View Full Version : HA about my Very High Cholesterol levels
Hey everyone,
Quick background: GAD, acute panic attacks, in a big "phase" since spring 2014, although slowly getting more confident and the panic attacks are starting to diminish in frequency since a month. 33 year old male, heavy smoker, been very sedentary for last 4 years (planning on changing that), 5'7" (170 cm), 175 lbs (79 kg). History of heart attacks, blocked arteries: my dad when he turned 50. My main health anxiety has always revolved around cardiovascular issues. I also have sinus tachycardia (not always, but often), ectopics a lot but they come and go (at rest) but almost always under effort.
BUT, two days ago I had an appointment with my doctor who told me my cholesterol is way too high. My readings were:
Cholesterol (total): 6.74 mmol/l ( 261 mg/dl )
LDL-Cholesterol ("bad" cholesterol): 4.85 mmol/l ( 188 mg/dl )
Now this came as a surprise, for I had never worried or thought I'd have high cholesterol. I looked up a lot in the past 2 days and yeah, those are "very high risk" readings. My doctor told me we'd check again in 6 months, and if changing my life habits (eating, excercise, etc) haven't changed my levels, then I should consider taking pills to lower it.
What worries the heck out of me:
Right now, last 2 days I've been equating my results with heart attack or stroke. As in, what if my arteries are already sufficiently blocked to allow such an event? I know someone who was 34 when he had a heart attack and a subsequent quadruple bypass surgery in order to survive because of blocked arteries from high cholesterol, so I have trouble not keeping his case-scenario in mind. Another side of myself, the side that always tries to rationalise the less scary part of an anxiety argument, thinks: "Hold on, you don't know if you're in HIS situation right now, you've just had very high cholesterol results which demand change in your lifestyle for you to avoid cardiac complications in 10, 20 years".
I want to know what you think, or especially if you've had/have or know someone with very high cholesterol, and if it's something that's gonna kill me today or this year.
Thanks
Hi, 5 years ago my chol reading was 6.2 and my Gp said no worries, its lifestyle changes i.e. cut down on dairy products,alcohol, red meat ...I told him I ate none of those anyway.. He then said well that reading is not exceptionally high and he calculated a heart risk from electrolytes in blood tests ??.. That showed very low risk and all other results were above average.. It then transpired that as 4 others in my family had readings between 6 and 7.5 and none of us really overweight .their gps also said.. no other risks just watch lifestyle..foods and excercise basically.
Hi, 5 years ago my chol reading was 6.2 and my Gp said no worries, its lifestyle changes i.e. cut down on dairy products,alcohol, red meat ...I told him I ate none of those anyway.. He then said well that reading is not exceptionally high and he calculated a heart risk from electrolytes in blood tests ??.. That showed very low risk and all other results were above average.. It then transpired that as 4 others in my family had readings between 6 and 7.5 and none of us really overweight .their gps also said.. no other risks just watch lifestyle..foods and excercise basically.
Thanks for taking the time to reply.
I'm surprised because my doc told me I should worry (he didn't mention "you'll die this year" though). Again, some doctors differ in opinions over readings so maybe it's not "the end of the world" right now and I just have to do as you mentioned, excercise and eat better. As for overweight, my dad wasn't particularly overweight and neither was the other 34 year old guy, apparently there's no direct link. I'm a bit overweight but not "fat".
I'm going to give you some truth. I'm 56, had two heart attacks, bypass surgery at 47 and stents at 53. Add to that head and neck cancer in 2012/2013. I have a history similar to yours in that I smoked, sedentary lifestyle, family history etc.
As of this moment you're Ok. It won't change tomorrow, a week, a month or a year from now. That being said, you've been given an opportunity to change your future. If you continue forward without making changes, you most certainly will encounter health issues, perhaps some serious ones. If you make the changes necessary starting now, you stand a really great chance of NOT having health issues ten years from now.
You've been given a gift. Be thankful and pay it forward to yourself and those you love.
Positive thoughts
Hi there,
Sorry to hear about this. Fortunately, I have a relative and family friends who had very high cholesterol (albeit older than you) and you can generally lower cholesterol and reverse heart disease/atherosclerosis with dietary change and moderate exercise. They didn't experience any serious health conditions due to the cholesterol because they nipped it in the bud, so to speak. What worked for them was eating basically a plant-based diet with no dairy, soy, added salt/sweeteners and oils. I realise that's a pretty extreme shift from what you might be eating rn (meat, dairy etc) so you could just cut down a lot on your meat/dairy intake and supplement it with fruit/veg. Brisk walking for 20 mins a day should help a lot, too. I think your gp would've said if you were likely to have any immediate problems with this, though. Please know that I'm intending to lecture/nag but I know these changes have been very helpful in people with cholesterol problems. You can PM me if you'd like more specific info :) best of luck!
