cholesterol.

[Ryhia]

Well two in a row 4.7 again this morning although I do have to say yesterday was mostly an unintentional fasting day. Had to have another set of bloods done as low carbing has made my cholesterol shoot through the roof, hyper hyper responder it seems, after the bloods we went out for the day straight after and only got back mid afternoon so not worth eating until evening. Very nice conversation with the bloods nurse though she was really interested in low carbing and was impressed with how much weight I had lost overall as well as my bloods being what they are. Referred her to this website hope she has a look.

 

[SaskiaKC]

Well two in a row 4.7 again this morning although I do have to say yesterday was mostly an unintentional fasting day. Had to have another set of bloods done as low carbing has made my cholesterol shoot through the roof, hyper hyper responder it seems, after the bloods we went out for the day straight after and only got back mid afternoon so not worth eating until evening. Very nice conversation with the bloods nurse though she was really interested in low carbing and was impressed with how much weight I had lost overall as well as my bloods being what they are. Referred her to this website hope she has a look.

I am sorry about your cholesterol. Low carb did the same thing to me. Although there are too many people on this board who swear LCHF doesn't affect cholesterol levels. I am sorry it happened to you. I hope you will be able to bring the cholesterol numbers down.
My doc said high cholesterol can be hereditary.

 

[Ryhia]

I am sorry about your cholesterol. Low carb did the same thing to me. Although there are too many people on this board who swear LCHF doesn't affect cholesterol levels. I am sorry it happened to you. I hope you will be able to bring the cholesterol numbers down.
My doc said high cholesterol can be hereditary.

Thank you for your kind words. I guess its no more cream and butter for me for the foreseeable. I admit I was floored when I got the results, but I am not going to let this "fly in the ointment" steal my joy! It wasn't all bad, Trigs under 1 and not bad HDL.

 

[Pipp]

Well two in a row 4.7 again this morning although I do have to say yesterday was mostly an unintentional fasting day. Had to have another set of bloods done as low carbing has made my cholesterol shoot through the roof, hyper hyper responder it seems, after the bloods we went out for the day straight after and only got back mid afternoon so not worth eating until evening. Very nice conversation with the bloods nurse though she was really interested in low carbing and was impressed with how much weight I had lost overall as well as my bloods being what they are. Referred her to this website hope she has a look.

Hi @Ryhia . I wonder if this link would be useful?
https://www.livestrong.com/article/500114-can-losing-weight-raise-your-cholesterol-temporarily/

Perhaps it is not the low carbing that caused the raised cholesterol after all?

 

[Pipp]

Hi @Ryhia . I wonder if this link would be useful?
https://www.livestrong.com/article/500114-can-losing-weight-raise-your-cholesterol-temporarily/
https://www.livestrong.com/article/500114-can-losing-weight-raise-your-cholesterol-temporarily/
Perhaps it is not the low carbing that caused the raised cholesterol after all?

Apologies. @Ryhia
Here is the link I intended to post
https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/cholesterol-basics

Though both articles make the point that after weight loss cholesterol levels may rise temporarily.

 

[ziggy_w]

Hello all,

@Pipp, @Ryhia, and @SaskiaKC -- I was just going to post the same link. https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/cholesterol-basics. A very balanced and well-reasoned piece in my view. This heart risk calcutor might also help http://chd.bestsciencemedicine.com/calc2.html. While total cholesterol is a factor in the calculation of coronary risk (I just input my numbers for everything else and experimentally maxed TC out), it only increased my total 10-year risk by 1% -- so even taking the conventional view, TC doesn't seem to be the most important factor determining you risk.

Edited to clarify and to remove fasting blood sugars as it no longer fits the newly created thread.

 

[Pipp]

Hello all,

Fasting levels were 4.6 this morning.

@Pipp, @Ryhia, and @SaskiaKC -- I was just going to post the same link. https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/cholesterol-basics. A very balanced and well-reasoned piece in my view. This heart risk calcutor might also help http://chd.bestsciencemedicine.com/calc2.html. While total cholesterol is a factor in the calculation of coronary risk (I just input my numbers and maxed TC out), it only increased my total 10-year risk by 1% -- so even taking the conventional view, TC doesn't seem to be the most important factor determining you risk.

