Advice on blood test results for husband please

[Deniseelk]

Husband had his age 50 general NHS review which showed Cholesterol of 7.2 in July 2018. His mother has hereditary high Cholesterol. He has worked hard at watching foods , cutting out chocolate and processed cakes. Less alcohol and a lot more exercise. 6 months later his bloods read as attached . His GP is pleased that his efforts are making a positive effect and agreed to review in 6 months and no statins yet. We wonder if there is anything in his results we should get checked out? I have heard that high cholesterol is purely a symptom of another underlying issue.... usually an inflammatory response. Any guidance would be much appreciated.

[elliebath]

I'm sorry but I can't enlarge your photo to read it ....

[Deniseelk in reply to elliebath]

Hello elliebath, I have deleted the photo and resent ( larger but could only get it sideways on.... sorry not very IT savvy... where’s my teenage daughter when I need her 🤣)... is this any help? Any input greatly appreciated.

[sandybrown]

The blood test results are showing improvement.

If you continue with food and drinks control, regular exercise, the blood test numbers may come down.

Life style change is better then medication. You may need to look t blood glucose and blood pressure numbers.

May be you can ask your GP or doctor for risk analysis.

[elliebath]

As said by sandy brown, your husband's overall cholesterol level has come down a bit to 6.2 so its moving in the right direction. However HDL ratio of 4.2 is something to keep an eye on. Ideally this ratio should be under 2. Many people can improve this by not smoking, a healthy diet & exercise, lots of veg, oily fish, and minimal processed carbs, sugar and alcohol.

However for some that's not enough and if there are other risk factors ( eg high BP , family history or other risks of heart/ arterial disease) then statins can help. This link will help explain what cholestrol is and does.

.heart.org/en/health-topics/...

[sos007 Ambassador]

Welcome to the Cholesterol forum.

Thank you for providing such detail.

As I have written many times before, elevated LDL-C is a symptom of an inflammatory condition in existence within the body due to dietary and lifestyle (exercise or lack thereof) habits. Cholesterol, in and of itself, is necessary for the functioning of the human body and is part of the body's cellular repair mechanism. However, when elevated it does precipitate atherosclerotic processes and should therefore be controlled through dietary and lifestyle modifications.

70-85% of all chronic diseases are caused by dietary and lifestyle choices.

It is encouraging to see the improvement in your husband's biomarkers over the last 6 months, however there's much more to be done.

The serum urea level, while within the normal range, is still not optimal. Urea values are a proxy for fructose consumption (the damaging part of the sugar molecule). I keep mine below 5.0.

Triglycerides are the blood fats created by the liver when processing fructose. Once again, while your husband's is in the normal range, you should strive to get it in the optimal range, which is below 1 mmol/l or even less. I keep mine between 0.5 and 0.7 mmol/l.

Lowering triglycerides is the key to lowering LDL-C (the total cholesterol value has very little clinical significance).

Sugar, simple carbohydrates and processed foods damage human tissues, especially organs and the endothelium (inner lining of blood vessels). There is no safe level of sugar consumption - sugar has ZERO nutritional value and only serves to initiate and perpetuate an inflammatory state within the body. It also accelerates aging 7-fold through a process known as glycation.

Cutting out chocolate and processed cakes was a good start but is not nearly enough.

Home-baked cakes are not any healthier than processed cakes. Cake is bad for your health, period. Sugar, like tobacco, will not kill you with one dose, it takes chronic exposure over many years. Since most of us have been exposed to the global industrial diet for the last 40 years, much damage has already been done. By age 50, the accumulation of bad dietary and lifestyle choices usually begins to manifest in the form of chronic and sometimes life-threatening conditions such as cancer, heart-disease (including heart attacks and strokes), diabetes and potentially Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.

Current medical knowledge shows that the cascade of biological processes that eventually materialize in the form of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's begins 20 years before the first symptoms. Current research shows that elevated insulin levels caused by the routine consumption of simple carbohydrates, sugar and processed foods are a significant factor in the development of these diseases which have NO KNOWN CURE. Researchers are now referring to Alzheimer's as 'type 3 diabetes'.