As of this moment you're Ok. It won't change tomorrow, a week, a month or a year from now.
Thanks so much for your reply. It really settled my nerves a bit to read such a thing from someone who's lived it first hand. It especially reassures me that I might not be in immediate danger and have time to reverse the effects for the long run, something I really plan on doing as of this week.
and you can generally lower cholesterol and reverse heart disease/atherosclerosis with dietary change and moderate exercise. They didn't experience any serious health conditions due to the cholesterol because they nipped it in the bud, so to speak. What worked for them was eating basically a plant-based diet with no dairy, soy, added salt/sweeteners and oils. I realise that's a pretty extreme shift from what you might be eating rn (meat, dairy etc) so you could just cut down a lot on your meat/dairy intake and supplement it with fruit/veg. Brisk walking for 20 mins a day should help a lot, too. I think your gp would've said if you were likely to have any immediate problems with this, though.
Thanks for your reply, these really help me. I just have a question: did they ever take or are they taking medication to help lower their cholesterol or has their lifestyle habits alone worked for them?
Also, did they exclude meat from their diet altogether?
No problem- no, they didn't use statin drugs, but they did stop eating meat completely, essentially becoming vegan and excluding oil, soy, nuts and avocado because of the fat in them. I think you have to be careful with eating meat etc, because it's good for you in moderation but every cell of animal meat is made up of cholesterol, so just don't overdo, it I guess! The other main lifestyle change was doing at least 20-30 mins of brisk walking a day, as that's enough to negate any risk of heart disease from inactivity.
No problem- no, they didn't use statin drugs, but they did stop eating meat completely, essentially becoming vegan and excluding oil, soy, nuts and avocado because of the fat in them. I think you have to be careful with eating meat etc, because it's good for you in moderation but every cell of animal meat is made up of cholesterol, so just don't overdo, it I guess! The other main lifestyle change was doing at least 20-30 mins of brisk walking a day, as that's enough to negate any risk of heart disease from inactivity.
Thanks, I was just reading up on some research about that, which also included the brisk walking which is what I'll absolutely do. I've already started eating less fatty foods the past few days but according to what I'm reading, I might have to quit meat (or almost). I'm guessing I'll have a hard time doing that, especially since some research contradicts others (one even said Vegans in a control group or something had 17% negative results over 5% meat eaters), some say Soy's great at reducing Cholesterol even though they contain relatively the same amount of fat, etc.. but I guess what it all boils down to is: at least eat MUCH LESS of the above said meat (I was a big meat eater), add to that daily walks and eventually drive that up to some jogging once I'm back in shape and quit smoking.
Thanks a lot for your input. It especially encourages me to see that they made it without statin, I'm not particularly fond of that route given its negative effects.
Definitely- if you're interested, you can look up the work of Caldwell Esselstyn or T Colin. Campbell- Esselstyn's book was what my relatives followed. He recommended avoiding soy because it usually has a lot of sweeteners added (soy milk is quite sugary). I think the idea of his method is you literally eat nothing that could contribute to/promote high levels of cholesterol or atherosclerosis because the food simply doesn't contain the right kinds of fats. That said, his work is based on the Oxford/Cornell/China Study which was quite flawed; while he's definitely been able to substantiate his hypotheses, primarily that people eating plant-based diets don't seem to suffer from heart disease, that definitely doesn't mean it's the only way to be healthy. A lot of vegans tend to be quite unhealthy and suffer from as much heart disease as meat-eaters because they eat way too much bread/sugar and salt to make up for the food having less flavour than what they might be used to. Oreos and potato chips are vegan, for instance. You could also look into the Mediterranean diet- lots of fish and vegetables, which is meant to be quite good too.
Anyway, best of luck- let us know how you get on :)
Anyway, best of luck- let us know how you get on :)
Thanks! These replies really encourage me. Tonight (here it's 5:16am right now, GMT-5 +1 DST) haven't slept at all because I'm all worked up by this and trying to find the best solutions while another part of me thinks: "Well, according to the Framingham table, I have 8% chances of having a heart attack or stroke in the next 10 years, which includes TODAY, the week after, etc"... but I try rationalizing myself that: Hey, 8% ain't 100%, for one, AND according to that chart (which accounts many risk factors), if I quit smoking, my risk drops from 8% to 1%, but 0-1% includes ALL POPULATION no matter the health condition. So just by quitting smoking, I can bring that scary number down. Add to that taking getting back in shape SERIOUSLY, which according to MANY sources, you included and almost if not every research, diminishes the risk by a lot, well this time, as Fishmanpa put it, I can take this "sign" as a blessing to encourage me to turn my life habits around. My biggest fear, death, is now a greater motivator than just "getting back in shape to be in shape". I'll also cut on a lot of fat, restaurants, etc, and eventually I'll get to be better at eating healthier.
