cholesterol

[jules77]

is cholesterol of 7.8 high? and if the Doctor suggests a change of diet to include less fat, and you dont eat much fat anyway, what other 'natural' options would bring the levels down? someone told me grapefruit juice?

[mrknowall]

Jules that is high around 5.5 is the norm but docter's have since reduced this to about 4.7.
I went on the proactive butter which did reduce mine but its not cheap.
My family has a high cholesterol record and it make's no difference what we eat.
You could be a person who will always have high cholesterol wether you change youe diet but do try the diet.
Keep a check on this at least 2 a year

[mrknowall]

If your's remain high the doc could put you on tablets to lower this as a last resort this all depends on age and familys history.
If you are over weight try and lose a little this could help

[jules77]

I have never had a cholsterol test in my life, and we had a well being week at work, and all had it done, for a laugh - since then have had the proper test at the hospital, and it came out the same. I dont eat cream cakes, or a lot of fried foods, I could do with losing a little weight, but I am not in the obese bracket - another lady at work, who is 8st dripping wet, also had high cholsterol, so didnt feel too bad, but my husband says it is too high, and the doctor is wrong not to take much notice of it. I have got to change my diet (dont know what I can change though other than cheese), and go back in a month.

[shaneystar2]

I never dreamt that I would have high cholesterol but a routine blood test (for another medical condition) confirmed that I did . i was put on statavastins ..20 mg and that brought it down considerably to well within the normal count .However ......this meant that I also had to follow a low fat diet .I did ask my doctor about all these things such as Flora,Benecol and these yogurt type drinks etc and he told me not to waste my money ! Just stick to a low fat diet.
I am now off the statins and by keeping to a low fat diet my levels are more or less what they should be.Boring but hey ho ...better than clogged arteries.I cut out all things like cheese (which I love) cream,butter,anything fried and so on Now I have got it down to what it should be I do indulge in the odd bit of cheese etc but nowhere near what I used to consume ! There are bad fats and good fats .You can be thin as a rake and have high cholesterol or as big as a house and have low . Not fair is it !

[mrknowall]

Does your family have a back ground of high col and as any had heart attacks / strokes.If they do you should of been having checks done.The doctor should of called all your family in for tests.

Im not fat eat health but mine is high not as high as your's

I did a test a bit ago ate crap for a bit then went for a test it went down.

If you change your food it might make no difference your body might be just making to much as whats happening in my case.

Just keep a eye on it people seem to think its fat people who have high col this is no the case

[mello yello]

Jules, a cholesterol of 7.8 is high. As someone has already said, the accepted 'normal' upper limits are between 5 & 5.5 (it depends on the lab doing the analysis). As important as total cholesterol is the ratio of LDL (low density lipoprotein) to HDL (high density . . .). Somewhat counter-intuitively, LDL is 'bad' as it circulates in your blood in big floppy bags of fat that can contribute to atheroma (the fatty streaks of damage to blood vessel walls that are the cause of heart attacks, some strokes and other vascular disease). HDL on the other hand 'mops up' spare cholesterol and returns it to the liver.
Diet is important, but I was taught that it only contributes perhaps 10 - 20% of your circulating (ie in the blood) cholesterol. The chemical pathways that make cholesterol in your body (it is an important constituent of cell walls and some hormones) make the rest, and in some people they just work better. The cholesterol-lowering drugs, statins, mentioned by another correspondent, work by inhibiting another chemical which allows a step in this cholesterol-producing chemical pathway to happen. They work very well, but as with all drugs, have side effects which need to be considered when weighing up one's approach to cholesterol.
In summary, it's not as straightforward as it would seem. Cholesterol is important in the body, but high levels are associated with increased risks of cardiovascular disease (heart attacks etc). You must always consider other risk factors for cardiovascular disease; smoking, high blood pressure, & being male (to name but a few), are more important. Diet can make a difference, but some of us unfortunately just produce more cholesterol.

[Ethel]

I have been at least 5 stone overweight for many many years, and am classed as clinically obese.

My cholestrol is never above 4.5

I really believe it is genetic, and not diet.

[shaneystar2]

Just a last thought jules ..my doctor advised me to eat porrIdge every day .Luckily I like porridge ! Apparently this is one of the super foods which is good for cholesterol. Studies have shown that just 2 to 3oz of porridge daily can lower cholesterol levels by 10 per cent.May be worth considering.. ..if you like porridge !

[nutgoneflake]

I was going to say porridge too - it's dead easy to eat it every day, yum! Another thing which has worked in our family is lecithin granules. Buy them in a health food store, Julian Graves etc and just add a spoon to what you're eating. Tastes of nothing in particular!!

[cruella]

Hi Jules77
I think you ought to take your Husbands advice. Your reading is too high. It should be at an acceptable level 4.5 and no higher than 5.
Porridge is very good to lower cholesterol as other abers have said and stick to a low fat diet.
I am a size 8 very slim and at one time, had a level of nearly 11. The hospital tried everything to lower it and the statin group of drugs never helped me at all. I am on the lipantil group now and the highest dose they can prescribe. I get lots of exercise which is a must too. I too was told by my GP not to waste money buying all the spreads etc that claim to lower you cholesterol, as they do not have the long term results of them. In my case, it was hereditary but the medications have lowered it to 4.7
All the best See your GP.

[jules77]

Have bought porridge which I am having for breakfast. Also cut out cheese, not that I ate a lot anyway, and having more fresh vegetables than I would normally have. No history of high cholsteral in the family, other than my husbands whose believe it or not was 21 !, yes 21, they said he should have been in a wooden box underground. But six weeks later it was down to 6, so they think he must have had a vrius. I am tee total, apart from the odd glass of wine or lager if we go out, which is rare. My fathers cholsteral is low, and he is 74. I have been grapefruit juice has the same effect as statins so will try that for a month then have another test.