There are lots of things to consider.
Age and gender, for example
https://www.health.harvard.edu/heart-health/statins-and-women

Though, some people have to consider this:
https://thefhfoundation.org/familial-hypercholesterolemia/what-is-familial-hypercholesterolemia

 

[Debandez]

Well two in a row 4.7 again this morning although I do have to say yesterday was mostly an unintentional fasting day. Had to have another set of bloods done as low carbing has made my cholesterol shoot through the roof, hyper hyper responder it seems, after the bloods we went out for the day straight after and only got back mid afternoon so not worth eating until evening. Very nice conversation with the bloods nurse though she was really interested in low carbing and was impressed with how much weight I had lost overall as well as my bloods being what they are. Referred her to this website hope she has a look.

Mine went up initially. Apparently when you start losing weight (which I did quite quickly) the cholesterol has less cells to tuck itself into so floats around in the blood stream, eventually settles.

You might find this thread helpful:

https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/threads/cholesterol-and-statins.156985/

 

[Debandez]

Thank you for your kind words. I guess its no more cream and butter for me for the foreseeable. I admit I was floored when I got the results, but I am not going to let this "fly in the ointment" steal my joy! It wasn't all bad, Trigs under 1 and not bad HDL.

@bulkbiker is a mine of info on cholesterol and an extremely helpful forum member if you have any questions.

 

[Pipp]

Mine went up initially. Apparently when you start losing weight (which I did quite quickly) the cholesterol has less cells to tuck itself into so floats around in the blood stream, eventually settles.

You might find this thread helpful:

https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/threads/cholesterol-and-statins.156985/

@Debandez, there are reasons people are legitimately prescribed statins. To dismiss them outright could cause difficulties for some people. I would agree that mass prescribing for anyone with raised cholesterol and / or T2 is not the best practice, (in my opinion).
I would add that anyone who has been checked and found to have familial hypercholesterolaemia, which is a genetic trait, should not be discouraged from taking medication prescribed to lower cholesterol. This is important to mention, as I would not like anyone to feel intimidated into stopping or refusing thesemeds if they do have the condition.
I have this condition. Been on prescribed statins since I was diagnosed T2 15 years ago. Now in my mid 60s. All previous paternal generations in my family have had cardiac incidents, some fatal, from their 40s. I have not. I don’t like taking meds. I would like a heart attack much less.

Sorry mods for derail, I don’t think anyone was meant to be discussing statins, but thought it vital to make the distinction re familial hypercholesterolaemia.
https://www.bhf.org.uk/informations...gazine/medical/familial-hypercholesterolaemia

 

[bulkbiker]

Had to have another set of bloods done as low carbing has made my cholesterol shoot through the roof, hyper hyper responder it seems

Do you want to share the full lipid panel results so we can take a look?
Also how long had you fasted before the blood was taken.?

Maybe on a separate thread.. tag me in if you do.

 

[Jaylee]

Hi everybody,

@Ryhia has her own topic to discuss the the cholesterol query. Thus avoiding derailment on the FBG topic.

Regards.

Jay.

 

[Debandez]

@Debandez, there are reasons people are legitimately prescribed statins. To dismiss them outright could cause difficulties for some people. I would agree that mass prescribing for anyone with raised cholesterol and / or T2 is not the best practice, (in my opinion).
I would add that anyone who has been checked and found to have familial hypercholesterolaemia, which is a genetic trait, should not be discouraged from taking medication prescribed to lower cholesterol. This is important to mention, as I would not like anyone to feel intimidated into stopping or refusing thesemeds if they do have the condition.
I have this condition. Been on prescribed statins since I was diagnosed T2 15 years ago. Now in my mid 60s. All previous paternal generations in my family have had cardiac incidents, some fatal, from their 40s. I have not. I don’t like taking meds. I would like a heart attack much less.

