Darlene914's Journal, 07 Mar 24

eating oatmeal regularly is a natural way to help lower it 

Maintenance is tough! Exercise is good but weight loss is mostly about nutrition so no matter what, you got this! One day at a time. 💪 

add some fish to your diet and reduce eggs. eggs are very high in cholesterol. ask you doctor to refer you to a dietician.  

All of them are right. I can suggest you to reduce or cut the eggs and chicken if possible, try cheese, veggie, hummus, low cholesterol meats, try to stick with sea foods and cheese as much as possible. Keep going for those extra steps. Definitely try to look for dietitians as they are professionals and expensive though 

Do not cut out Eggs, the idea that dietary cholesterol affects blood cholesterol has actually been disproven by newer research. Avoid things like red meat, or other foods with a lot of saturated fats.  

I have been told by dietition to make vegetables and fruit (not juice) your mainstay avoiding red meat especially beef. Keep your carbs on the lower side. One thing I have done this week (7 days) is no bread at all. that is helping with the weight loss. Also 72 oz of water every day. Get rid of all salt. Check out on the internet what to eat for lowering cholesterol remembering there are 2 types. Good luck 

Sorry I don't agree with <-Rishi-> on removing chicken. Chicken, turkey and fish are all considered lean meats and are good for weightloss. 

@Erin you’re right for weight loss but when it comes to cholesterol eggs and chicken are cholesterol rich 😊 

Yes but they are still vonsidered very healthy meat compared to red meat and cutting it out doesn't leave much options so maybe eating the actual chicken breast would be better for her  

@Erin👍 

Great job on the 50lb weight loss! Lots of info online, but it might be best to talk to a dietician about your particular issues. Not sure where you’re located but you can consult with a registered dietician for free in Ontario. Here is the website for info if you’re interested: https://health811.ontario.ca/static/guest/related-articles/hcns-nutrition-program 

There is a good type of cholesterol (HDL) and a bad type of cholesterol (LDL). You are struggling with high levels of LDL. You only get LDL from eating meat and animal derivatives (eggs, dairy). If you focus on a plant-based diet and obtain protein strictly from beans, lentils, tofu, and nuts your LDL will be non-existent after a couple weeks. 

I really feel for your situation,Darlene, as I have been battling high LDL and Apo-B since my MD pointed out my very high level of risk last year. And like you, I’ve been reluctant to treat it with drugs and have been trying a dietary approach. I’ve learned a few things in my past year of reading and dietary adjustments. Some of it might be helpful for you, and other parts may not apply at all. You didn’t mention whether your cholesterol was already trending up – as it tends to do with age – before you made such a profound dietary change to address your sugar issue. That might be important to look at. Maybe keto is not serving you well, even though it works for many. But although there’s not much long-term research, I’ve read that some people’s LDL goes up for a while on keto, before it goes down. But that’s the limits of my keto knowledge. For myself, I’m 73, at target weight, and have no other health issues. I’ve been whole food plant-based for decades, and get a fair amount of exercise, a lot of it from maintaining a mammoth vegetable garden. So my first reaction at seeing my LDL and Apo-B (1.4 g/L) was denial. How could this even be? My doctor claims that many of us make most of our cholesterol ourselves, and our dietary tweaks don’t have much of an impact. (Of course small tweaks like oatmeal, omega 3s can help people with slightly elevated levels). That was not what I wanted to hear, so…. I dug into the research studies. I found 2 diets that in trials, have been effective in reducing dangerously high lipid levels. First off are the extemely low-fat diets like Ornish’s and Esselystyn’s. But I don’t have the discipline; I live in Quebec, surrounded by some of the best artisanal, raw milk cheeses in the world, and although I’m careful not to overindulge, I can’t imagine never tasting cheese again. Or a nice piece of fish from time to time…… So then there’s the very interesting Portfolio Diet, created and tested at University of Toronto. You can read about it at the Canadian Cardiovascular Society website. I found it appealing because instead of “banning” various categories of food, it advises “adding” a few things. So I started eating way more nuts and soy. My next blood tests will reveal if It’s made a difference. Unfortunately I haven’t found anywhere to buy the suggested foods fortified with plant sterols, although I know fortified margarine was sold in Quebec at one point. This is getting way too long, so let me close by saying I wish you well on this journey! There seems to be some trial and error in finding our own personal healthiest diet, but as someone else suggested, a nutritionist might help you sort it out faster!  

I cut my cholesterol from 6.2 to 4.5 by upping my fiber intake ( over 12 weeks). I now aim for 30 grams of fiber a day. I start my day with oatmeal, chia seeds and flax meal. That is 15 grams to start the day. My other meals have high fiber vegetables like broccoli or peas. I also eat my fiber first. Fiber removes bad cholesterol so it doesn’t go into your blood stream. 

Oh wow, wunder1900, that's a better performance %-wise than statins usually! I will have to take a closer look at my fiber intake, rather than assuming that I get enough from WFPB 

I have tried dieting for a yr to reduce cholesterol and dr said even if I eat carrots all day, it won’t make much of a difference because most likely, it is genetic. So I had to start taking it. It’s better to take it then have a stroke/heartache as my mom has had both. Both my parents started having high cholesterol in their 40s and they still take cholesterol pill into their late 70s. Dr told me that stopping all added sugar makes a huge difference if u wanna try that. 

my husband reduced cholesterol with 🍏 and 4 walnuts a day 

I went vegan for a month or more and it got my numbers down significantly with no meds. I used a site called "Pick Up Limes" to find some recipes n make sure I was still getting sufficient protein. My doc was either surprised or impressed 🤔 I'm still not sure which, lol, and I was loosing weight while I was at it. It really helped. 

..cholesterol numbers 😏 to be more specific, lol. 😅 

Thank you everyone for your valuable input. So much to consider and it is very helpful to have real life experiences of others to evaluate. I've reset my settings on FS to track my cholesterol intake (it can't hurt to keep the intake down) and added inulin fibre supplement to my morning coffee to increase my daily fibre. My GP says we will reconsider drugs in 3 months. Fingers crossed!