If you have 'a bite or two' of a cake, once every 3 months, you should be fine, but this type of food should not be a routine part of your diet, even if consumed only once per week.

Sugar is an addictive substance and also shuts off the 'leptin' hormone in your brain which regulates your level of satiety (tells you when to stop eating). This results in people eating more than their body needs. The more sugar and simple carbs you eat, the more you crave and it becomes a self perpetuating, health-damaging cycle.

Chocolate can be healthy if it has 70% or more cacao in it. I consume 2 squares of Lindt Dark chocolate (90% cacao) each night with some herbal tea.

Processed foods typically contain sugar in one form or another (there are up to 60 different chemical names for sugar which most people won't recognize on an ingredient label). Furthermore, processed foods contain oxidative oils which damage your endothelium and organ tissue, and most importantly, they do not contain fiber.

Fiber is critical to the digestion and metabolic processes of your body and are vital for developing and maintaining a healthy intestinal microbiome. Your intestinal microbiome is connected, via the vagus nerve, to your brain. Therefore hormonal health is to a great extent determined by your diet.

Simple carbohydrate foods, which must be avoided, include:

- sugar, honey, maple syrup, agave and equivalents;

- white rice, most potatoes (sweet potatoes are complex carbohydrates and are healthy)

- white flour and white flour products - white bread, white pizza dough, white pasta, cake batter, muffins, cookies - (all baked goods damage your body). You can replace these with spelt flour products or whole wheat grains, brown rice (in limited quantities) or quinoa.

- chips (crisps), pretzels, crackers and all similar items;

Focus on eating real food that contain fiber and will also increase your HDL-C (should be over 1.6 mmol/l).

- vegetables - especially green vegetables - broccoli, kale, arugula, spinach, dandelion greens; These also help lower blood pressure and limit blood platelet coagulation - thus protecting you from strokes and heart attacks.

- fruits - especially blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, apple and oranges;

- legumes - beans, lentils, chick peas, green peas (not mashed or mushy);

If you enjoy animal protein, consume only grass-fed beef (in moderation - once per week) and organic free-range chicken, and wild-caught fish the rest of the time.

Avoid processed meats such as cold-cuts, bacon and sausages;

If you enjoy dairy, try and choose dairy from grass-fed cows, or goat and sheep dairy.

Goat and sheep dairy products are higher in MCT - Medium Chain Triglycerides which are a healthy form of fat.

Other healthy fats are extra virgin olive oil, MCT oil, avocados, Omega 3 (from fish such as wild caught salmon, trout, and arctic char);

There are 2 principle sources of energy for humans, carbohydrates and fat. Carbohydrates elevate insulin levels and therefore damage your body - healthy fats are a clean burning fuel that promotes weight loss and a healthy intestinal microbiome among other things.

I encourage you to watch these 2 videos and to re-check your husband's blood work in 3 months so that he has some positive reinforcement for his improved dietary and lifestyle choices.

youtu.be/ZSpB-j5DL9E(Not working as expected?) 13 minutes

youtu.be/yRGx9FO6XSs(Not working as expected?) 2 minutes

P.S. LDL-P (particle number) is a clinically superior indicator of cardiovascular risk than is the LDL-C (cholesterol volume). Very few doctors are aware of this due to the slow process of change in the medical systems around the world.

You can get a test called the NMR Lipoprofile (about $100 USD) which will provide you with this value. Alternatively, the Apoliprotein B (Apo B) blood test is a reasonable facsimile of LDL-P.

Good luck.

PPS - Here's a brief 3 minute video showing you how habits are formed which might help you in changing your dietary lifestyle habits:

youtu.be/W1eYrhGeffc(Not working as expected?)

[PinkRose6]

Thank you for your support. I'm watching at my diet and going to the Gym.

[Markl60]

Stop worrying about the cholesterol focus on Iron, Insulin resistance and inflamation, read Dr Mercola

articles.mercola.com/sites/...