I might have repeated myself a bit, I must admit I'm not quite myself the last few days, it gets me panicking and anxious so I have more trouble focusing on the content of my writing. I just wish I'm not in the wrong in convincing myself this won't kill me THIS year.
Good for you! If you make considerable changes soon and stick to them, I reckon you can be pretty certain it won't kill you this year- or ever. The majority of people who pass away due to those consequences of ill health are usually a fair bit older than you and have had poor habits for a while. I think it's worth taking into consideration that, where I come from, the average adult male consumes 40 teaspoons of sugar A DAY, and probably have been doing so since childhood! Let alone salt, trans/saturated fats, etc; the typical Australian diet is far from good for you. And none of them are dropping dead from heart troubles in their 30s when they're probably much less healthy than you. Be glad that you've been made aware of this before it's become a problem and that you can take permanent action to rectify it.
...
You do have a point! Thanks again.
All I need is to shake those irrational fears/thoughts off, easier said than done but I must remind myself the positive thoughts/input.
Frankie123
26-03-15, 13:14
When I first had my cholesterol checked it was 6.7. I reduced eating saturated fats and drinking one pro-active drink daily. Year later cholesterol was down to 5.4. Continued eating meat in moderation but always watching saturated fat. One year later cholesterol now 4.5.
I think you also have to remember that even vegetarians can have high cholesterol so it is not all down to eating meat. You just need to cut off all the fat and stick mainly to white meat.
I am sure you will be fine.
When I first had my cholesterol checked it was 6.7. I reduced eating saturated fats and drinking one pro-active drink daily. Year later cholesterol was down to 5.4. Continued eating meat in moderation but always watching saturated fat. One year later cholesterol now 4.5.
I think you also have to remember that even vegetarians can have high cholesterol so it is not all down to eating meat. You just need to cut off all the fat and stick mainly to white meat.
I am sure you will be fine.
Thanks for your reply! It sure is enormously reassuring.
If you don't mind me asking, how old are you, or what age group? If it's too personal I'll understand.
2 - Did your drop from 6.7 (same as my reading) to 4.5 within two years happen without medication?
3 - What do you mean by pro-active drink ?
Frankie123
28-03-15, 22:58
When my cholesterol was first discovered to be high I was in my 50s and I only found out because I had a heart problem and cholesterol is one thing they check. They did put me on statins but I had a very bad reaction with them and my cardiologist said to stop them because it was no good if they actually made you feel worse. He told me to cut out as much saturated fat as possible, to drink green tea and to have a probiotic drink each day (you know the ones you buy in the supermarket with plant sterols in). Well it has worked for me and my cholesterol is at an acceptable level.
Hello I am a 24 year old male who will be having my cholesterol levels checked tomorrow. I am still overweight but I have been exercising for the last 4 months, jogging 5 times a week 30 minutes per day.
I still feel that my cholesterol levels will be high. :(
When my cholesterol was first discovered to be high I was in my 50s and I only found out because I had a heart problem and cholesterol is one thing they check. They did put me on statins but I had a very bad reaction with them and my cardiologist said to stop them because it was no good if they actually made you feel worse. He told me to cut out as much saturated fat as possible, to drink green tea and to have a probiotic drink each day (you know the ones you buy in the supermarket with plant sterols in). Well it has worked for me and my cholesterol is at an acceptable level.
Well, if it's still at 4.5, that's a great level! Congrats on your change in lifestyle! Thanks for replying.
I still feel that my cholesterol levels will be high.
Do you feel you'll get bad results from the fact you're overweight? Because you could be really skinny and have bad cholesterol levels that are too high, and the other way around too. I wouldn't fret on it if I were you, but let us know when you get your results. If you're still worried, think about the worst case scenario, like my levels are VERY HIGH, yet IT IS reversible! It caught me off guard last week and I panicked a solid 5 days about it, but the more I read up about it, the more I realize it's just about eating less fats and staying active as proactive components towards reducing it bacķ to normal levels. We tend to fear it more because it's a more "invisible" (to the naked eye) condition, but if an obese person goes to weigh himself, the lbs/kgs numbers will be high and obesity itself is a long-term risk factor, but we all know that a healthy diet & excercise can make an obese person go down to a healthy weight. Of course, as is with many things, it's a gradual process, but in the end, it's a worthwhile process. You not only look more healthy on paper but you feel better.
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