high cholesterol
 

my name is cindy, my husband is craig, i am 48, he is 49 and has had a double by-pass 3 years ago. monday at the cardio, his triglycerides were 660, hdl 45, ldl was off the charts, they could not even get a reading. they sent him home with lipitor. took it twice now and feels awful, almost like he is having a stroke. we feel like this is our only hope. any advice, greatly appreciated. we have been married 25 years, have 8 grandchildren, and really want to see them grow up!! thanks a bunch in advance for all of your help. cindy

My numbers were never anywhere near as bad as your husband's, but they were elevated. Low carbing got my triglycerides way down (52 at my last reading) and hdl up (56 at my last reading). Those readings were taken last spring after nine months of low carbing -- I have now been low carbing for almost 1-1/2 years and I will get them done again this spring. Given how good they were, my doctor doesn't see any reason to do the bloodwork more than once a year.

This lowering of triglycerides and raising of hdl seems pretty standard from what I have seen on this board. The Protein Power book (by the Eades) has the best explanation I have read of why this happens. UInfortunately, from what I have read and seen on this board, low carbing seems to have less effect on ldl. Mine was 132 at the last reading and I'd like to get it lower. I've been exercising a lot and I hope that will help. My hdl/ldl ratio is good, however, and some people think that is more important than the absolute ldl reading.

In addition to low carbing, I have been staying away from anything with transfats (partially hydrogenated oil) in it. That means I eat mostly whole foods -- vegetables, meat, chicken, fish, eggs, a little low carb fruit (berries and melon), a little nuts, some cheese, and even some cottage cheese. A lot of the lowcarb specialty foods have transfats in them -- you need to read the labels. From what I have read, transfats are the absolute worst for your blood cholesterol levels.

If I were your husband, I would try strict low carbing for a full two months and then get the bloodwork done again. Given his health history, he really doesn't want to risk it longer than that.

Good luck to both of you and welcome to the forum! Discovering low carbing is the best thing that has happened to me in years. I struggled with my weight for decades trying to eat a lowfat diet and all I did was gain weight, increase my cholesterol, and develop high blood pressure. Now I have lost over 100 pounds, my blood pressure is normal, and my cholesterol numbers are quite good! For me, this way of eating has been a miracle! (FYI, I am about your age -- 46.)

thanks liz,
i need to research on transfats, that is something i know nothing about. we tried low-carb before, but ate lots of cheese, beef, (we have it on our farm), cream, eggs, etc. I don't really know what i am doing!!! i guess, that's why i am here, is too learn. all advice is appreciated. cindy

Something I forgot to mention in my previous post is that I also use lots of olive oil. I make all my own salad dressings out of olive oil and red wine vinegar. I then add whatever I feel like for seasonings -- herbs, salt, pepper, sometimes some grated parmesan cheese, sometimes some Dijon mustard (you need to whisk the mustard in or put it in a jar with a tight lid and shake it well to get it to dissolve). I use almost no cream, but I do use some butter (not a lot). I eat red meat, but I love fish and I also eat fish several times a week. Staying away from transfats is absolutely critical for cholesterol levels and unfortunately almost all prepared foods (crackers, cookies, etc.) have transfats in them. If you have a Whole Foods near you, everything in the store is transfat free.

The other thing you might want to investigate is taking fish oil as a supplement. There is a fair amount of evidence that it lowers cholesterol. My husband is currently trying it (he has a cholesterol problem and hasn't been able to tolerate any of the medications and unfortunately is unwilling to go strictly low carb -- he does not have a weight problem). We haven't had his blood readings done again yet, so I don't know if it is doing any good. He has also eliminated all transfats from his diet.

Actually, wait more than 3 months of LCing before getting the blood work redone. There is a fairly normal rise in cholesterol totals after about 6 weeks. But by then, the triglyceride number will have begun to fall.

You don't say if your husband needs to lose weight, but he probably will. Remember that Dr. Atkins was a cardiologist who put his heart patients on the low carb way of eating for their health, and then was really surprised to find out that they all lost weight.

Trans fats and high fructose corn sugar/syrup (HFCS) are found in many, perhaps in MOST, processed foods. So the advice above to make your own salad dressings is really good. Stick to plain meats, eggs, salads, veggies.

Above all, BUY THE BOOK! Or borrow it from the library. And read and reread it. If you are desperate to start right away, go to www.atkins.com and click on "How to do Atkins". It will give you the first steps, but you DO need to have the book on hand and READ IT.

Be sure to visit the Cholesterol section of this board and read some of the threads. You'll find my numbers there and I've been LCing for much of the last 5 years.

All the best. You'll lose weight and your blood numbers will improve.