Cholesterol

Alright, well my mother who is in her 50's just told me that she had really high cholesterol. I know that this has been discussed in the forums before and I think Caustic wrote some stuff on it but I can't figure out where that info is.

Of course, the doctor wants to put her on cholesterol lowering drugs right away with not even asking about her diet or lifestyle or anything. She does not want to take a drug and I applauded her!

If I remember, wasn't it grains and sugars being the culprit behind cholesterol being too high with cholesterol not being the actual problem?

Diet modifications? Supplements? The healthy cholesterol range?

Thanks guys, this community rocks!

halfempty - Sure glad she doesn't want to take it also. Just like you mentioned, one cause of diet induced cholesterol increase is from refined starches and sugars. Protecting against the oxidation of cholesterol is more important than controlling cholesterol levels. Ironically, the AHA (American Heart Association), but better known by my colleagues as "Another Heart Attack" recommendations for polyunsaturated vegetable oils are a disaster for cooking, leading to millions of oxygen free radicals and increasing inflammatory prostaglandins.

Aside from diet, elevated cholesterol is often caused by either low thyroid (including sub-clinical), iodine deficiency (very common in women and synonymous with low thyroid, low testosterone, elevated lead (lead reduces hormone production and causes oxidation).

It's also quite probable that her cholesterol may not be too high, since the definition of too high these days is quite subjective. Research that I've looked at suggests that cholesterol levels below 200 result in higher mortality. That said, I would prefer my cholesterol reading to be over 200.

A good HDL reading is important, and one being over 40 is good, over 50 is better, and over 60 or 70 is excellent.

One other reading that is important is Lp(a) levels. A high reading of apolipoprotein-a can inhibits plasminogen, which will result in serious clotting problems.

Krill oil is superior to any cholesterol medication and it's better to find the cause rather than to patch it up, however in anycase, Krill Oil increases HDL, cuts triglycerides and while reducing so-called "bad cholesterol" LDL.

I call LDL the good "bad" cholesterol, since it has a real purpose--it removes toxins from the bloodstream.

As far as cholesterol even being a concern outside of the potential underlying causes, here's a great link that puts cholesterol in perspective.

http://www.ravnskov.nu/cholesterol.htm

Thanks man, I am going to go over this information with her.

I know that Krill oil is optimal, but fish oil will do some of what krill does right? She just ordered like 5 bottles of carlsons fish oil.

halfempty - Fish oil is good, especially from Carlson's. Krill oil has a few advantages over fish oil, but will help a little.

Krill increases HDL, whereas fish oil does not. Krill also has strong antioxidant protection from its Astaxanthin content.

But in any case, scores of studies show that fish oil significantly increases lifespan of anyone with any cardiovascular problems.

If she adds a good antioxidant, such as EGCG (Green tea) or other source of polyphenols will increase HDL and reduce LDL levels.

Probably the absolute cheapest way to increase HDL, reduce Triglycerides and reduce LDL is high dose Niacin. But there are few reservations. It's a bit of a hassle to use. This is the kind that causes flushing, and it would be necessary to increase the dosage slowly each week by 100 milligrams until a tolerance is reached. Ultimately 3,000 mgs. Contrary to doctor belief, high dose Niacin does not cause elevation in liver enzymes long term.

2 1/2 months ago my mother was told that she had high cholestrol with a reading of 9.1, so I got her on 2 * Green Tea of Thorne Research Green Tea Phytosome 60, and 2 * Nows Krill Oil daily. After 2 1/2 months on these, her new blood tests show that she is at 9.9, and LDL being 7.6 (Have asked Mother to get the results, but the results were given over the phone), and the doctor has not seen it rise that quickly before. The only thing I can think caused that is the Green Tea was really good at stopping the oxidation of the cholesterol, whilst the Krill did very little to reduce it, or nothing at all. Whilst I understand the route cause of this is probably an underlying thyriod condition (As I probably inherited my Thyriod condition from exposure to Mercury whilst in the womb), it would be impossible to persuade her to treat it, as I am having such a hard time correcting mine, after 6 months of heavy metal detox, and 9 month and still going to repair my Thyriod with Iodine, and during this period I have had an increase in anxiety, and generally been more nervous, and on edge (Slowly getting better). The bad thing is the doctor has now put her onto Statins, and I feel I may have missed my chance to get her on the natural route, so next I will look into Plant streols, as through conversations with family members they have had success with plant sterols, I was hoping for some recommedations from my kind fellow forum members. Also have asked her to stop the Krill Oil, and am unsure what to advise her on the Green Tea.

What's her LDL level and how old is she? Does your mother have a history of any vascular disease - stroke, angina, heart attack, peripheral vascular disease, carotid/aortic stenosis? If her LDL is phenomenally high, or she has one of these conditions, then the following might not be true.

Ignoring everything CS has said, there's debate even in mainstream medicine over whether statins should be given to people who don't have cardiovascular disease. There's no evidence that giving statins to these people significantly improves mortality.

