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Cholesterol test

A

Atad heavy

Well-Known Member
Messages
405
Location
Cambridge
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Hello,

My cholesterol has just been checked and the results are back. I had my breakfast of full fat Greek yogurt with walnuts & flaxseed also 2 black coffees with a big dollop of double cream in both about 2 hours beforehand. I would like to know how accurate the results are likely to be & also which ones could be wrong.
Many thanks
 
You are supposed to fast before that cholesterol / lipids / etc. blood test, it's about twelve hours minimum at least. So a good chance your results will be off.
 
Tipetoo said:
You are supposed to fast before that cholesterol / lipids / etc. blood test, it's about twelve hours minimum at least. So a good chance your results will be off.
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Does that mean that the results are likely to be on the high side ?
 
Yes, your triglycerides will be high, especially considering the amount of fat you ate beforehand. The liver will have made plenty, and they will have been swimming round your blood stream doing their job when the blood was drawn.

Why didn't you fast?
 
I have always heard even what you eat the day before can affect your cholesterol levels. However here in the US some doctors are telling their patients not to fast for the test anymore. The theory is to get a more accurate rate of what daily is going through your veins and that it is more accurate. ( I have a bias thinking they just want more people on statin drugs, but that's me) I have not ever had to care as I'm a vegan and don't ever have any cholesterol issues.

But here is an article on it that explains the new trend.

https://www.statnews.com/2016/04/29/fasting-cholesterol-testing/
 
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The NHS guidelines in the UK also say it is not necessary to fast. However, the reason given is because fasting tests have to be done early mornings to avoid too much stress on the patients. This means in GP surgeries there are waiting lists for these tests, whereas non-fasting they can be done at any time of the day, so more tests can be done in one day. It is for logistical and practical purposes, nothing to do with accuracy. However, should the triglycerides be high, then a second test is ordered and that has to be fasting.

That article you linked to says non-fasting gives a more accurate result of what our triglycerides are during normal times for most of the day, and produce a "normal" result. That is codswallop in my opinion. Our cholesterol changes like the wind from minute to minute, just like our blood glucose and blood pressure do. There is no "normal". In order to have a consistent result, fasting is the only way. In the UK we are told fasting is not necessary, but I always fast for mine and can therefore compare each test and look for realistic trends.
 
@Bluetit1802
I do not have an opinion either way on fasting or non fasting, I just posted the link to explain why it is a trend now. Like I said I don't have to worry about it as a vegan that has never had a cholesterol issue, so I couldn't care less either way. But the link is just to show their reasons for the new trend.
 
I was only there for liver function tests, I told the nurse that I was due a cholesterol test. I did admit to having breakfast & coffees. My cholesterol was high & I am having the battle over not taking statins, this test was lower than the last one so had I not eaten hopefully it would have been even lower
 

I realise that. I wasn't getting at you. I was just getting at the article!

As a matter of interest, I am a carnivore through and through, and my cholesterol is also ideal. I'm not sure that eating meat and fish or only plant foods makes the slightest difference.
 

That is good news that it was lower. What were your triglycerides as a matter of interest?
 
Bluetit1802 said:
However, the reason given is because fasting tests have to be done early mornings to avoid too much stress on the patients
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The pathology shop I go to opens at 7:00 am, so I when I have my blood tests which normally includes fasting for the cholesterol tests the only stress I get is lack of coffee first up when I get in there first up.

I pick up a number, and when the staff come around for them and the blood request form that has the fasting box ticked, she does a triage job when I wave my baggie of heart tablets at her. I am normally out in less than a half hour drinking coffee in the Atrium Cafe in the hospital waiting for a bacon and egg breakfast to cooking .

 


Our surgery has an appointment system for blood tests. It is like a conveyor belt. I feel sorry for the health care assistant taking the bloods. It is one after another. Our blood forms are computerised so we don't have a copy personally. The HCA has a copy. Personal details checked, bloods drawn, vials labelled, tick boxes ticked on the computer, and off we go. The appointments are made 5 minutes apart. I am in and out in that 5 minutes and back home, all within half an hour.
 
Bluetit1802 said:
Our blood forms are computerised so we don't have a copy personally.
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We have a choice of pathology shops at either of the two private hospitals, or the ones at the shopping centres, so we get a copy of the computer record to take with us. No appointment necessary, all though some specialised blood tests require one.

I get my next fasting test on Monday morning, and as the weather has got a bit cooler I will be missing my coffee first up.
 
Sorry Bluetit1802!
 
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To get an accurate result for a full lipid panel you will need to re-do the test and fast for at 12hrs before hand.

I gather no one told you about fasting?
 
Tophat1900 said:
To get an accurate result for a full lipid panel you will need to re-do the test and fast for at 12hrs before hand.

I gather no one told you about fasting?
Click to expand...
Previously I have always fasted for this test, I did say that I’d had breakfast & the coffees.
 
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