topic Re: Blood worktest results Back in Wellness

Blood worktest results Back

SeaMaiden — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 17:04:30 GMT

Everything looks good...

surprising though that my LDL is a bit high,,,, my cholestrol.... is 222 and LDL is 130 and triglycerides are108.

I eat a very low fat diet no red meat ever..... many days no meat at all only good fats plant based... no junk food at all.. very clean diet.

I guess that with age there are just somethings that start to break down and it is not something I am doing. I am so health concious yet some things are out of my control..

My goal will be to work on this until my next yearly exam adding some natual supplements such as Bergamot extract... and uping my exercise some... and see if I have gotten it down naturally before doing statins. He said that was fine.

As I write this... DH is enjoying some potato chips dipped in sour cream... He could care less... I asked him how he could eat that with a clear mind... he said

IT TASTES GOOD.

Re: Blood worktest results Back

Sweetbay magnolia — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 17:06:33 GMT

Congrats, @SeaMaiden . Is this a departure from previous cholesterol readings?

Re: Blood worktest results Back

Puppy Lips — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 17:09:47 GMT

Potato chips are good for the soul!

Re: Blood worktest results Back

itsmagic — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 17:19:32 GMT

I’ve come to the same conclusion that with age some parts don’t work like they used to even though I stick to a very healthy diet and also rarely eat meat. My doctor tried me on a couple of statins but they didn’t agree with me. So a few months ago he put me on a cholesterol lowering non-statin drug which he commented that he himself takes. It agrees with me and is lowering my cholesterol (but not as much as a statin) but my doctor recently died of a heart attack so now I’m thinking why am I taking this - it didn’t work for him. Trying to stay healthy can be very discouraging when you get old! 🤔

Re: Blood worktest results Back

chessylady — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 17:29:59 GMT

I also recently had blood work and my cholesterol and triclycerides were very high. I took statins for years but started getting side effects and went off them. Now my doctor has again recommended them so I agreed. She has prescribed generic Crestor which she said had fewer side effects. I am also planning to clean up my diet. My whole family has cholesterol issues so there is a genetic tendency. I think since I survived the pandemic, I am acknowledging my age and the need to be more aggresive with my health. I also have controlled high blood pressure.

Re: Blood worktest results Back

SeaMaiden — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 18:39:57 GMT

@Sweetbay magnolia wrote:
Congrats, @SeaMaiden . Is this a departure from previous cholesterol readings?

@Sweetbay magnolia my last blood work was in 2017... and yes my results were better in previous tests.. nothing much has changed in my lifestyle or diet over those four years...

Re: Blood worktest results Back

gizmogal — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 17:48:12 GMT

Whatever regimen you will use to try to get your cholesterol regulated, may I suggest you don't wait a whole year to find out if it's working in any successful way. Try getting that blood test in 6 months or even quarterly.

If your efforts are working, you'll see some numbers change as desired. But if you have values that are not in the right direction, you want to know so you can take new steps or talk it over with your doctor or other practitioner.

Waiting a year to find out your cholesterol levels have not improved wastes a year you could have protected your health more effectively. With or without drugs, establishing a new regimen requires a better way to track efforts than once a year.

Even when people first take statins they get tested again in about 3 months to examine efficacy. Since you choose to work on this in a naturopathic manner, you should be equally scientific and test again at a shorter interval than one year. You will have less of a timely way to know if your methods are successful.

Go back again before the end of the year and look over the new values. It's not just the numbers, it's the trend that has meaning, too.

Re: Blood worktest results Back

SeaMaiden — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 17:49:21 GMT

@gizmogal Great advise! I will ask Dr about having another panel done on cholesterol in 4 to six months. Thank you for the good advise.

Re: Blood worktest results Back

Big Joanie — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 17:55:31 GMT

I eat all the red meat I want and my cholesterol is 130 ..I have read

sugar can effect it as well .....

Re: Blood worktest results Back

Kachina624 — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 18:02:45 GMT

Much of your cholesterol reading is determined by heredity. You can eat roots and berries for a year and it may not change a bit. That's why people take statins. Mine went from 240 to 112 with statins.

Re: Blood work test results Back

Susan Louise — Sat, 05 Jun 2021 00:23:26 GMT

Cholesterol is not the enemy...carbs-sugars/starches are...I am not joking. I really wish more folks would just watch the 'Fat Head' youtube documentary video. If for no other reason, to learn about cholesterol. This educational video is nearly 2 hours long, so stream it to your tv. Additionally, don't skip through it...you will miss key points throughout...watch completely so it all makes sense.

In older women especially, the higher the cholesterol the better. Additionally, statins are not recommended whatsoever.

It makes me sad that so many folks absolutely refuse to open their eyes to the lies we have been fed for decades.

I'm still upset about it myself...always believed in the food pyramid 'they fed us'...until I became insulin resistant...which in turn created other quite serious health issues/problems for me.

