***Scared 26 yrs old with High Cholesterol***

[juelz13]

Help! Went to the doctors on thursday to review my bloodwork, told me that i had a 250 cholesterol level (probably combined HDL and LDL), which means im twice high risk to Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) Doc also says if it goes any higher that he will prescribe me to medications. Doc also hopes that my high LDL is just bad eating habits and not hereditary.
I told him about my greasy fast food eating habits, so he told me that Mcdonalds is Cholesterol city, and to never eat that again along with red meat, soda, cheese, mayo, and Whole milk. And that in 6 months he is going to check my cholesterol again.
Im begginning to think that I will not make it to age 30. I work out everyday and eat "somewhat" kinda of good, well i thought as long as i work out i can eat anything and everything i want?? Well heres my plan. Yesterday was my last day of eating junk and fried food cuz of superbowl reasons haha, but today i start my clean eating diet, and i will stick to this diet cuz my life is on the line. So my question is.. Is there a way that i can dramatically lower my high cholesterol to normal in 6 months? I would guess that i will have to start eating fish and grilled chicken and start eating vegetables and fruits which i didnt in my prior greasy diet. AND.. can i still drink protein shakes? like muscle milk with water in it?

[juelz13]

And btw.. I love to drink alchohol on weekends

[Jules Verne]

Err, complete over-reaction?????

I'm surprised he didn't try to sell you STATINs

Anyway read up of good nutrition - which includes fats, saturated fats etc.., start exercising, taking fish oil and cut down on the crap food.

IMO 200-200/230 is perfectly fine if that is your natural level while eating decently and exercising. Especially if LDL/HDL is reasonable.

[baarat]

You need to talk to a professional that is totally versed on cholesterol and how it relates to diet, and not a pill pusher. imo... Cholersterol is a weak link to CHD and it's a little more complicated than that, and why I said what I said above.

[Jules Verne]

And you know you're eating **** - so what did you expect? A level of 150?

[blinky99]

mines 288 and i eat great sucks to be me

[DarinK]

Start eating healthy and make oats your primary complex carb source for the next six months. Add make sure you start using olive and fish oil.

[baarat]

^X2.....garlic and cayanne are also great for lowering cholersterol. Ground flax seed in the oatmeal is also recommended.

[baarat]

Eating more carbohydrates especially simpler more refined carbohydrates increases levels of triglycerides in the blood, lowers HDL, and may shift the LDL particle distribution pattern into unhealthy atherogenic patterns, making the VLDL smaller in size. Thus a low fat diet, which often means a higher carbohydrate intake, may actually be an unhealthy change. So stay totally away from any refined foods altogether, which includes transfats and other refined vegetable oils. Which brings up the Keto diet which if you check seems to help most people that have high cholesterol.

[rotlex]

Originally Posted by baarat

Eating more carbohydrates especially simpler more refined carbohydrates increases levels of triglycerides in the blood, lowers HDL, and may shift the LDL particle distribution pattern into unhealthy atherogenic patterns, making the VLDL smaller in size. Thus a low fat diet, which often means a higher carbohydrate intake, may actually be an unhealthy change. So stay totally away from any refined foods altogether, which includes transfats and other refined vegetable oils. Which brings up the Keto diet which if you check seems to help most people that have high cholesterol.

Well said. I went from being nearly medicated for High Cholesterol, to an 81 HDL 91 LDL level after moving to a high fat diet quite a few years ago. Things have never been better. Don't fear fat.....fear what sugar and refined garbage will do to these numbers over time.

[Heavy_Lifter85]

Total cholesterol doesn't mean jack. You need to know the relative amounts (ratios) of LDL, HDL, and triglycerides. Try to also get specific information related to the size of the LDL particles, VLDL for example.

Sounds like you get a lot of trans fat in the diet. Cut those and excess carbs (check thes estudies out http://www.apinchofhealth.com/resour...esearch.html); meat, cheese, mayo etc is fine. Get enough fish oil. You'll be fine.

EDIT: I see the last two posters already posted on the benefits of lowcarb diets.

[rcharryjr]

I recently had blood work taken and shows that my cholesterol is through the roof. The Triglycerides are at 314 and apparently they should be under 150 and my LDL's are high. I've never had a cholesterol problem before and my eating habits aren't to blame because I don't eat junkfood and I eat relatively well with small portions. I drink a lot of water and exercise as often as I can.

I was told that I either have a hereditary cholesterol problem or a thyroid problem because it isn't my eating that is causing this rapid increase. I have been screened for it before and it wasn't an issue then.

[bebeklein]

Avoid saturated fats. Mono and Poly fats are the best (they increase your good HDL). Avocados, olive oil, nuts, flaxseed, salmon, etc..

[Fallen_Horse]

Originally Posted by Jules Verne

And you know you're eating **** - so what did you expect? A level of 150?

+1


Do what you originally suggested. Cut out the garbage, eat more fruits/veggies, clean carbs, lean meats instead of fatty ones, etc...

[justfyi]

alcohol effects your cholesterol levels. Add more soluble fiber and for gods sake stop eating mcdonalds

[Jules Verne]

This was a bump from nearly 9 months ago. I wonder what the followup was for the OP.

And to rcharryjr, obviously you need to work with your doc on that one. If you are that high, you almost certainly need to figure out the cause and/or do something about it.