Which of the below have you tried to i... - Cholesterol Support

Cholesterol Support

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Which of the below have you tried to improve your overall health?

CalvinHU profile imageCalvinHU94 Voters

Please select all that apply:

29 Replies
kantara71 profile image
kantara71

Under others I would add; stop taking Statins!

bobaxford profile image
bobaxford in reply to kantara71

Agree, just stopped last month after being on statins for over 12 years and it didn't prevent my atherosclerosis getting lots worse and eventually me needing to have a heart bypass.

suki65 profile image
suki65 in reply to kantara71

yes agree to stop taking statins they have been terrible for me

Cassiejo profile image
Cassiejo

Take plant sterols

TheHud profile image
TheHud

monitoring blood sugar.

Eat less!

Pattypan profile image
Pattypan

Increased intake of vit D

MaggieMay profile image
MaggieMay

Dealing with stress

jointpain profile image
jointpain

Doctors stopped checking cholesterol a couple of years ago because I wouldn't take stations. I did for a week but had very adverse reactions to them, and now I am fighting chronic Lyme's, so not interested in cholesterol anymore

linlow profile image
linlow in reply to jointpain

does that mean you have gone with a high fat diet? Have you looked at no-carb too? I hope that, if it isn't already in remission, your lyme's soon will be.

jointpain profile image
jointpain in reply to linlow

Due to the Lyme's I am now virtually vegan, except for an egg a day. I come down with a crash if I eat more than 50 grammes of protein a day, though I am getting better slowly, my cholesterol used to be around the 8.3 mark, never been overweight. No idea what it is now, like I said doctors not interested, and I won't take stations.

suki65 profile image
suki65 in reply to jointpain

have you tried plant sterols and b12 ,vitamin d ?

jointpain profile image
jointpain in reply to suki65

I take vit D, and am on doxycycline for another 6 months also a visit to Liverpool hospital of tropical diseases in December. I am getting better but had another crash last week but not as bad as before. I am now 60 and been suffering for over thirty years! Since being in France in 1977 when I was bitten by a tick. Guess where I am now? Yep in France surrounded by bloody forest ticks.

suki65 profile image
suki65 in reply to jointpain

oh dear sorry to hear about this

blueboots profile image
blueboots

Improving my overall health by eating a high fat low carb diet and regular fun exercise. No meds and no calorie counting. 2.5 stone lost over 12 months.

subhudra profile image
subhudra in reply to blueboots

that's amazing blueboots. What type of fats? Would welcome your advice 😊

William_moyer1 profile image
William_moyer1

Take 10mg smvistatin and ubiquinol to offset side effects. And folc acid, garlic capsule, and multivitamin.

cjhs profile image
cjhs

I lost 3 stone,yes it went down,put it back on,yes it went up,tried garlic,in a gel,this may of worked,took garlic in solid tablet,this did not work.

On 3 days did not eat meat,tried to reduce my cholesterol intake to zero,< using my plate to calculate intake > did not work.

Took statins, after 10 years dose has increased from 5 mg to 40 mg,< am now intolerant to statins,side effects not good.

Conclusion each time statin dose increased cholesteral eventually goes up,then dosage again increased.

Now have concluded this type of tablet produces more problems than a cure.

linlow profile image
linlow in reply to cjhs

cjhs unless you have familial hypercholesterolaemia or are prone to heart attacks then your best bet for controlling cholesterol would be diet - but not the health service recommended one. Research high fat options. Also check out omega-3s vs omega 6s and turmeric.

turmericforhealth.com/turme...

cjhs profile image
cjhs in reply to linlow

After seeing a Consultant I was told probably not inherited,although they were not sure.

I am concerned that increasing my fat consumtion that my weight will be even more of a problem.I am trying to look at this as it seems to be something to try.

I took high dose termeric,some time ago this did not help.How ever I read that for this to work pipeline ? must be included,this would give a 2000% increase in the ability to digest this spice .The advise was to take 3 peppercorns,with Turmeric,to achieve max results.

After 5 days my arthritous is a lot less painful,so something is happening.I have started taking Krill oil < 500 MG > with omega 3 <207 mg >.About a month.

I read somewhere that omega 6 was best avoided with omega 3,so am sticking to above until next blood test.Will then research this again.

I do think that how the tablet is made has some bearing on the effect.The garlic in a gel tablet seemed to have some effect.I changed to a high dose of garlic in a solid tablet,this seemed to raise my level of cholesterol.

I read some time ago some research on gel/solid tablets.However I am not a G.P or scientist,

Thank you for your reply,do you know how much fat is required in a diet,I tend to reduce fat to a low level,as this is high in calories,I tend to try to keep sugar low,using my plate to calculate,sugar, carbs,fiber,protein,calcium,

Thank you

linlow profile image
linlow in reply to cjhs

Cholesterol in the diet reduces the amount of cholesterol produced by the liver. So, yes, high fat diets do increase HDL, which is what you want, but at the expense of reducing LDL - because the great promoter of LDL and triglycerides is carbohydrates. After years of struggling with the scales, having got back down to my teenage weight using one, I can certainly vouch for high fat diets working. I am fortunate, I do not have a sweet tooth so cutting sugars down to a minimum was not difficult but fat adds flavour to food so makes it more interesting anyway. I did struggle with being able to consume all the food I was supposed to and ended up splitting it in half and eating breakfast one day and the rest of my allowance the next. Look at dietdoctor.com for testimonials. There are other high fat sites but this one is easy to remember by name as the guy was a doctor in Sweden when they adopted the high fat diet as a national recommendation. He has videos about it on youtube.

