Hi I have high cholesterol (5.7) but am unable to take statins at the moment due to other drug conflict .Mostly my diet is high in fibre ,low in saturated fat ,low in processed sugar ,vegetarian or vegan with occasional fish & I am unable to eat most oily fish & seafood because of gout so have to avoid food with high purine content.
Is there any other natural food or supplement that has a definitive lowering of bad cholesterol?
You don't have high cholesterol. The NHS redefined the "normal" range a couple of years ago to bring perfectly healthy people into the statin-able range, but in most countries 5.7mmol/L would be of little or no concern, especially if you are older, female, or both.
Hi thanks for your reply yes at the moment it’s lower but before taking statins was up to 7.8 and probably creeping back up as unable to continue with them .Hence search for alternative.
Well .. bear in mind that while statins do produce the numbers that doctors like to see, they have absolutely no effect on all-cause mortality, and a virtually undetectable positive effect on CVD risk. The reason for this apparent paradox is pretty simple: high cholesterol is not the proximate cause of CVD. Statins work by shutting down a critical metabolic pathway, so considering their unimpressive or nonexistent benefits, that 's a bit like curing a broken fingernail by cutting off your hand. Getting people's cholesterol numbers down has turned into a religious crusade with little or no connection to medical reality. So there's that.
The other thing to consider is that TC isn't even a very good predictor of CVD risk (nor, for that matter, is LDL). To complete the picture you need to look at triglycerides and HDL. If your TG:HDL ratio is above 2, it's because your diet contains an excessive quantity of carbohydrates and too little fat (most circulating TGs are there because your body is attempting to find a dumping-ground for excess carbohydrate, which gets converted to fat if it has no immediate use). If you're vegan, your diet almost certainly has an unhealthy fraction of carbs. Some bodies can cope with that, but most can't.
Assuming you can't (or don't want to) introduce meat or fat into your diet, your best option is andyswarbs version of veganism, which (as far as I can tell) focuses on low-GI vegetables. Perhaps he can offer some suggestions. There is no food that "protects" you against CVD.
Is your gout serious enough to prevent you doing exercise? Adding muscular strength and improving your general fitness is one of the most effective ways of making yourself generally healthier; it's doubly important for people eating high-carb diets, because it improves your body's ability to store (and recover) unwanted glucose.
Hi
Thanks for your comprehensive reply ....appreciate it .
I’m already ticking all the boxes with exercise & low carbs but will investigate what he has to say.Seems perhaps genetically my body is producing to much cholesterol.
thanks for this i just found out today mine is 5.7 this makes me feel a bit better. It normally is below 5 but I am going through menopause and have put on 3 kilos in last 2 years that i am finding difficult to lose. I am taking physillium husk as of today to see what happens in next three months if it lowers it a bit.
5.7 is not a problem if you are going through the menopause! I’m post menopausal with a level of 5.9. If your BP is good, you can get your weight under control and no family history of heart problems, then your cholesterol level is fine.
If you want to lose weight, have a look at low-carb or vegetarian diets.
Hi Creative14
Welcome to the Healthy eating forum. There is some information on the NHS website, and a link is here if you'd like to take a look:
nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-bo...
I bought a book by Ian Marber (Nutritionist) and Dr Laura Corr (Consultant Cardiologist at Guy's & St. Thomas' Hospitals) - called 'Eat your way to Lower Cholesterol: Recipes to reduce cholesterol by up to 20% in under 3 months' - and they basically talk about adding in six major foods, which include: Fibre; Healthy oils; Soya; Nuts; Oats (and other beta-glucan foods); and Smart foods (containing sterols). They suggest the easiest way to do that, is to have a sugar-free stanol shot drink with the largest meal of the day. But the recipes in the book are created so that smart foods are incorporated.
You could easily get the book from the library (providing they have a copy) - if you wanted to have a look.
I have never personally had high cholesterol, but I bought the book because I liked the range of recipes, they looked really nice.
Zest 
Hi thanks for your reply I will look into that book especially the bit about sterols .
There is also a HU forum called 'Cholesterol Support' which might be beneficial, plus there is a campaign from the British Heart Foundation which supports people trying to lower their cholesterol, and I think this link might work:
healthunlocked.com/programs...
If you want to have a look.
Zest
Of the vegans who had trouble lowering their cholesterol but succeeded the common theme seems to be cutting out of refined oils entirely and reducing saturated fats further by excluding nuts.
eTc.
Afai remember their is no absolute right or wrong cholesterol value that is common for everyone. We all have the same blood temperature, but cholesterol is different. Understanding its importance in your case depends on other risk factors, including smoking triglycerides etc etc and genes.
With the gout I would be thinking more than just purines. These are a starting point imo.
That said, I'd support the notion of looking at foods high in sterols and testing them. Some of these are nuts and I would try to think of other foods instead.
Btw i try to avoid supplements and instead go for whole foods wherever possible.
Hi
Thanks for your reply and tips I will look into alternatives to nuts.
If you do decide that your body needs nuts then, imo, the best choices to keep in your diet are almonds, walnuts & brazils, whilst the worst are cashews and peanuts.
Ok thanks lots I hadn’t heard before .
My stroke risk factor was 28% due to age 67 ,high blood pressure,mild HCM LV ,high cholesterol ,CKD ,renal &sigmoid colon cancers and now chronic pericarditis .Was playing tennis in Plymouth &district league last year plus 6 hours per week on court and cycling so weight in good shape but the best choice was advice from oncologist......giving up all processed sugar,alcohol & having low carb diet also taking immune boosting supplements.Cannot take statins at moment as conflict with colchicine (for pericarditis) so cholesterol rising from 3.5 to 5.7 which is why I’m seeking a natural solution.
Hello..i want to make this recipe..just would like to clarify about the boil to 4cups part... should i be boiling the lemon with the lemon peel? Thank you
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