Diet.

[alskasno]

Hi, has anyone tried the ketogenic diet? I have dilated cardiomyopathy and on beta blocker and blood pressure tablets. Just wondering if anyone else follows this way of eating? Thanks

[Missreva]

Hi I have been on the low tyramine diet for a month now. My BP has come down to almost normal and I have far fewer palpitations.Very boring diet but at least I can do light housework and walking without getting out of breath.

[alskasno]

Hi, yes, I do clean keto which is quite strict, no underground veg, sugar or alternatives and no processed food. Checked with doctor first, she was ok with it. Weight has come off, feel better mentally and overall better. Done a lot of research first lots of conflicting information. LDL has come down a bit and not pre diabetic now.

[Mary63]

I don’t do complete Keto. But I do very low carb. I was doing low carb high fat very successfully as regards weight loss. I am on steroids, and low carb is really the only way not to pile on weight. I have lost weight well, and am now (since October when I had sudden onset of angina and two stents fitted) trying to have less fat, because doctors and cardiac rehab are adamant I should do low fat diet , but I am not convinced their view isn’t very out of date. Still I am trying to do what I am told. I am finding though that I am much more hungry eating less fat, and therefore more likely to go completely astray, eat more carbs, mess up my blood sugar levels, and want more of the same! Hey ho!

[Hidden]

Yes, I do. HA in April 2020 immediately went on mediteranean style diet as recommended until end of August. It was working but it was essentially what I ate anyway - just less of it and it was leaving me hungry and unsatisfied. During this time I ditched all the drugs other than aspirin as they were causing serious health issues.

I found myself asking many questions about the NHS recommended diet and going down the rabbit hole:

- So I can still eat yoghurt but it has to be low fat?

- So I can eat nuts and they are positively good, but aren't they loaded with saturated fat?

- Oat cakes are good, but still loaded with saturated fat?

- Salt is evil? Really?

These and other things didn't add up to me. Advice seemed contradictory. So I did my own research and came to the conclusion that a ketogenic-like diet is the closest we can get to eating what we have evolved to eat. So as of September last year I cut out:

- All grains - wheat, barley, oats, rice, rye, corn, etc

- All grain products (bread, pasta, pizza, wraps, bagels, cakes, etc)

- All processed food

- All added sugars

- All tropical fruit and fruit juices

- Potatoes and a few other starchy vegetables

- Beer

I started by limiting myself to 100grams of carbs per day, which was simple when you follow the above rules. Over the period of a month I took it down to 20 grams. I now don't count, but am there or there abouts.

I was already losing weight but it accelerated. I went from a BMI of 30, to around 22.5 and it levelled out. I went from being hungry a lot to hardly ever being hungry. My blood pressure went from 140s/80s to about 105/65. The bad news (according to my doctor) was my cholesterol went from 6.3 to 9.3. It's interesting how many of my health markers have improved, yet conventional wisdom would say I've become a higher risk for a heart attack according to my cholesterol.

So this is how I live now. It's not difficult but I have to allow more time to prepare food. I don't see me having cheat days, but I may have to allow myself the odd beer now and again. My doctor isn't happy but I suspect I've done a lot more research on it than he has.

People ask me what I eat now:

- Meat (including liver and kidneys)

- Fish

- Eggs (lots of eggs)

- Lots of vegetables (steamed, roasted, salads)

- Nuts

- Cheese

- A bit of home made yoghurt

- Occasional treats sweetened with erythritol

- Whisky and wine

I have other health issues which there prior to the heart attack, and they seem to be coming under control.

[alskasno in reply to Hidden]

Sounds like you have a balance, I read that cholesterol is only bad because of sugars and carbs which make it sticky and clog arteries? HDL good, LDL bad but there’s two type of LDL hard and soft, one is worse than the other And Triglyceride. I’m always under 20g carbs. I just wished they would do more research.

[Lilypocket in reply to alskasno]

Yes there is small dense LDL and large LDL which is the one to aim for. We need cholesterol including LDL ( but the " good one". Testing which type of LDL is not usually done but should be in my opinion. Much info on cholesterol and diet is outdated I think.

[Magicmeg in reply to Hidden]

Brilliant effort - and you worked it out yourself . You are right about the NHS dietary guidelines. we need to get those changed asap. They dont work for the majority of people so why are they still banging on with them. I got myself well on the Low carb diet. Fat is my friend. Sugar and carbs - even unrefined are not (at least they arent for me)

[Will_2 in reply to Hidden]

You have done a wonderful job with your diet, it seems to me. I eat a diet much like yours but my doctor insists that the cholesterol has to be minimized, so I have pretty much eliminated eggs, much to my disappointment. I can't say my BP is better, but my labs certainly are... really good blood sugar control.

