Any good ways to lower cholesteorol? - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

#1 05-12-2003, 12:41 AM

I had blood work done a few weeks ago. I had been out of town and had eaten out a lot so the numbers are worse than they'd normally be.

Any good ideas for lowering cholesterol or affecting any of the other numbers?

Here they are:

cholesterol 263 (should be below 200)
tryglyceride 172 (should be below 150)
HDL cholesterol 57 (good cholesterol, great number!)

LDL cholesterol 172
cholesterol/HDL ratio 4.6 (normal is 0.0-5.0)

My platelet count was 139 (normal is between 140-400)
urea nitrogen was 27 (normal is 7-25)

All other numbers for my test were fine and the doctor said if he were an insurance company, he'd give me the most coverage and the lowest premium based on my overall pysical condition.

Thanks!

Does it feel kinda weird knowing me on such a molecular level??

The Godfather · #2 05-12-2003, 01:22 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by SP0CK
Doc said he had never seen anything like it without meds.

Damn it, everytime I think someone's talking about me! :-D

#3 05-12-2003, 01:27 AM

Hey Spock,

THANKS for the information!!

I've been doing basically the same thing you're doing since learining my cholesterol levels. You and I are the same age and also don't have family history of heart disease, so maybe I'll have similar results. One problem area I know I have is that I LOVE meat. I eat around five smaller meals a day, usually with some kind of meat. I rarely eat red meat, though the two daily sandwiches are turykey and ham.

I cut out mayonnaise, am eating a lot of bean filled meals (good thing I bought that air purifier from Biodine for my room!

), added real garlic to recipies, and added a lot of veggies.

I and am also taking a product called Cholesterin. It's simply 900 mg of alfalfa extract. Bad cholesterol is supposed to bind to it in the stomach, through the intestine, and be eliminated.

Hopefully it'll help. I'm leaving for Europe on the 23rd and want to get myself tested before the vacation. It's not so easy on vacation to eat right.

BTW, this is all because I am STILL trying to get health insurance. I don't want to submit cholesterol numbers above 200 and be declined.

engatwork · #4 05-12-2003, 06:46 AM

I have been on Lipitor for a long time and it has gotten mine down to around 182.

elau · #5 05-12-2003, 08:30 AM

Mine was 291 when I had it checked and my doctor wanted me to go on the "pills". I refused and told her to let me try and put in under control. So, this is what I do:
Regular exercise - walk 2 miles a day everyday on the tread mill for 30 minutes at 4.1 mph. Work out with weithgts 5 days a week.
Breakfast - oatmeal with honey, or cheerio with half nad half. No sugar. One glass of orange juice.
Meals - cut down on red meat, eat plenty of fish and veggies. Only consume items label with no cholestrol.
Vitamins - one vitamine E a day as anti-oxident.
Supplements - 2 to 3 cups of hot tea (green or black) each evening.

When I re-checked 3 months later, my level was down to 198. My doctor was surprised and I have been staying on the same routine for two years now and the level has not risen. I am due for another annual next month.

Good luck to you.

jsmith · #6 05-12-2003, 08:31 AM

sflori,

i can tell you one thing - your life life insurance rate will be double at that cholesterol level. i've been there, done that - i wound up taking the insurance extension offered by my previous employee (beyond COBRA). not sure about health insurance - they must use similar tables. i've tried all that stuff over 10 years with diet and exercise and the most i could make my cholesterol go down was 20 points - from 270+ to 250+. i started taking a "supplement" that was an extract of red yeast rice which in reality is a "statin" like lipitor or zocor. i got it down to under 200 this way but i decided that i would try to see if i could get my cholesterol down without a "statin" because those meds have an impact on your liver. i have started on the atkins diet - not to lose weight but primarily to see how it would affect my cholesterol. one of the benefits observed with this system is a lowering of cholesterol levels and blood pressure as well - inspite of the "high fat" foods! it is really not a fad diet but a different approach to your food and body chemistry. the whole point behind it is to control sugar/carbohydrates so that your body is primarily operating on a fat burning as opposed to carb burning metabolism.

i don't intend to start a debate on this since it is highly controversial not just socially but even politically. i am willing to share what information i have found to date.

yeah, it's true that on this diet you can eat fatty foods like bacon, eggs, cheese and steak! there are some caveats to elevated cholesterol though, which i am looking into...

bobbyv · #7 05-12-2003, 10:15 AM

they say red wine can help protect you against (bad) cholesterol ...

#8 05-12-2003, 12:15 PM

Thanks for all the help, guys.

Like eleau, I excersise regularly. I do free-weights twice a week and aerobic (45 minutes on an excersise bike) four days. It may change +/- a day depending on the schedule (one day free-weights to two days aero). I also drink a cup of green tea daily and have a protein shake that has mulit-vitamins in it every morning.

That's what I've been doing for a few years. The excersise has been steady for a while.