Sorry mods for derail, I don’t think anyone was meant to be discussing statins, but thought it vital to make the distinction re familial hypercholesterolaemia.
https://www.bhf.org.uk/informations...gazine/medical/familial-hypercholesterolaemia

Sorry to hear that Pipp.

i absolutely agree. I wasn't dismissing them, I know they do have their place. I was just sharing my experience which is similar to many. They seem to dish them out like smarties. I was offered at the beginning of my journey along with metformin as a matter of course, it seems the 2 go hand in hand. No dietary advice to control blood sugars apart from cut down on sugar, biscuits, cakes. :-( I was borderline for BP meds too. Almost 3 years down the line no meds. Long may that last. But i don't have the issues in your family so feel very lucky in that respect.

 

[Ryhia]

Apologies. @Ryhia
Here is the link I intended to post
https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/cholesterol-basics

Though both articles make the point that after weight loss cholesterol levels may rise temporarily.

Thank you for the link it is most useful. I stopped losing weight around Christmas so I expected my cholesterol to have stabilised by now. I have put on a couple of kilos during lockdown so don't know if that might have impacted on things. Think the next stage might be buy another test and try Dave Feldman's regime for fixing the results. Don' want to take statins but my brother had a heart attack a few weeks ago so I do have to look at this as a possibility. Did your bloods go up by taking statins and did you have any side effects?

 

[Ryhia]

Mine went up initially. Apparently when you start losing weight (which I did quite quickly) the cholesterol has less cells to tuck itself into so floats around in the blood stream, eventually settles.

You might find this thread helpful:

https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/threads/cholesterol-and-statins.156985/

Thank you @Debandez, I had the same issue with cholesterol last HbA1c although not as high as this time round and I was losing weight at the time. Read up on the cholesterol and statins thread and how losing weight can affect levels. That was a year ago so need to refresh my memory.

 

[Ryhia]

Hi everybody,

@Ryhia has her own topic to discuss the the cholesterol query. Thus avoiding derailment on the FBG topic.

Regards.

Jay.

Thank you for moving this, I didn't intend that the original thread be derailed but so appreciative of all those who responded with encouragement and various links.

 

[Ryhia]

Do you want to share the full lipid panel results so we can take a look?
Also how long had you fasted before the blood was taken.?

Maybe on a separate thread.. tag me in if you do.

Happy to share.

I fasted for around 15 hours before bloods.

Serum cholesterol 10
Serum Triglycerides 0.9
Serum HDL 1.9
Serum Cholesterol/HDL level 5.3
Se Non HDL Cholesterol level 8.1

I have put the results through Hugh's Calc which showed as high risk for the LDL and through Dave Feldmans calculator which showed low risk for all as below:

Atherogenic Index of Plasma: -0.325 mg/dL = Lowest Risk Third
Low Risk <––-0.325––•––––––––––•––––––––––> High Risk

Framingham Offspring: 0.7 Odds Ratio = Low Risk
Low Risk <–––•0.7•–––•–––•–––•–––•–––•–––•–––•–––•–––> High Risk

Jeppesen risk tertial: Lowest Risk Third
Low Risk <––––[X]––––•––––––––––•––––––––––> High Risk

and from https://www.hughcalc.org/chol-si.php
Your Total Cholesterol of 10.00 is HIGH RISK
Your LDL of 7.69 is VERY HIGH RISK
Your HDL of 1.9 is OPTIMAL
Your Triglyceride level of 0.89 is NORMAL
RATIOS:
Your Total Cholesterol/HDL ratio is: 5.26 - (preferably under 5.0, ideally under 3.5) AT RISK
Your HDL/LDL ratio is: 0.247 - (preferably over 0.3, ideally over 0.4) AT RISK
Your triglycerides/HDL ratio is: 0.468 - (preferably under 1.74, ideally under 0.87) IDEAL

 

[Ryhia]

Hello all,

@Pipp, @Ryhia, and @SaskiaKC -- I was just going to post the same link. https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/cholesterol-basics. A very balanced and well-reasoned piece in my view. This heart risk calcutor might also help http://chd.bestsciencemedicine.com/calc2.html. While total cholesterol is a factor in the calculation of coronary risk (I just input my numbers for everything else and experimentally maxed TC out), it only increased my total 10-year risk by 1% -- so even taking the conventional view, TC doesn't seem to be the most important factor determining you risk.

