2012, Culver et al. 172 (2): 144](<a href=“http://archinte.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/short/172/2/144]Arch”>Statin Use and Risk of Diabetes Mellitus in Postmenopausal Women in the Women's Health Initiative)</p>
<p>Lose body *fat<a href=“as%20opposed%20to%20weight”>/i</a>.</p>
<p>Exercise more. Be sure to include strength/weight/resistance training to build muscle to improve body composition. More muscle means greater calorie burn even at rest.</p>
<p>Choose fats to favor monounsaturated fats (e.g. nuts, avocados, olive oil) and fatty fish (but watch out for types high in mercury or other contaminants). Avoid hydrogenated fats or trans-fats.</p>
<p>Choose carbohydrates to favor fibrous whole foods. Avoid added sugars, sugary drinks, and refined grains.</p>
Actually, vegans often have very unhealthy cholesterol profiles. Very high carb diets tend to result in very high Triglycerides in the blood stream and the lack of fats in the diet produce low HDL “good cholesterol” numbers. That combination (high triglyercides and low HDL) correlates with increase risk of heart disease and almost guarantees that LDL will be the dangerous small, dense particle size. In an interesting quip in a lecture on his Stanford A to Z diet study, Chris Gardner (himself a lifelong vegetarian) says that he has to practically beg his vegan patients to eat more fat to improve their cholesterol profiles.
<p>I would agree with every recommendation UCBalumnus made above.</p>
<p>Cutting out sugar and refined carbs will lower triglycerides more than anything else you can do. Increasing the comsumption of healthy fats (fish oil, olive oil, etc) will improve HDL. Exercise, especially strength training and high intensity exercise) will do lots of good things hormonally and lower LDL. It’s also important to get adequate protein. You want to increase lean muscle mass while decreasing body fat. Lots of of benefits of that.</p>
<p>DH has not had much luck lowering his numbers through diet and exercise. We eat very little meat and dairy (don’t keep it in the fridge), lots of fruits and veggies, only whole grains and next to no processed foods. He is a marathoner (not back of the pack, qualifies/runs Boston every year) and walks to work every day. He has been talking about increasing his strength training, maybe that will help.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Vegetarian or vegan is not necessarily good or bad healthwise. A pizza, cookies, and beer diet may be vegetarian (or vegan with non-dairy “cheese” on the pizza), but not especially healthy.</p>
<p>On the other hand, increasing vegetables compared to the typical American diet would be a significant improvement, regardless of whether one is vegetarian or vegan.</p>
<p>Sometimes bad cholestrol numbers are simply hereditary and all the diet and excercise you do may not lower it…</p>
True, genetics may keep your numbers in the danger zone, although diet and exercise may improve them from very dangerous to merely dangerous (so that if you use drugs, you may have to use less drugs with less risk of unwanted effects).
<p>I don’t know that I’d worry about a cholesterol number if you are generally healthy otherwise. There is no proven correlation as someone else mentioned. I’d be wary with other issues adding those drugs to your diet as they can make you very sore.</p>
<p>That being said, I notice anytime I’m good about really sticking to exercising regularly, and I’m talking 30 minutes a day on the treadmill, my numbers of good to bad cholesterol improve.</p>
<p>I also follow an all things in moderation approach. I don’t know anyone who can seriously long term knock out any huge food group from their diet.</p>
<p>Bacon fat is not horrible:</p>
<p>[Nutrition</a> Facts and Analysis for Animal fat, bacon grease](<a href=“SELF Magazine: Women's Workouts, Health Advice & Beauty Tips | SELF”>SELF Magazine: Women's Workouts, Health Advice & Beauty Tips | SELF)</p>
<p>It’s 40% saturated fat (the bad kind, raises LDL).</p>
<p>It’s 45% mono-unsaturated fat (the good kind, raises HDL).</p>
<p>It’s 12% poly-unsaturated fat (the good kind, raises HDL).</p>
<p>It’s 0% transfat (the horrible kind, kills you!).</p>
<p>So eating bacon fat would clearly be better than eating margarine or trans-fat shortening. Probably not as good as eating olive oil or fish oil. But, in moderation, not horrible. It’s not the unmitigated fat disaster that is portrayed in the media. It’s kind of a wash between good fat and bad fat. The key health risk from bacon (or any cured meat) is the slightly increased cancer risk from the nitrites in the curing compound).</p>
<p>Here’s the handy Mayo Clinic guide on the types of fats:</p>
<p>[Dietary</a> fats: Know which types to choose - MayoClinic.com](<a href=“http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/fat/NU00262]Dietary”>Dietary fat: Know which to choose - Mayo Clinic)</p>
<p>Can’t resist:</p>
<p>[Spiffy</a> Studios | Bacon’s Not a Food Shirt](<a href=“http://www.spiffystudios.com/bacon-shirt/]Spiffy”>http://www.spiffystudios.com/bacon-shirt/)</p>
Those saying your cholesterol level doesn’t matter are just wrong. Plus, a doctor always runs a cholesterol panel - you will never get anybody just testing one of the numbers in the profile.
