Hi I am a member of AF association, but my search for magnesium stearate bought me to here!
I am 66, and have Permanent Atrial Fib with a slightly leaky mitral valve. My Cholesterol hovers around 5, despite good diet (mostly!), exercise (I walk, cycle and work in a charity donation centre, part time) and I am not overweight (9 stone).
I want to try Plant sterols instead of Statins, which I am MORE than reluctant to take. It was suggested by the helpline that I try and get my chol down to 4.....I cannot do this. The leaflet that comes with the statins informs that you should STILL eat a low cholesterol diet when taking them......so you get all those side effects but still have to follow a diet which in my mind is one of deprivation and abstinence!! I am always hungry and it makes me miserable : (
I take Bisoprolol (1,5) and Warfarin, hence the search for magnesium to see if it would interfere with these.
Sorry for the rant!!
Written by
Wightbaby
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First off not everybody gets side effects from statins. This is put around so much that that in a trial reported in The Lancet as many people on a placebo experienced side effects as those on a statin. Also if you have issues you can try another. I switched from Simvastatin to Atorvastatin because of muscle aches.
However, the good news is that products like Benecol can reduce cholesterol by about 17% so you may hit 4.0 but only combined with a healthy diet. Good luck!
I have struggled for years to control cholesterol with diet. Very similar to you. I even have a leaky mitral too 😀 I refused statins for 5 years and ended up with 80% blockage in LAD with more minor stenosis in other arteries. Two stents later I’m on statins and have no side effects I recognise. I don’t like them but my cholesterol is 3.1 now with an excellent ratio to ‘good’ and ‘bad’. My nutrition is 70% plant based with a love for Dr Gregor’s ‘How not to die’ which is excellent for blood sugar too. If I were you I’d try statins before the stents come along😀
May I make a suggestion about dieting? First, though, please forgive me if you know all this or if you think I am talking bollocks.
I have found that intermittent fasting helps me control my eating without misery, though it might not work for you. I don't eat breakfast and aim to go 16 hours without food (including without milk in tea or coffee). This switches your body from sugar-burning to fat burning, which is much more stable and I find that I don't suffer miserable hunger pangs.
You can learn more about IF (intermittent fasting) on the internet. Also it is worth reading about the effects of excess insulin and it's companion insulin resistance, as they are culprits in causing cardiovascular disease, as IF plays a role in reducing overall insulin levels. Hand-in-hand with IF, I eat virtually no sugar or refined carbs and restrict carbs generally. I eat a lot of oily fish and nuts. Omega-3 fats (best source = oily fish) have been reported to stabilise heart , and I am motivated to eat plenty by a couple of AF episodes.
I really don't think I could fast though....and it would probably send my INR levels..which are very stable, all over the place!
After a huge plate of porridge at 07.30 this morning, made with water, instead of skimmed milk, for the last 3 months (since a visit to Scotland).., its now almost 10 and i am wanting to eat something else......I could easily sink a "full English", but of course i won't!!....
When i am at the warehouse its a few biscuits with tea....or i feel like i am running on empty!! By midday, same feeling.....I need to constantly "top up" and I don't want to nibble on carrots and celery sticks.....
I saw a nice tweet recently "Don't eat food that makes you hungry". Protein and fat, in that order, create the longest lasting satiety according to a graph I saw on the internet. I am cautious in my consumption of saturated fats but it seems that the worst of them, palmitic acid, has a low dietary occurrence and is primarily made in our livers when they process excess sugars. I learned about palmitic acid from this YouTube video, which contains much interesting dietary information:
I was brought up on porridge having a Scottish mother & I love it. I have it most days with blueberries. My midmorning & afternoon snack is always a piece of fruit and/or nuts. Do you drink enough fluids? It's well known that we often mistake thirst for hunger.
I was offered statins with cholesterol of 6.5 which went down to 5.2 after taking plant sterols for 6 months. I already ate a healthy diet, exercised and have never been overweight. I then had a HA & was prescribed atavorstatin which caused serious liver dysfunction. Am now on a trial low dose of Prevarostatin with regular monitoring . Having looked at the research like everyone else I think some of the doubts about statins are justified but it is a trade off. There is only so much you can do with diet etc. Plant sterols are said to reduce cholesterol by 10% . Benecol -type products contain a lot of additives etc. & I think are over-rated. I still eat butter rather than adulterated marjorine & other spreads.
My husband has been on atorvastatin for years and he's never had any problems. He has regular blood tests, so any potential problems would be picked up fairly quickly.
Plant sterols do work! But look into low carb way of eating too. I don’t mean keto! It was actually on BBC last night. I have done this myself and cholesterol ratio is now optimal, without any meds or pills.
