So I had fasting blood work done again last week and my doc just called. He has been VERY supportive of the LSD and any other means I've pursued to alleviate my pain, but he thinks this is familial as he said this is what they see when someone is doing all the right things between diet and exercise but there numbers are still high.

Numbers are:
Total Cholesterol- 271
LDL- 201
HDL- 57
Triglycerides- 67

The only number he's really concerned about is the LDL which he would like to see down around 100. This is crazy to me as I rarely eat red meat, maybe once every 2 weeks. Don't eat butter and even when I did it was very rare, maybe 1/2 tbsp a week? Only other fats I have are EVOO, Coconut oil, nuts and avocado but recently cut the nuts and avocado as outlined in my other recent thread.

Doc says he wants me to come back in a month for another reading and if it's still high, he wants to put me on some meds. Again, he stressed he's not concerned with my diet, just that it's in my family and that my liver is not functioning as it should. I'm not sure about my history as both my parents are deceased from cancer. Mom was asian so I don't think it's her side. Probably father's side which is where I got good ol B27 too I'm certain. Most my uncles have lived well into their late 80's though and they are all from rural Tennessee and eat very poorly.

Not sure what my next move is.......maybe time for a water fast.

Maybe is stress? I just read this:

Haven't been too stressed at all lately .

The more I read online, the more I'm not too concerned and do not think I will take my doc recommended statins for this. We will have to agree to disagree.

My gut tells me I'm okay and since I'm following a very good diet, exercising, and that the high LDL number may actually be the light fluffy large LDL based on my triglycerides to HDL ratio (as opposed to the smaller dense ones that do clog arteries).

THat's what I think too.

Unless you eat red meat everyday you should be fine. In fact, better than fine since you are avoiding saturated fats from processed food.

Maybe a walk in the morning?

Question, do you feel your fingers, hands numb or cold? That's how my sister says she starts feeling when her cholesterol is high.

Nah, no coldness really. I exercise every day, usually in the evenings. I do some light resistance training and also the eliptical machine or go for long walks.

The only thing I'm slightly concerned about is my family history. I called up my uncle today who lives in rural Tennessee and he said that all my aunts and uncles have heart disease and/or high cholesterol. Funny thing is though they all eat fried chicken all the time, tons of processed carbs, are overweight and most of them are in their late 70's to 80's and still doing okay (though they do take cholesterol meds) but my lifestyle is the exact opposite of that and thus I'm not sure if I should be more concerned?

I'll wait for some of the others here to weigh in on this topic.

here are a few of my numbers from:

from: 1993 (at age 30 when all was good), july 2008 (just before a statin), august 2008 (just after 1 month of a statin), jan 2011 (numbers had crept back up), aug 2011 (after fish oil, chromium, vit C, etc, after 3-4 months).

068..375..092..157..104 (triglycerides)
051..042..039..057..047 (HDLs)
081..133..067..194..154 (LDLs)
146..250..124..282..222 (total)

so you asked, "next move?"

well, for me, i got everything down with a statin. but due to edema, could not continue on it. was able to keep the triglycerides lower due to low starch and low sugar. was able to get the HDLs up through walking and nuts. but the LDLs are the biggest issue right now. the fish oil helped (194--> 154 LDLs; 282--> 222 total).

still not happy, but moving in the right direction with some things.

low carbs to lower triglycerides
good fats (nuts, fish oil) to raise HDLs and lower LDLs
exercise to raise HDLs

and probably the final thing i've not been a successful at, losing the weight. i was 92 lbs in my teens, 100 in my 20s, 105 in my early to mid 30s. then the lbs keep creeping on, as i continue to battle insulin resistance. now 140.

but unlike your doc, my doctors are not the ones concerned with my numbers. because i'm a woman? because i'm too young? i had to fight with my old GP to let me try the statins. he argued that being in my 40s and a woman didn't warrant the statins. i told him about my grandmother with a major stroke in early 50s and quadruple bypass around 60 and gone before 70. other family members with less dramatic, but similar stories. but i know enough to be concerned and do what i can through diet, exercise, and supplementation.

as corny as the title is, this is a really good book. its what helped me turn things around.

http://www.amazon.com/Cholesterol-Cures-Natural-Almonds-Chocolate/dp/1579544819

yes, a constant battle, a constant moving target, but when i've made changes, i've seen the difference those changes can make.

stupid genetics!

and like you, knowing my family history, i've never been on a high sugar or high saturated animal fat diet. pretty healthy, other than too many carbs til i knew better, but now that's low too. and off dairy due to the casein "allergy"

my diet now: fish, chicken, turkey, a little grass fed red meat each week, nuts, veggies, veggies, veggies, fruit, EVOO, a little coconut

Thanks for the sharing Sue.

How much fish oil do you take and how often?

I was taking 1-2 tsp of cod liver oil.

I'm wondering if statins are the right call for me right now. I'm only 35, in good health, so not sure if it's something I should be taking due to family history or if I should wait this out and up my fish oil.

