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Low carb (keto) but high cholesterol.

T

TheRightStuff

Member
Messages
21
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Hi. Just recently got my yearly bloods back and I was quite shocked that my cholesterol (LDL) was flagged as being high (as this is the first time it has ever happened, I have always had high HDL and low LDL up until recently).

The only thing I can think off is that it is because in recent months I switched to a low carb- keto diet to help control blood sugar levels and limit the insulin I was taking (which was loads as my sensitivity seems to be poor).
I do not need to lose weight and on keto I noticed it was actually hard to eat the 2000 odd calories (2500+ on exercise days) needed maintain my weight (I was losing weight slowly) so I started eating more cheese (which is high in saturated fats). Also maybe I also started to eat less fibre (as I used to always eat oatbran and banana as part of my breakfast). Also, though I am still exercising 3-4 times a week - due to an age related injury that keep flaring up (disc in back) I decided to stop doing treadmill interval sprints and perhaps that has also played a part? (I did read hardcore interval training was the best way to get LDL levels down and HDL levels up.

This is kind of a controversial subject as I have read conflicting articles. Some say that dietary cholesterol (i.e. - what we eat does not really effect blood cholesterol too much) does not have any effect on blood cholesterol levels and others say that it does.
Some articles also say that cholesterol levels are purely genetic.
Anyway, I am a 47 year old male and have had type 1 diabetes for over 3 decades now. Could that finally be taking it's toll?

What do people here think? If dietary cholesterol does effect LDL levels than does anyone have any advice on what I can do to try and get this down whilst still being able to eat 2000-2500 calories on low carb-keto? Should I come off keto and get back on the oatbran?

I have generally had poor sugar control and struggled to get under 7mmol as a 3 month average (probably a lot to do with how sugar levels would just go nuts due to different types of exercise 4-5 times a week). Since the keto diet I have managed to get that down to around 6.2mmol (which is good for me).

Has anyone else had the same or similar problem?

Cheers.
 
I believe dietary cholesterol does impact. Others don't. Probably different people react differently to it.

If you decide to try sticking to keto and lowering dietary cholesterol then by all means do 'go nuts' and seeds. Good for you, full of calories, healthy fats, and fibre. Maybe dark chocolate as well if you like it.

They don't impact my blood glucose - but I'm Type 2.
 
My understanding (good grief- there is a lot of waffle in t'internet about cholesterol) is that dietary cholesterol does affect blood cholesterol to some degree, reduce dietary fats and it will reduce blood cholesterol 'a bit'.

But as we age (general population) our cholesterol control can worsen in the blood - regardless of reducing diet cholesterol, hence statins may be worth considering.

As a T1, the control of blood cholesterol should be tighter than a non diabetic (as heart disease is a big 'stopper' for diabetics.

I take statins and have good BG control (not sure BG effects the cholesterol though) - you could try to reduce fats in your diet, and it might help enough to drop your numbers, but then again you might find it makes no difference at all (and you've missed out on 6 months of 'Dorset Blue Vinney' cheese etc)
 
I've read that going Keto or reducing carbs can effect Cholesterol in the short term due to the switch from carbs to fats for fuel, this may be a short lived increase or it could be a fact that your body doesn't manage the higher fat content - Really depends on how long since you switched to Keto/low carb - It may be that when your body is fully accustomed to the new fueling regime then your numbers will rectify, however I am no expert and my suggestion would be to speak directly with your GP or nutritionalist/expert as to your personal situation.

I took the option of Statins as I wanted to regulate my bloods first and the high cholesterol was a secondary issue, I have been on Statins for 7 weeks with no issues from them, will await my review in a few months.
 
Welcome to the forum @TheRightStuff

A controversial subject certainly.

At one time we were advised to limit hen's eggs to no more than 4 per week due cholesterol content. I never really bought into that notion, but the party line has changed, thankfully. Basically, if you eat fewer cholesterol-containing foods, a healthy liver will produce more. If you increase your cholesterol consumption, the liver makes less.

A couple of close friends whom I trust to be honest, say they eat exactly the same way. Husband's lipid panel is normal and wife has been prescribed a statin because of high LDL readings. My husband's family have an inherited condition termed familial hypercholesterolemia, so additional factors apply.

Hardly statistically significant I know, but these experiences suggest individual differences may have more to do with genetics than food preferences.

The moral of this post is choose your parents wisely!
 
When you say "high" LDL, what was the figure?

I'm one of those who used to have "normal" total cholesterol before they changed "normal" to "high" around 20 years ago.
 
TheRightStuff said:
Has anyone else had the same or similar problem?
Click to expand...
Um...yes, yes and yes. Agree with the comments here - less cheese, more nuts (but even better is chicken, fish and tofu - more protein less fat). Statins work too and are safe.

I was very low carb/keto some years back and found I was reducing insulin needs to half and living physically and metabolically much fitter. Recently started the transition again but the major issue for me is the blood sugar rises caused by cortisol, etc. I can go a whole day on 20 g carbs but my sugar will go up at any time of day or night to 250+ if don't stop it with insulin and/or intense exercise. Do you get this too?
 
KennyA said:
When you say "high" LDL, what was the figure?

I'm one of those who used to have "normal" total cholesterol before they changed "normal" to "high" around 20 years ago.
Click to expand...
4.8 which is high. it's basically more than double what it was last year (last time I had bloods done) (Given range says high end is to 4 and obviously it was high enough for the doctor to flag it and even mention statins - though recommended I try and get it down and get bloods done again in 3 months to see where it's at).

Anyway, regardless of the numbers my ratio has gone way out. I have always had a higher HDL than LDL, but this time the LDL is way higher than the HDL.
 
Regarding the protein I think what will be my 2nd thread here will question that

When eating 'normally' I have to put in a ****load of insulin (as I think my sensitivity/absorption must be low).

No idea about the cortisol - but if that is spiked by exercise (by cardio or weights) then that is a possibility. Sometimes even when I do not eat and go to the gym my sugars can just shoot up. . . It makes any fasting difficult too as I also have to put in some insulin when I get a fasted sugar spike - and that normally means a few correction attempts and annoyingly often means I have to stop any fast.

Edited by mod to remove profanity
 
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So here's my experience: T1D for 25 years +, then had an NSTEMI which required a stent in my LAD. I did not have particularly high cholesterol and there were no warning signs for metabolic syndrome or heart disease, but maybe high enough as a T1D to recommend a statin. Since the heart attack I've been on a statin, cholesterol and all the blood tests are excellent. Excellent BG control and all of that. BUT, on the statin I have horrible muscle pain in my legs and it has interfered with my ability to exercise. Never a good thing. I went off the statin due to a mix up with the renewal of my script and found that not only did my muscle pain go away, but my insulin sensitivity improved. I tell you this because it's not always straigtforward to go on another med to improve yet another complication of diabetes and/or age. The reduced insulin sensitivity has caused weight gain for me and on top of getting less exercise I think it's gotten a bit out of hand. I'm staying off the statin for now and seeing how it goes.

(Moderator edit to remove medical advice)
 
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Is there any chance you’re a lean mass hyper responder? If so upping carbs to over 50g a day may help
 

I always try and stay off any extra meds as much as possible so will only go on statins as a very last resort.

I am aware that it is often just the easy option in a lot of cases and some doctors seem to be dishing out scripts like they are on commission, lol.

We'll see in a few months I guess.
 
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