High Cholesterol Questions

[Jody100467]

Hi Everybody ,

Well - I went to the gyno a week and a half ago and he said my cholesterol is borderline high - 208. It was not a fasting cholesterol test - just an end of the day blood test. So - nothing really to freak out about right? This is the second time it was 208'ish (last time I think it was 209) and I know that I probably need to pay attention to it - I weigh 163 (down from 202) and am on an all out, full steam ahead path to goal a of 140 or less (would love 125'ish but I am 41 yrs old now and won't know if that is realistic until I get closer). My blood pressure has gone from 120 over 80 to something like 98 over 60'ish. I don't remember exactly what it was but I know that it was upper nineties over 60 something and the nurse said that it was very good. I re-inducted mid-October after an awful year of personal crisis with my hubby and my father being in the hospital near death for six months and my mom having a stroke and heart attack. Everyone is ok now except for me - I gained 25 pounds or so and was up to 177 lbs after getting down to 147'ish at my lowest but I am finally (mentally) feeling healthier, happier and stronger - it took me at least 8 weeks to feel emotionally normal again. And I am getting back to eating healthier now (Atkins) - back down to 162.8 and my first mini goal is a 25 pound loss by January 1 which will put me close to my lowest weight for the new year - even if I hit 152 I will be happy but right now my version of ecstasy would be to be lower than 150. I still have 12.8 pounds to go to hit 150 by January 1 but I really believe that is realistic and obtainable.

I do try to go to jazzercise at least three times a week and would like to work out more to help me get to goal and I have been told that will help with the cholesterol - is that true?

Is there anything I can do with supplements to help?

I would love to climb the carb ladder and know that would probably help but I haven't lost very well when I eat more than induction level carbs. I guess that I need to re-attempt that because I feel lost when it comes to climbing the carb ladder and I am afraid that my loss will stop if I do because I think that I am a slow loser (not just the regular kind of loser - LOL ) - it took me almost three years to lose the 50 I lost - and then I think realistically that was because I didn't do what I was supposed to - avoid frankenfoods, drink less coffee and soda and add more water and also eat more meats.

So - I will research climbing the carb ladder - can any of you (Fawn maybe?) make any suggestion on supplements to get it down? And, I have heard that research is indicating that cholesterol is not exactly as bad as they were once indicating - what is the truth about that? Is 208 really all that high?

I want to be beautiful with a hawt body - but mostly I want to be healthy. I will appreciate any advice you all can offer.

Jody

PS - I have left my avi at 50 lbs lost because I worked so hard at losing it and I am SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO motivated to get there again. I really earned it the first time around so I have stubbornly refused to change it - I hope that you all understand...and sorry about the long rambling post.

[sugarless4life]

An 'end of the day' test is meaningless. You must fast for at least 6-8 hours prior to a test.

In addition, the "TOTAL" is also meaningless. You must know your individual numbers in order properly assess the outcome. A high "total" could be the result of an extremely good HDL level which of course is what you want to have. Its all about the ratios of HDL to LDL and the triglycerides. Until you know the individual numbers, its a waste of time.

Redo the test and then you'll have an accurate idea.

Betty

[BrianSCohen]

Jody,

Betty is right, if anything an end of the day cholesterol test would come out biased high, pointing to your cholesterol being too low if anything. Have the test redone, fast for a good 12 hours before and don't drink any alcohol for 48 hours. The only things that really matter are your triglycerides (should be less than 150 mg/dl) and your HDL (should be > 40 mg/dl). As a woman, cholesterol after middle age is actually protective. You should be concerned if your cholesterol is too low.

[Jody100467]

Thanks for the info everybody - I'm glad now that I didn't freak out. My cholesterol is probably just fine then - I've probably been worrying for absolutely nothing. I will be making a doctor appointment right away cuz inquiring minds want to know. I must always remind myself - don't worry until there is a reason to worry. LOL.

Jody

[Kris T.]

I just went through this..if you do a search for cholesterol on the board, you can find my postings. Ironically, they told me to exercise more, at which point I lost complete faith. As if 12 miles of running + 5 days/week exercising isn't enough? Please.

I agree, don't worry.

[Sharon]

Go over to the medical board and read mine as a sticky -- 276. You need to get all your numbers to determine if you are in the healthy range.

[dasak]

Make sure you let us know how your real numbers come out. Sometimes I think docs think because we eat a lot of protein our cholesterol must be off the chart. My after many years of Atkins I still have great BP and cholesterol, although I attribute some of my great numbers to Vemma.