Check out my comment below on macronutrients and sugar. Sugar's fructose element is harmful to health and promotes inflammation. Consumption of carbs is not necessary to health. The level of fat necessary to consume would depend upon the purpose of the diet but for weight loss you would be looking to something under 70% with protein and carbs making up the remainder in a ratio of 2:1. Above 70% you would be looking at ketosis. Ketosis is great for repairing metabolic disorders and other health issues. Athletes apparently find they have more energy on a ketogenic diet and injuries heal faster. Low carb fruits and vegetables are better than high carb starchy ones as you get more for your allowance but whatever you choose do go for variety and avoid those that grow underground. Start the day with a protein meal as this will keep you feeling fuller for longer. You should also eat regularly, rather than having one or two large meals daily, to maintain a slow release of energy. Large meals can leave you feeling lethargic (think of Christmas). If you are adding calcium to your diet you also need to get a daily ration of sun worshipping in for vitamin d and plenty of greens for vitamin k (the k helps lay the calcium down in the bones rather than tissues.

Yes black pepper's active ingredient, piperine, is required to boost turmeric's active ingredient, curcumin's, bioavailability. It inhibits the liver's haste to clear any foreign substance out of the system thus allowing the pain killing element to get to work. Using fresh turmeric also helps as natural oils in the root enhance bioavailability. Eating it mixed with fat, eg golden paste, results in the curcumin entering the bloodstream through the lymphatic system rather than the liver, thus extending the length of time it can remain active. You could also mix it with an omega 3 source, like grass-fed ghee, and kill 2 birds with one stone :)

Omega 6 can lead to inflammation omega 3 reduces inflammation. The ideal ratio is 1:1 but 4:1 is quite acceptable however most modern diets provide something more along the lines of 16:1 or higher - hence the prevalence of inflammatory health issues. Krill is better for joints and cartilage than fish oil but less so for other benefits. My concern for fish oils would revolve around sustainability and the high levels of contamination in oceanic waters. Wild caught fish is healthier than farmed (recent research is showing that farming is leading to a degradation in the quality of fish flesh to the point that all the previous known benefits have been totally negated) but more and more heavy metals and some rather lethal poisons are being identified. Although vegetarian sources of omega 3s are often degenerated as lower quality it is of note that vegetarians do tend to exhibit better heart health and suffer lower levels of arthritis than omnivores.

authoritynutrition.com/11-p... no idea of the differences between garlic supplements, you could always try eating the real stuff. If you have issues with garlic breath or it repeating on you then add chlorophyll to your diet. Parsley or coriander consumed with or after garlic reduces the unwanted side effects.

suki65 profile image
suki65 in reply to cjhs

be careful if you take statins if you start to have any side effects stop right away please . I have tried 4 statins being told they just had to find the right ones I had lots of side effects including muscle loss which I am trying to right still after 2 years of not taking statins .

I take 3 plant sterol tablets daily , 1 opti omega daily ,lecithin granules, vitamin D ,llysine tablet these are all daily and I take 1 vitamin k2 mk7 100mcg daily to repair damage to my arm muscle from statins which is nearly 100% back to normal now .

my cholesterol was 12.1 it is now 5.3 without statins ,with all of the above and a low fat low sugar diet

Granny56 profile image
Granny56

I started researching my own health conditions to challenge the doctors advice that I knew was not evidenced based, and would do me more harm than good.

berlington profile image
berlington

under others; yes stopped the statin tablets and also started taking supplements at present I take, milk thistle, green tea.

linlow profile image
linlow

Reduce foods that have been adulterated so organic where possible. Cut out fructose (sugar is 50% fructose, HFCS 55%, Honey 45%, Agave syrup 95%) and sweeteners they are far more dangerous than salt - salt you can't live without, sugar you can. Eat plenty of good fats, especially omega 3s and a minimal amount of protein. No processed carbs at all - so bang goes breads, cakes and pastries - and as few unprocessed ones as possible. Whilst we require fat (essential fatty acids) and protein (essential amino acids) there is no dietary requirement at all for carbohydrates - and any source that says otherwise is lying. It is a cheap source of dietary energy but protein provides the same number of calories and fat more than twice as many. Having said that it is present in fruit and vegetables as a source of fibre and fibre keeps you going :)

highsteaks.com/carbohydrates/

Elizabeth0228 profile image
Elizabeth0228

Others, watch the amount of cholesterol in food intake.

linlow profile image
linlow in reply to Elizabeth0228

the liver actually produces cholesterol to keep us healthy, it is necessary to life, though the more consumed through diet the less produced. It isn't cholesterol per se that you need to avoid but low levels of HDL. HDL levels can be raised by increasing the amount of good fats in the diet. Some medications can drive up cholesterol levels but your health practitioner might not tell you this.

sandybrown profile image
sandybrown

we need cholesterol for our body to function!, regular exercise, food & drinks intake control can help us with to healthy life style. Watch out for free sugar and hidden sugar in food and drinks..

subhudra profile image
subhudra

Also becoming vegetarian, not smoking or drinking alcohol. 😊