I’ve been told by a cardiologist that your cholesterol is more important than high blood pressure when considering heart health.
I don’t know of anybody who would recommend eating bacon or any fatty food if you have
high BP or high cholesterol. That is just irresponsible and there is no science to support it.
Low carbs doesn’t mean high fat.
<p>I agree with Idad. </p>
<p>I absolutely WOULD NOT take a statin. The potential side effects are horrendous. The benefits for women are unproven. The best thing you can do for heart health is boost your HDL level. Olive oil, fish oil supplements, Omega 3s, exercise.</p>
<p>^^^Funny, my cardiologist, disagrees with that^^^There is only so much excercise and diet can move your cholestrol,after that, it is statins</p>
<p>You are a man. The research is different. Also, frankly, cardiologists have been primed to push statins just like nutritionists have been primed to push carbs.</p>
My husband had a heart attack at 44 and another at 49. He has 4 stents and is doing great. I can’t tell you his exact numbers but he did not have high cholesterol at the time of his first event and had been taking statins for 5 years at the time of the second. His Dr tells him that his numbers may be high for HIM and he admits that they really don’t know why he had his heart attacks but these are the protocols for treatment. His father died at 89 and his mother is still alive at 89. Neither had heart problems. It seems for him at least, low cholesterol levels/ratios does not mean low possibility of a heart attack.
<p>Ever listened to the fast-talking words of a Crestor commercial?</p>
<p>“CRESTOR has not been shown to prevent heart disease or heart attacks.”</p>
<p>Well, if taking a statin to lower your cholesterol does not prevent heart disease or reduce heart attacks, what is the point of taking it? And in fact, statins don’t reduce overall mortality either. I believe they have really only shown to be worthwhile after your first heart attack, but I don’t feel like googling around for the study.</p>
<p>I’ve seen other data that show that overall mortality is lowest between 200 and 240. Yet I believe the current “best practice” is that over 200 is considered elevated and needs a statin. Blargh.</p>
<p>Cholesterol plays many important roles in your body, and in fact if you don’t eat enough your liver will ramp up production. Your levels don’t correlate all that well with what you eat (triglycerides, different story). Taking a chemical that messes with your liver chemistry to artificially suppress cholesterol production, particularly without compelling evidence that it actually lowers the disease it is intended to treat, seems nonsensical to me.</p>
<p>Just my 2 cents.</p>
<p>I’m with youdon’tsay on this one. When I stopped my morning oatmeal, while eating a very, very low fat/cholesterol diet, my cholesterol level shot up to the highest of my life. Added back daily oatmeal, with flaxseed in it and within months the level plummeted. Works for me. Good luck.</p>
<p>Agree with the comments that some cholesterol is genetic and you can’t diet it away. My 47 neighbor (male) had a heart attack last year and besides high cholesteral he was healthy - worked out several times/week and ate low-fat, limited meat diet. His father had a heart attack at 50, so he knew there was a family history. He’s now taking statins. </p>
<p>I agree the research on female cardiac health is much lighten than men’s and hormone levels cause different responses to cardiac issues, but statins have a reputation of lowering cholesterol. I would not just say NO, as you may find diet & exercise aren’t enough.</p>
<p>PS - I have ridiculously low cholesteral (<130) despite eating over a dozen eggs/week and modest amounts of cheese. It’s all about genetics - no heart disease in my family.</p>