I’ve been told that because of the stricter diagnostic parameters the NHS now uses for assessing cholesterol levels in the blood, I have very slightly raised cholesterol. I’ve been told I can have statins, which I agreed to take, with much regret, because they are powerful drugs and I’m already taking Warfarin and Bisoprolol, and statins do have an effect on these. However, I had a change of heart before I started the course of tablets, and have decided I want to try and reduce my cholesterol naturally, if possible. I have okayed this with the GP. I am reducing my cheese intake, which has been daily for years, but am hard pressed to find other things in my diet that are high in saturated fats as I eat quite healthily and don’t eat pre-prepared food. Anyway, I want to ask if any of you know any reason why I shouldn’t take a daily dose of those little ‘cholesterol lowering’ yoghurt drinks ? I can’t find any advice on the internet. It isn’t obvious to me that there should be interactions with my drugs, or Afib, but as so many of you are fountains of knowledge and experience, I thought here was the best place to find an answer ! Also, is it ok for me to drink beetroot juice ? Here again, I can’t find any reason not to, but some of you might know. Thanks !
Annie.
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It looks like we’re right on the same track! (see my post from a few hours ago) Maybe the same train lol 😂😂
I found a good Zoe podcast, with transcript, on this - I can’t send the link but if you google Zoe lower cholesterol you should find it easily. If the yoghurt drinks you’re talking about contain plant sterols then they’re good. I’m trying to follow the Portfolio Diet developed by scientists at Toronto Uni and proven to help. It's centered around soy protein, plant sterols, tree nuts, and soluble fiber (eg as found in oats).
Like you I have cut my cheese intake but not given up dairy altogether. no idea about beetroot juice but why should that be a problem more than carrot juice? I guess it’s worth bearing in mind that fruit and vegetables contains sugar and a concentrated dose might not be helpful.
Let’s reconvene in 2 or 3 months and see how we’ve got on! I have a feeling I’ll probably give in and start taking statins it might be simpler!!
Soy ( especially unfermented ) is bad for the thyroid and hypothyroidism can lead to raised cholesterol. I don't understand why you can't just say no if you don't want to take statins. The doctors can't force you to take them.
I’m quite happy to take statins, I know plenty people already on them living long and happy lives. But I’m stubborn and like to do things my own way. I’ve always been into healthy food, grow my own organic vegetables etc, care for the environment and therefore can make my own way with this like I do most things. I’ve been saying no to the system or anyone who thinks they can tell me what to do all my life Auriculaire.
Thank you for you post, whilst we are unable to answer all your questions, you maybe interested in downloading: Warfarin and diet' api.heartrhythmalliance.org... outlines the impact of Vitamin K in the body. Of course, for further clarification, please check with your doctor.
Thank you Tracy. I know the main vitamin K culprits, but there doesn’t seem to be much on Plant Stanols. I will follow this link and have a good look. Thanks again.
Good to reduce fatty foods but remember that for many cholesterol production is not just a consequence of diet, and reducing your fat intake and other dietary controls might not make any measurable difference.
It might just be my genes, because I do eat quite sensibly and my whole ‘profile’ is good ( apart from the Afib 😄 ), but I’d rather not take statins if a dietary change can help me avoid that. Thanks for your response. Annie.
What telling fibs do you demonstrate?? Ha ha a joke.
Lose weight helped my cholesterol as I switched to A2 milk, and sour dough bread.
Also less helping - size counts.
Over year I reduced weight by 6kg. It reduced my Synthroid - thyroxin meds, ca thyroidectomy.
Yoghurt unflavoured with live things in it is best.
Some cheeses are better than others like cheddar.
It also controlled my h/rate day down to 60s from 88-96 when I was up against dreading being over 100 (as anaesthetists would not operate if over 100).
I hope this helps.
A week of statins will reduce my level counting to 'good' to 3.2. H/Specialist says 4.
But we all need a good cholesterol level. Don't forget the bad level less the good = x.
I have read that actually no one can give a level!
Also those with higher cholesterol live longer research states.
All literature is very confusing and contradictary. So up to you. It can be your fod but it could be genetic only or generic and fod.
Having had my cholesterol level at 7 since I started recording 25 years ago and having an interest in medical matters I have followed the various opinions expressed by medics etc on this subject with interest.