Now that sounds promising...would you tell me the programme please....and i wil look for it on I-Player......in the meantime a cup of tea.....and will try and ignore the biscuits!!
Ooh I can’t remember any name, it just came on but I’m sure you will find it easily enough as it was only on last night 🙂. There is a good Facebook group called low carb in the UK. It’s not a keto group but has lots of recipes and meal ideas etc and success stories to help you decide how much of your food you’d like to change. Ignore those biscuits for now 😅
This isn't really a help, but an example of the complications around cholesterol. 4 years ago I had problems with breathing and stomach and started with extreme fatigue. Fit 59, good diet, never smoked. HR and BP fine, cholesterol normal high. Was never supposed to be a heart issue. 12 months ago Cardiac Arrest & HA with nothing showing on the ecg until 10 mins before (lots of pain though!)
Two stents and a 'clean up' and I'm 3 times worse than before the event. Obviously looked at the cocktail of' just in case' medication as the reason for the worsening of issues.
After 12 months on statins and an even better diet, my cholesterol is rising ( I can't really exercise)
I've seen a different Consultant ( one who isn't entrenched in the usual mindset). I've had mild psoriasis for 30 years and he is investigating the possibility of the main issue being Psoriatic Arthritis. It ticks so many boxes in the way of symptoms that it is a strong contender given the damage that inflammation can cause. It can also cause sudden blockages in the heart.
I've had so many disappointments in my journey to improve my condition, I am not 'hanging my hat' on this, but I'm hopeful.
The point I'm making is, sometimes you have to look outside the cardiac box, for reasons.
I hope you find an answer soon. Cholesterol does rise as we age as we apparently need more, and maybe you’re making more to deal with the inflammation you have. Great you have found a consultant who is willing to look outside the normal protocol. I had high inflammation in blood and take mega dose Vit C amongst other things. I’m lucky as my bloods are normal now! But we are all different. I wish you good luck and please keep us informed.
For me, although my cholesterol is very low, I recently started taking a statin simply because they reduce inflammation, and in doing so reduce my risk factors for having a coronary event. I believe for most people with heart disease the benefits of statins outweigh the associated risks of taking the medication.
It was called The truth about carbs ( I think) it was quite good and low carb was backed by different sciences as being good for us. Low carb has worked for me!
I value your knowledge Londinium and the links you have shared previously, but am starting to feel very unwelcome on this forum for daring to suggest researching more before we all just pop more meds. I’ve been respectful to all others here, but that’s not always been returned. Really sad in this day and age.
What would I have for breakfast...no time to cook eggs ( and they would have a very detrimental effect on my digestion!)?
I get very wobbly if i don't top up regularly (meaning eat every 2 hours)...I literally go weak, pale and get very shaky, as well as woolly minded. This has always been attributed to needing a bit of sugar or something with a bit of substance......although I am not diabetic.
I am not criticising you and am open to suggestion, but I don't know if I could physically survive the day, with just the list you suggest. (PS I don't eat cheese or red meat.).
Eating out even just for lunch, is a nightmare too!
Maybe you should see your GP if you’re getting shaky so regularly? It might be because you have something sugary which of course will wear off quite quickly and maybe it’s that which leaves you feeling unwell? Just a thought. More veggies might help and also fruit as it’s more complex sugars that don’t get used up so quickly? I’ve recently started to have a handful of nuts to quell my hunger which has worked. I went low ish carb ( under 100gs) med healthy fat and although I wasn’t convinced I’ve had good blood results after 3-4 months. We all have to find what works for us as we all digest foods differently. . Apparently. 🙂
GP tested glucose level in blood and its OK......I have had thess peaks and troughs stamina wise for years.....bit of a joke with all who know me....."Don't let me get hungry, you wouldn't like me when i am hungry!!"
If you never saw The Incredible Hulk on TV, you won't know what I am talking about
Oh i can believe it, my daughter is very similar, we call it Hangry! We all steer clear! Or find her food quickly! Maybe it is an actual syndrome or something. 🤔. Hope you can sort it out.
Thanks for your patience with me and your reply!! I will have a look at the link later.
I have been tested for glucose in blood which was OK.
When I say substance, maybe I mean bulk....you see, I often eat almost 2 pieces of salmon, carrots, beans asparagus. That WOULD NOT satisfy me, unless i have new potatoes with it as well.
I eat almost everything on your list and also eat a banana, apple and pear every day.
I gave up red meat years ago......and eggs just give me constipation, if i ate them every day.
PS I thought coconut oil was very high in saturated fat??
Nuts avocado and coconut are all higher fat but like butter it’s healthy fat. We can apparently eat these fats but only if we eat lower carbs. Then your body learns to burn fat as it doesn’t have constant sugar stores to burn. The higher fat also stops hunger pangs. It does go against everything we’ve ever been told about eating fat though.
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