Has my G.P jumped the gun?

J

jmorell1989

Member
Messages
12
I was told on the 29th of december that i was type 2. With a reading of hbc 12. Was put on 3 metaformin a day and now she wants to give me tablets for cholestral which was at 4 with my blood pressure being normal. When i had my tests done was over th christmas period where lots of drinking was happening. Im 6ft and weighed 16 st 4 at the time. And now i weigh 15.6 with only 2 weeks of dieting. Surely diet would of just been enough???

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D

Daibell

Master
Messages
12,653
Type of diabetes
LADA
Treatment type
Insulin
Re: Has my G.P jumped the gun?

Hi. An HBa1C of 12 is very high and it's unlikely diet only will bring it down in the short term. It will be causing long-term damage so I would certainly continue with the Metformin at the moment. I personally wouldn't worry too much about the statins at your cholesterol level but that's your decision. I would continue with a low-carb diet and ask for a further HBa1c in, say, 3 months. to see what action is then needed
 
V

viviennem

Well-Known Member
Messages
3,140
Type of diabetes
Treatment type
Other
Dislikes
Football. Bad manners.
Re: Has my G.P jumped the gun?

In your place I wouldn't take statins with a total cholesterol of 4 (but then I don't take them anyway! :lol: ).

There is no doubt that they do work well for some people; others get side-effects and can't get on with them.

I'd suggest that you wait until your next tests, and see what both your HbA1c and your cholesterol is doing. Meanwhile have a good read round and learn as much as you can about cholesterol and statins. Cut down on your carbohydrates and do regular exercise if you're able to. That should help with everything.

Next time they give you a cholesterol test ask for a print-out of your results - you are entitled to have this, and don't let them try to charge you! You need a full lipid profile - total cholesterol, by itself, tells you next to nothing. IMHO :wink: .

Targets for blood lipids (for non-diabetics) are as follows:

Total below 5
HDL above 1.2, and the higher the better (the good stuff)
LDL less than 3, and the lower the better (the bad stuff)
Triglycerides below 1.7, and the lower the better (even worse bad stuff)

Total:HDL ratio around 3.5:1. My GP pays much more attention to this ratio than to the Total measurement.

My last lipid profile, for comparison, was as follows:

Total 4.9
HDL 1.6
LDL 2.85
Trigs 1.00 - I'd like the last 2 lower, but they are in the desired range.

My Total:HDL ratio was 3.1. My GP is happy with these figures.

I believe females of my age (63) are allowed to be slightly higher than males, but "they" seem to want all diabetics to have Total Cholesterol in the 3s! I have my suspicions of this. I have no scientific basis for this at all, but considering that my brain runs on cholesterol, and that the cholesterol in the fat under the skin is responsible for metabolizing Vitamin D from sunlight, I think it may be possible to drop the stuff too low. Just my opinion!

Anyway - get your print-out, and then ask the GP to go through it with you and explain it, and then tell you exactly why she wants you on statins. If she sounds convincing, try them. If you get on with them okay - fine. If you don't - you can always stop taking them. No-one can force you to take them.

Hope this helps. :D

Viv 8)
 
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