Since living a low carb/keto lifestyle, all those health issues...GONE! I started noticing health improvements at about the 3 week mark. It has been close to 3 years now and I couldn't be healthier...mentally & physically. Mentally?...some might question...yes. My brain isn't in a fog from all those excess carbs-sugars/starches anymore. FACT: The brain is mostly made up of fat...hence the name of the video. When one lives a low fat/high carb lifestyle, it literally robs the brain of the nutrients it needs 'to be happy/healthy'. Sound crazy? Watch the video!

I understand there are lots of vegans. For those that don't know this, they can also live their lifestyle as low carb/keto...just more difficult and requires one to be more clever with food choices/added supplements to get certain nutrients they don't get from animal products.

Re: Blood worktest results Back

SilleeMee — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 18:39:18 GMT

Several years ago I had a high LDL and a borderline-high A1C. So my doc suggested I work on those...you know like diet and exercise which I did. The following year my LDL was still too high so I was given a Rx for statins. Then that caused my A1C to go up to pre-diabetic level and I was mad. I had enough of that so now I feed two birds with one scone and take berberine...lowers both the LDL and A1C. Now all my blood tests are normal and there's no need for any Rx drugs at all.

Interesting technical read (scroll down to "Conclusions" for gist.

"Metformin and berberine, two versatile drugs in treatment of common metabolic diseases"

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5839379/

Re: Blood worktest results Back

tobes — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 18:33:33 GMT

@Kachina624 Hi Kachina ....what do you take for statins....I have tried statins but have had bad side effects.

Re: Blood worktest results Back

SeaMaiden — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 18:42:15 GMT

@SilleeMee wrote:
Several years ago I had a high LDL and a borderline-high A1C. So my doc suggested I work on those...you know like diet and exercise which I did. The following year my LDL was still too high so I was given a Rx for statins. Then that caused my A1C to go up to pre-diabetic level and I was mad. I had enough of that so now I feed two birds with one scone and take berberine...lowers both the LDL and A1C. Now all my blood tests are normal and there's no need for any Rx drugs at all.

Interesting technical read (scroll down to "Conclusions" for gist.

"Metformin and berberine, two versatile drugs in treatment of common metabolic diseases"

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5839379/

@SilleeMee how many MGs of berberine do you take? I am taking it now but may need to be taking more.

Re: Blood worktest results Back

Kachina624 — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 18:44:25 GMT

@tobes I take Atorvastatin which is a generic for something. I've taken it a long time and have never had any side-effects whatsoever.

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novamc1 — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 19:02:49 GMT

@SeaMaiden

You didn't mention your blood test level for HDL.

I've always had very high HDL and very low triglycerides.

Doctor says he's not concerned about my overall cholesterol level, which in some recent years measured as high as 221 and 213, when those two levels are well below levels that would trigger alarm.

Last tests were in 2020 and 2019.

Total cholesterol 198 vs. 211 the year before.

Triglycerides 53 vs. 64 the year before

HDL 87 in both years

LDL 100 vs. 111 the year before

Cholesterol to HDL ratio 2.3 vs. 2.4 the year before (0.0-

5.0 is considered standard range for ratio).

I do not by any means restrict anything in my diet except excessive carbs, unless they are in high-carb vegetables, but I don't necessarily avoid breads, potatoes, or anything else like that.

Husband and I both eat beef, pork, ham, cheese and everything else deemed harmful (except I dislike sweets and sugar), but have made a lifelong effort to keep total daily calories down due to easily gaining weight. Yesterday, for example, I was so busy that my first bite of food all day was around 5 p.m.

It's typical to only eat once or twice a day, and after years of eating so seldom, I can get full easily on not much food. I guess that's a good thing.

I first started studying nutrition when I was in my 20s, and have believed more and more every year that what's in our diet does not necessarily affect cholesterol levels or many other health issues in every individual.

Some of the protection that some people enjoy must be genetic. Or that's my theory until proven otherwise.

It also isn't always what we are eating.......it can be how often and how much.

Re: Blood worktest results Back

SilleeMee — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 19:07:12 GMT

@SeaMaiden wrote:
@SilleeMee how many MGs of berberine do you take? I am taking it now but may need to be taking more.

@SeaMaiden

I take two 500mg doses per day, each with a meal. Once in a while I will take three 500mg doses in one day b/c of the food I've eaten...lol!

Have you had any side effects from the berberine? If I take it constantly then it makes me constipated. Found out berberine is a mild antibiotic and can cause disruption in normal gut flora so I take it for one week then off for one week. That seems to work.

Re: Blood worktest results Back

Harpa — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 19:02:45 GMT

Half the time, I don't know what people are talking about with medical things.

Anyway, I'm glad things look good, especially if you were working on lowering bad stuff!

You do have healthy fats in your diet, though, don't you, @SeaMaiden ? They are linking the good fats to healthy brain function, which is the part I am always concerned about.

Yeah, if I can get my DH to quit the sodas, I would be very happy!

Re: Blood worktest results Back

Brisky — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 19:15:56 GMT

Re: Blood worktest results Back

Shelbelle — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 19:26:19 GMT

Sometimes high cholesterol is inherited, and no diet in the world will help to lower it. Just went thru this with a friend, and she had to relent and go on statins, the right diet did not help. Other things to try takling are plant sterols, beta glucan and panthesine .