[Lilypocket in reply to Will_2]

What is it with Dr's and eggs 😂.? My son in law eats 8 a day - frankly that is over the top in my opinion- as he doesn't eat meat. And his cholesterol is perfect. They have their own chickens but the chickens can't keep up lol! Take care

[fergusthegreat in reply to Lilypocket]

You might want to let him know that eating more than 3 eggs per week almost doubles the risk of aggressive prostate cancer

[Lilypocket in reply to fergusthegreat]

Well he is a biologist and did 3:years in medical school too so I suppose he won't listen to his mother- in - law 😊but I didn't know that thank you for the info - I'll try and inform him. Prostate cancer killed my uncle and contributed to my father's demise although he had arrythmia too and had a heart attack.

[Will_2 in reply to Lilypocket]

Wow, I have never known someone who ate eight eggs a day! And having perfect cholesterol...he is blessed. Right now doctors and cholesterol are a puzzle to me. Some don't seem to worry about cholesterol, others think it is the source of most heart problems - or so it seems. But my GP *and* my cardiologist both agree that cholesterol should be driven as low as possible, so I am trying to cooperate!

[Lilypocket in reply to Will_2]

You're right Will - it's a real maze and so we have to listen to our Dr's advice. But I think I'm going to get tested for the type of LDL as just reading Total cholesterol isn't the whole story. My triglycerides are very good and my cardiologist isn't too bothered by my cholesterol of nearly 6. I don't eat carbs, meat only fish, only 1 egg a month if that don't drink or smoke and I have no plaque so unless I stop being alive I'm not sure how to lower my readings 😂

[Will_2 in reply to Lilypocket]

Being tested for the type of LDL makes sense to me. In my case the issue seems to be high levels of lipoprotein a (also known as lp(a). But they do have to run a separate test for that. And like you I am not sure how to lower that reading. Tis a puzzle, all right. Impressive that you have no plaque!

[Hidden]

I did the Alan moseley diet.. 3 weeks to lose a stone. It worked. It was very hard towards the end but also fun for the first 10 days or so. Worth trying...

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

Do you mean the Dr Michael Moseley diet? I’ve been on that for 8 months and lost a lot of weight which brought down my cholesterol without the need for statins. It’s more of a lifestyle change than a diet and it’s only twice a week.

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

Yes. There's a 3 week version that I did but I'm thinking of switching to the permenant one.

[Silvasava]

Very interested in this, I've also been diagnosed with Dilated Cardiomyopathy. I'm on Nebivolol, Atorvastatin (although my cholesterol level was never an issue) Entresto, Edoxaban, Digoxin, Spironolactone, Furosemide and Levothyroxine as I've no thyroid. I'm not overweight & never have been but I'm always breathless which is very limiting. I'm also prediabetic now due to the drugs - it's a vicious circle!I have been looking at changing my diet to see if it would have an impact on my QOL. I do eat carbs but go for wholewheat where possible. Not sure I could go full Keto but maybe the Moseley diet would be a start. Cheese, eggs, nuts, meat and Greek yoghurt would certainly be doable for me lol!

[DCIHarry]

Hi, I don’t follow Keto as such but before my HA I removed all white carbs (bread, potatoes, pasta, rice), processed foods and sugars from my diet - on my Drs advice. My diet therefore consisted of healthy proteins, lots of green veg/salads, eggs and cheese.

Following this new lifestyle I lost 46lbs in 6 months and never felt so good in my entire life. My blood chemistry corrected itself (cholesterol became perfect - for the first time ever) and I reversed type 2 diabetes. RESULT!

Then I had my HA.

Post HA I have religiously followed all of the medical/lifestyle advice from the NHS. However my weight has started to increase; my blood chemistry is heading in the wrong direction and I am pre-diabetic once again.

My new Dr’s solution was to increase the dosages of all of my meds, which I have refused to do, because of the side effects I already experience on the low dosages I am already on.

So it’s back to my pre-HA approach to see if that can get me back to where I was.

Not sure if this really helps or truly answers your question but it is my personal experience.

I do however believe (as others have commented), that the NHS advice really is outdated and needs to be revised.

Processed food and sugars (as pushed heavily by the food industry) are the real enemy and not fats.

A simpler, cleaner (but unfortunately bland) diet combined with other lifestyle changes, can really make a difference.

[MelB51]

My husband and I have just started reducing intake of carbohydrates but we don’t follow a strict diet. We reckon that we have well more than halved our carbs and even our wine so we are hoping it will have a positive impact. I was breathless just getting dressed and walking has been difficult for some time now, and that that aspect has already improved so I am all for a low-carb existence!

[fergusthegreat]

Ketogenic diets are not healthy because they rely on to much protein from animal sources.It's awesome to cut out highly refined carbohydrates like white bread, rice and pasta but you should consume complex carbohydrates like oatmeal and legumes.

These are high in fibre which is the main nutrient to stop the high spikes in blood sugar and the main point of a ketogenic diet.