In summary, my belief is don't make life a misery by cutting out anything but excesses in food and don't buy commercial lowering drinks. Instead more benefit would be achieved by working on reducing inflammation in the body eg by sourcing the best balanced food diet you can buy, ideally based on how we used to eat 60+ years ago. I would also research if statins inflame the liver by blocking its capability to produce cholesterol; most doctors incl my cardiologist think they know better than the body 🤣.
I was brought up on a farm with a full fat diet, then lapsed into the era of low fat everything eg Flora margarine etc etc with regular dieting to no avail. I then woke up in the last 20 years to revert to a full fat organic grass fed diet in moderation with no diets necessary (back to my weight at 18yo) with cooking from scratch. I had arteries scanned when AF popped up 10 years ago and mine were all clear.
I think it's worth finding out what is meant by 'slightly raised' before worrying too much. Mine is raised but there's a difference between the 3 types - HDL (sometimes called 'good cholesterol') LDL ('bad') and triglycerides. You'll also have results on your blood panel about cholesterol levels in your liver. So not all cholesterol is the same is what I'm saying.
In the UK the NHS has taken a broad approach to cholesterol- lumping the overall result in with a calculation called the QRISK Score. It's usually the QRISK score that prompts your GP to suggest statins. But if you take AF out of the QRISK calculations then suddenly your score is lowered. So you could ask your GP about this too if youre curious. I posted about this in December if you'd like to see what a cardiologist told me when i asked him about statins in my case as my GP has been on at me!
But to answer your question about plant sterols - I take a supplement called Bioplantarum Plus made by Biocare. That and - in my case treating hypothyroidism- has helped to lower my cholesterol a bit.
I second the advice of listening to the Zoe podcasts on this topic too.
Thank you for your reply Singwell. I can’t understand why my ‘overall’ cholesterol is high, when the ‘bad’ cholesterol is low. Apparently, the ‘good’ cholesterol was a good number, and so were the triglycerides. It has made me look more carefully st what I’m eating though, and that must be a good thing, but I am not a snacker, and my only particular food indulgence is daily cheddar ( reduced fat ! ), but I need my cheese like other people need chocolate and biscuits ! Annie.
Glad it's helped. Once pushed the GP acknowledged that my LDL was only just over and in fact the cardiologist wrote the the practice about the QRISK Score saying that in his opinion AF shouldn't be factored in if there's no issues with heart morphology. So for the moment our surgery is quiet on the statins front...
Anything with plant sterols is good. Apart from the drinking yogurt pots you could also try Biocol skimmed milk (which is thicker than untreated skimmed). However I’m also not aware of any contraindications so you should maybe reconsider taking statins. Been taking 10mg Atorvastatin for over 10 years (as well as sterols) without problems.
I have a healthy diet and have never been overweight but occasionally a blood test shows my cholesterol is slightly high. As most people I know who have been prescribed statins didn’t get in with them I take red yeast rice capsules which always bring my cholesterol down by the next test! They might work for you too - hope so.
A Mediterranean diet has been found to be good for lowering cholesterol, a good alternative to statins. Consuming healthy fats like olive oil, nuts, avocados, oily fish, and having plenty of soluble fibre which lowers LDL (eg oats) all help.
I was told by a nurse 15-20 years ago that I should be on statins or I wouldn't live to see my grandchildren grow up. I asked about reducing it naturally and she told me that it was impossible to reduce my cholesterol by more than 10% by diet alone. I ignored her and drank the little yoghurts and started eating porridge for breakfast and my cholesterol went from 5.4 to 4.1 in a few months so my advice would be to ignore the medics and try for yourself. Oats in particular are brilliant at reducing cholesterol. Good luck
My doctor said the same thing. So I drastically changed my diet , exercised and lost 30 pounds. My cholesterol dropped 50% to normal. I kept my cholesterol within normal limits for the last 15 years. Now I have long covid and can’t exercise and my cholesterol jump sky high.
I have been eating the Zoe way for nearly a year now and it reduced my cholesterol from 6.7 to 5.3 and HS CRP (an inflammation marker) from 1.97 (average) to 0.244 (no inflammation). The main changes have been many more plants, hardly any dairy apart from yoghurt, I brush olive oil on my toast instead of butter. And Zoe isn’t that keen on meat either. But it has made a massive difference.