It may be somewhat genetic. My father died nearly five years ago a month after he turned 64. He never excercised, drank, and smoked as much as five packs a day. To say that's a large part of my motivation to stay healthy is an understatement. So I excersise a lot, don't smoke, and drink very little. But since he lived without excersise and both drank and smoked, I don't know if his problems were genetic or because of the way he lived.

I'll post results after I get tested again.

rickg · #9 05-12-2003, 01:03 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by w126
There can be a genetic component to high cholesterol. Any family history? If so, a proper diet and excercise may not work. In this case, as Engatwork mentioned, Lipitor may be a wise choice.

There definately is a genetic componant to this.
At 39 I ended up in the hospital having an angioplasty. Not a fun experience! My cholestoral was over 400

My doctor said I had basically cream in my veins.
Lipitor brought it down to about 250, but had to give it up. Had bad side effects. I'm now on Provacol. So far so good. You need to find what works for you.
My wife and I have pretty much the same diet(bad) and the same activity level(not enough). We're both a good 50/60lbs over weight from what we shouild be at our age. But yet her cholesterol is perfect, as well as the other stuff.

rickg · #10 05-12-2003, 02:58 PM

I never heard any numbers pertaining to how high & when things went bad. But as to the family history, it wasn't until AFTER I went thru this that my uncle told me that there is a history of heart didease in that side of the family. Glad I heard that after the fact

There are lot's of factors that contribute to the problem besides just Cholesterol, as has been discussed. My triglycerides were sky high too(don't remeber the numbers now) as well as my HDL and LDL levels all wrong.
Another factor is life style & stress level. At the time, my stress level had been very high for some time. Long, long story. Severe family problems. I would lay in bed at night, and literally lay there shaking. Also had just gone thru a job change, not by choice, (another long story) which kinda messed with me.
I think that's one reason I tend to avoid arguements and conflict now. I had enough of it for a life time.

Lebenz-Yah. Kind of a wake-up call. To see the look on your doctors face when you start describing having a tightness in the chest and shoulders when you try to do something such as mow the lawn

I think he went white! Had me in a cardiologist within a couple hours. Many tests before they found the blockage. It was something like 95% closed off. I had a heart attack on the table when they fed the guide wire in for the balloon that they use to expand the artery. That guide wire is about as thick as a hair on your head.

Nothing to mess with guys! Take care of yourselves!

rickg · #11 05-12-2003, 03:53 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Lebenz

Rick, are you on a rehab program?

I'm ashamed to admit I'm not practicing what I preach here. Well, not completely anyway. After all that fun, I "got religion" and went on the right diet, started an excercise program, ect. It's been 6 years since, and I've slipped. I really got fed up with food that had no taste

(ever try no-salt ketchup

) And excercise doesn't agree with my achy joints anymore. (That's one reason I was looking into fencing, looking for a "low impact" form of excercise) But I do eat alot more salads then I used to, and take lot's of various vitamins. Went to non-fat milk (white water

), non-fat yogurt, cut WAY back on my salami & sausage intake, drinks lots of water, ect. So right now I'm probably doing about 50% of what I really should be doing.
The wife & I are now considering trying Yoga as an excercise. Anybody do that? Does it work?

elau · #12 05-12-2003, 04:01 PM

I think any exercise is good, including yoga. But in order to fight the bad cholestrol, you need to raise the good one. The only way to do that is prolonged exercise (i.e. heart rate). Yoga helps reduce stress and stretch your muscles. I think for any effective solution, you need time to explore what options work best. Unfortunately, we usually do not have time because by the time we find out we are in trouble, the condition is already grime.

My cholestrol is due to both genetic and diet. My mother and brother both have high cholestrol and they are on medication. I eat out way too often and I believe that contribute to my problem.

rickg · #13 05-12-2003, 04:25 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by SP0CK
How about biking Rick? No "impact" on the joints and as good as running or walking. Any trails around you?

Mountain biking is really big around here. I actually live in a mountain bikers heaven (I guess). I just have this wussy thing about outdoor activities with the endless rainy weather we have here. (I know...excuses, excuses) But lets' see...get wet, or die young.......hmmm
You guys are making me think about this more than I have for some time.

wbain5280 · #14 05-12-2003, 04:27 PM

When I get fast food, I get it with no mayo. Wopers go from 45 grams of fat to 7 without mayo. It helps. I also trim the fat on steaks.

I need to exercise.

rickg · #15 05-12-2003, 04:40 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by wbain5280
When I get fast food, I get it with no mayo. Wopers go from 45 grams of fat to 7 without mayo. It helps. I also trim the fat on steaks.

I need to exercise.

Wow!

Mayo adds THAT much, eh? I'll remember that.

Back to Lebenz- So what are your options? Just wait till something shuts down or explodes? That's kinda scarey.
They had a heck of a time tracking down my clog. I can't remember what all they did test-wise now, but I had several different ones. Nothing showed up with the first tests. But the fact I about passed out after only about a minute on the treadmill at the cardio clinic told them there really was something going on.