FlexibleMind

I think you don't need to worry.

What did you eat before taking the blood sample?

I take big amounts of omega-3 in the morning and once I took one of those blood test in the little devices that really can't differentiate between hdl and ldl and my cholesterol showed up high, but I think I'm doing great specially without the processed foods.

I think it's better to take another blood test to know for sure it wasn't something you ate.

If your doctor knows you are avoiding processed foods and knows you don't eat that much red meat he must know that your diet is not that bad for you.

So, until your next blood test, take it easy

i take 3000 mg daily (split into two 1500 mg doses). i take nordic naturals. from what i read, over ~4000 mg and studies showed other health issues possibly popping up. i read that 3000-4000 mg seems the most therapeutic for inflammation and metabolic syndrome stuff. my rheumy thought 1000-1500 mg would be sufficient for the inflammatory stuff, but i don't know. my naturpath recommended the higher dose. from all i read, i decided on 3000 mg myself.

didn't want to go the cod liver oil route. wanted the "purest" form of fish oil i could get. but that was my decision, based on everything i read.

i do think fish oil is a good place to start.

however, for me, having the serious diabetes / heart disease issues in my family, and my numbers being what they were starting in my late 30s, i decided to attack it from every angle:

1. low sugar (my whole life, as the sugar really messed with how i felt. read that was common for people with diabetes on both sides of the family, like i have)

2. low carbs (started that when my blood sugar became prediabetic and lipids got ugly. that helped more than just about anything. saw a dramatic improvement, especially of my triglycerides.)

3. but did not want to substitute the starches with unhealthy high animal fat diet. my decision. so replaced the grains/potatoes/corn with veggies. maintained my animal protein sources to be mostly fish, chicken, turkey, limited red meat (switched to grass fed red meat, but kept the amount limited)

4. going no dairy and almost no egg due to food allergen testing. this may impact my numbers, but that's not the reason i did it

5. i started eating 1-2 servings of nuts (almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, macademia nuts) each day. that also made a big difference (to my HDLs mainly) when i started that

6. exercise. another big important thing i did.

i started each thing by itself to see how it affected me. so i could tell what did and didn't have an impact.

i highly recommend that book. it got me on the right track faster than anything else did. i'm all about results. and following much of the advice in that book gave me results.

as i said, its a constant fighting battle. a constant moving line. i've been dealing with all of this since my late 30s. i'm almost 50 now. and still holding off the diabetes. and got my triglycerides down and my HDLs up.

as for the statins. i wanted something quick to turn things around. but that was my decision. i did not know then much of what i know now. my triglyceride numbers scared me in particular.

if you don't want to take the statin, ask the doctor if you could first try to turn the numbers around through diet and exercise and supplements:
1. exercise
2. weight loss (if you have any to lose)
3. low carbs / low sugar
4. fish oil and other healthy fats (for me that was nuts)

i had to go that route because my family's genetics is such that statins seem to give us edema (my mother had the same problem i did. maybe another statin wouldn't do it, i don't know).

there is a part of me that thinks i'm doing a good job. another part of me that worries that the doctor should test my arteries. mostly my worries at that my numbers are still not "normal" and my grandmother had that major stroke not much older than i am now.

so, if i were you, i'd be looking at your family history to decide if you should be worried or not.

yes, diet and exercise and weight can help or hurt, but just because we are eating "healthier than most" doesn't mean we can be solely confident in that.

i'd keep working with your doctor. i'm glad he's concerned, wish i could find a GP who is concerned. i'd ask him if you could try to lower your LDLs through diet, exercise, and supplements first, before going straight to the statins. he'll probably say ok. most doctors are all about treating it through diet and exercise if one can.

i've read a lot of really good things about statins. i've read some bad things as well. hence i understand your hesitancy.

@chicharito- I ate nothing before as it was a 12 hour fasting blood test .

@Sue- sounds like you are constantly doing the best you can, making the appropriate changes and monitoring what you need too. It is a constant battle, but one that we cannot afford to give up on!



1. I do this 4-6 times/week, both cardio and resistance training
2. I've lost about 22 pounds since starting LSD. Only need to lose about 4 more to be at my optimal.
3. Doing this already. LSD, and no sugar cept a bit of fruit
4. Will take more fish oil. Was eating lots of fats but had to cut avocados(food sensitivity on MRT test) and nuts(hsv).



Indeed. My doc is supportive and will certainly be on board if I say give me sometime. My family history is a bit concerning as I mentioned above, but I'm not eating their diets nor living their sedentary lifestyles. Everything I've read the last few days from Chris Masterjohn and others tells me that my numbers are okay and that I should have further testing done to determine the LDL profile. High LDL is not necessarily a bad thing when taking with the whole story is my understanding. I've also read that when losing lots of weight it's normal to have high LDL and Total numbers. Thanks for the book too, will definitely check it out.