Here's one of the biggest studies on the subject:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20585067

This is especially true for women and people 70+. Google "statins women" and you'll find plenty of info on the subject.

It's possible to reduce heart attacks without reducing deaths. One common argument in favor of statins is that they reduce heart attacks. People argue that even if they don't reduce death, reducing heart attacks is a worthy goal. This might be true, but it ignores the fact that statins might have a wide variety of side effects similar in magnitude to non-fatal heart attacks (kidney disease, muscle problems, cataracts, etc., and others that aren't known).

To reiterate: taking a statin probably won't prolong her life.

Here's a relatively simple article on the subject, published in a reputable mainstream journal: http://www.bmj.com/content/334/7601/983.full
Here's an opposing view: http://www.bmj.com/content/334/7601/982.full

In the second article, the author says that studies show a reduction in risk with cholesterol lowering therapy. He cites three studies to support that claim. All three show a non-significant effect on all cause mortality. This is ridiculous.

Who knows, maybe people like me, CS, and Mercola are all wrong, and your mother should take a statin. There's no evidence for it. This in an industry where the research is often conducted by people with a conflict of interest that favors the drugs.

crincrin,

You wrote in one of your old posts that LDL binds to circulating LPS, preventing it from activating the immune system. Pretty interesting. Fits well with CS's earlier claim that elevation of LDL is caused by infection. Given the relationship between LDL and LPS, it seems plausible that leaky gut can also cause high LDL.

What I can't make sense of is the observed correlation between dietary saturated fat and cholesterol levels.

A couple months ago my dad was complaining about brain-fog. I convinced him to halve his statin dosage and this solved the problem. Hopefully he'll eliminate statins entirely.

Inhibiting cholesterol synthesis doesn't seem natural.

Besides my article here:

http://healthyfixx.com/15/the-truth-about-statin-drugs-may-cause-heart-attacks

There is now new research published in a peer reviewed journal that shows that statin drugs damage the heart.

Also with regard to the study of benefit on with women with high levels of arterial calcification would be better off taking vitamin K2, not a statin.

Some D3 and K2 would be exactly the kind of thing that would help prolong her life, instead of treating a symptom.

I think there's evidence that statins exert their beneficial cardiovascular effect more via some anti-oxidant action than by cholesterol inhibition, ie inhibition of CYP enzymes.

As for saturated fat and cholesterol, I've given up using cross-sectional studies for anything other than directing my search for prospective and basic science studies. Trying to reconcile all the contradictory data drives me crazy.

Thank you all for your help. Through research on this forum I have decided on a simply approach, also my Mother is not willing to take alot of supplements. After rereading a post by JDP where he posted "positively charged calcium causes calcification", I have purchased a Zappicator, so I can north polarize water which will then make the Calcium easier to bond to (Hopefully still unsure, but trust JDP's opiniion), and then one daily supplement of Vitamin K2 http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B002N1MW3W. Just not sure on what dosage for the K2, or how much water a day, so opinions would be most gratefull.

Statins are a poison, so is the red yeast rice from which it's derived.

www.spacedoc.net

Fast forward to the 23 minute mark, hear Dr. Ronald Hoffman uncharacteristically label the doctor who writes a statin prescription for a women caller a "moron" and "menace to society."
http://www.wor710.com/topic/play_window.php?audioType=Episode&audioId=5510264

There's no true upper limit to K2. I would also take 4000-5000IU daily vitamin D3 for HDL. There are combo K2-D3 supplements out there, if she's pill adverse.

Just one example:
http://www.swansonvitamins.com/TL875/ItemDetail

Omega 3 fish oil for trigs. Astaxanthin for HDL and oxidized cholesterol. Alternatively, Krill oil for a two-in-one effect, if cost isn't an object.

Magnesium malate to regulate the heart and blood pressure, a MUST for the older woman. Only if you must regulate LDL, Sytrinol works far better than statins with no sides.

She should make palm and coconut oil regular part of her regular diet. And replace most sugar with stevia and/or xylitol. Probiotics are also important, at least 1-2x a week. Women her age begin having problems synthesizing many vitamins and minerals.

Very good quality and inexpensive probiotic.
http://www.swansonvitamins.com/SWU358/ItemDetail

Six months later, bingo, the doctor will quit pestering your mom about statins. Or better yet, find a complimentary medicine practitioner in your area (ie a real doctor.) Good luck.

Besides this article I wrote some months ago, more and more research continues to show how bad these statins are for the heart. They literally damage the heart muscle. Some evidence suggests that statins increase the activity of the vitamin D receptor. However, that can deplete the stores in the muscles leading to myalgia.

Besides all that, cholesterol has nothing to do with heart disease anyway. Proof that marketing trumps science everytime.

http://healthyfixx.com/15/the-truth-about-statin-drugs-may-cause-heart-attacks