Edited to clarify and to remove fasting blood sugars as it no longer fits the newly created thread.

Hi @ziggy_w, thank you for posting this information. I tried out the calculator but I also maxed out the TC field. Pasted the results below:
Risk Time Period
10 years

81.2% No event

18.8% Total with an event

0.0% Number who benefit from treatment
NNT ∞ Number needed to treat

9.9% Baseline events using baseline factors alone

8.9% Additional events “caused” by risk factors

Bit higher risk than yours

 

[SaskiaKC]

@Debandez, there are reasons people are legitimately prescribed statins. To dismiss them outright could cause difficulties for some people. I would agree that mass prescribing for anyone with raised cholesterol and / or T2 is not the best practice, (in my opinion).
I would add that anyone who has been checked and found to have familial hypercholesterolaemia, which is a genetic trait, should not be discouraged from taking medication prescribed to lower cholesterol. This is important to mention, as I would not like anyone to feel intimidated into stopping or refusing thesemeds if they do have the condition.
I have this condition. Been on prescribed statins since I was diagnosed T2 15 years ago. Now in my mid 60s. All previous paternal generations in my family have had cardiac incidents, some fatal, from their 40s. I have not. I don’t like taking meds. I would like a heart attack much less.

Sorry mods for derail, I don’t think anyone was meant to be discussing statins, but thought it vital to make the distinction re familial hypercholesterolaemia.
https://www.bhf.org.uk/informations...gazine/medical/familial-hypercholesterolaemia

I'm glad you posted this, pipp. Too many people on this board get very argumentative when anyone else tries to post alerts about the risks of LCHF without having cholesterol levels checked.


There. That's me on this topic. I am a lot more concerned about high cholesterol than highs and lows of FBG. A heart attack can kill quickly and with little warning. Diabetes is more a chronic condition than a sneak attack.

 

[SaskiaKC]

Happy to share.

I fasted for around 15 hours before bloods.

Serum cholesterol 10
Serum Triglycerides 0.9
Serum HDL 1.9
Serum Cholesterol/HDL level 5.3
Se Non HDL Cholesterol level 8.1

I have put the results through Hugh's Calc which showed as high risk for the LDL and through Dave Feldmans calculator which showed low risk for all as below:

Atherogenic Index of Plasma: -0.325 mg/dL = Lowest Risk Third
Low Risk <––-0.325––•––––––––––•––––––––––> High Risk

Framingham Offspring: 0.7 Odds Ratio = Low Risk
Low Risk <–––•0.7•–––•–––•–––•–––•–––•–––•–––•–––•–––> High Risk

Jeppesen risk tertial: Lowest Risk Third
Low Risk <––––[X]––––•––––––––––•––––––––––> High Risk

and from https://www.hughcalc.org/chol-si.php
Your Total Cholesterol of 10.00 is HIGH RISK
Your LDL of 7.69 is VERY HIGH RISK
Your HDL of 1.9 is OPTIMAL
Your Triglyceride level of 0.89 is NORMAL
RATIOS:
Your Total Cholesterol/HDL ratio is: 5.26 - (preferably under 5.0, ideally under 3.5) AT RISK
Your HDL/LDL ratio is: 0.247 - (preferably over 0.3, ideally over 0.4) AT RISK
Your triglycerides/HDL ratio is: 0.468 - (preferably under 1.74, ideally under 0.87) IDEAL

Thank you for posting that.

What scares me about some posts on this site is that many posters do not realize that high cholesterol can be hereditary and can be a huge risk factor and needs to be monitored at least as often as BG. Unfortunately as of now there is no home test that I know of.
Take care. I'm glad you cut out cream and butter! There are plenty of more healthful fats that are equally delicious -- but ask your doctor or nurse!