Hi, I am in the same position, GP says I must lower cholesterol. I refused statins, so he has given me a year to get my score down by lifestyle changes! I’m concentrating on foods beginning with C - no more cream, crisps, custard, custard creams, chocolate, croissants, cake, cookies and of course CHEESE, though I can’t give that up entirely. I have also started on the beetroot juice, I quite like it, though it does turn your wee a strange colour! I have the tiny yoghurt drinks, I like the raspberry ones, but very pricey, though apparently Aldi do a cheaper one. Switched from butter to Benecol spread, and trying to walk for an hour every day.
I used the yoghurt drinks for a few years with no ill effects, but after some advice from here I moved to plant sterols capsules. 800mg 2 or 3 per day. which is cheaper and more flexible.
I have use NutriVolv plant Sterols off ebay (vegan dairy free sugar free gluten free but there are anti caking agents and allergy advice soy).
Only ones I have tried.
My Cholestreol has gone down from 7.1 to 6.8 in 12 months but as I say I was using the yoghurt drinks before this anyway.
Despite being constantly told I should take statins I chose not to. I reduced my cholesterol from 6.2 to 5 in just over a year by cutting out sugar, not fat. This might seem strange as we have always been lead to believe fat is the main problem with high cholesterol. I did too until I read Dr Aseem Mulhotra’s book on statins called A Statin Free Life. Dr Mulhotra is a leading cardiologist. It is full of interesting information and what is and isn’t a contributing factor for high cholesterol.
Worthy of a read especially as you have decided to take a natural approach.
I tried unsuccessfully for about 5 years to lower my cholesterol naturally (blueberries, psyllium fibre, bran etc) even though I have been all my life cutting away excess fat. Then my cholesterol started going up higher so my doc had me back on statins. One year after that & frustratingly my cholesterol went up even higher, so now my dose is 20 mg because I have narrowed coronary arteries & symptoms with that. Specialist told me it's genetic. I am currently waiting for my angiogram appt.
He only said that because there doesn't seem to be any other reason why my levels have been going up & he could see my frustration at doing all the right things without good results. After further checking online I found that there is a connection to genetics & the body's cholesterol production. It's almost as if taking a statin drug doesn't really help me much when my body just makes more.
I recently learned about the supplement Berberine which can lower cholesterol. It has other heart-related benefits. I decided to try it, while stopping the statin that I had been taking. I’m continuing taking Zetia which is not a statin but can marginally lower cholesterol. I’ll have my labs checked in a month to see the effect.
I also recently learned that measuring only LDL, HDL and triglycerides is an obsolete measurement without also measuring one’s Lipoprotein(a). Elevated Lipoprotein(a) levels significantly increase the risk of heart disease. About 10% of the population have a Lipoprotein (a) score that puts them at high risk of heart disease. It’s surprising how few cardiologists test for it it. It may be because there are no known drugs that can bring it down, nor will diet or exercise. It turns out my Lipoprotein(a) level puts me at high risk for heart disease, but my overall cholesterol, LDL and HDL levels are where they should be under the obsolete measurement standards.
I also have an elevated LP(a), which increased more after I began statins (while all other stats improved). It worries me, but, on the other hand, my cardiac calcium score is zero.
Research articles indicate that statins increases LP(a) in some people and not for others. Researchers have not sorted out why this difference (is it possibly due to the fact that they are lumping all statins together??). In any case, I am on the lowest dose of Simvastatin and, over a one year period, my LP(a) increased by over 30%!
Berberine supplements really helped my cholesterol and blood sugar levels. Literature says theoretically it could react with anticoagulants. I take eliquis and have had no problems.
Berberine seems also to have helped with hypertension. I had been taking Lisinopril for blood pressure, along with Metoprolol for ectopic control. Soon after starting Berberine, my doctor’s nurse measured my blood pressure at 100/62. Seeing that, my cardiologist told me to stop taking Lisinopril.
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Reducing Bisoprolol dosage
Plant Sterols for managing cholesterol
Statins
Statins
blood tests and bad cholesterol results. 
