Have you lowered your cholesterol with medication or foods? An Adventure!

So, was wondering....  Have you ever lowered your blood cholesterol significantly by changing the foods you eat?  And what foods did you change to do that?  

I understand oatmeal is a good one :)

Want to try this Adventure? I have to have my cholesterol checked again in 90 days... So, would luv your company!!!  Feel free to join me :)  Just getting started but everyone welcome always!  Never to late to join us in the chatter!

Now this is something I've been, er... *thinking* about more or less and practicing for the last 3 years or so!  We don't have to radically change everything today...  Small changes as we learn about different foods we want to eat are just fine! 

For me, it's a choice between trying this or trying a cholesterol lowering drug.  I choose food!  Thinking I really, really want to try this first ;)


edit:  Added... here & to title...

~ inspiration ~

?Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing.??Helen Keller

Day 1.  Will it work?

Please share your tips, tricks and experiences with me!  Best yet?  Join me in a daring adventure :)

a tag~it~licious thread on making dietary changes for lowering blood cholesterol levels by

• reducing the bad4heart fats,
• increasing good4heart fats and
• increasing fiberific foods ~ especially the water soluble kind ;)
  
  
   

nods

lol my father ate nothing but oatmeal when he found that out for a while LOL  I am hoping to lower my cholesterol.  My doc says I am ok but it freaked me out having heart disease on both sides of my family (and really bad at that).  My total cholesterol was 225 and my good was 64.  She said the good was to high to worry... but I think she is off her rocker LOL  Hoping that by my year check up I will be down to at least 200, but I have no facts to base that number on LOL

I lowered my cholesterol from 218 to 189 in 4 months just from diet and exercise.  I didn't eat fast food fried foods and lots of low fat foods.  In the next year I had lowered it down to 152 - mostly eating oatmeal and rarely eat fast or greasy foods.  I also took niacin which helps raise the good stuff.  I also do milled flax seed or oil which is also to help cholesterol.

There is an old book out there called "The 8 week Cholesterol Cure" which I just saw at our local CVS store which is all diet tips to lowering cholesterol.  Foods high in fiber and especially soluable are key to lowering cholesterol as well as eating less red meat.  I do eat alot of fish, shrimp chicken and turkey and only have red meat - mostly lean beef - steak when I go out to dinner.  I haven't bought red meat in ages.

adding to list

At the last physical I had, my cholestorol was almost 230 - high end of borderline. My doctor wanted me to start by losing 10 pounds in 2 months. That was a couple years ago - I avoided going back to the doctor's because I was embarrassed about not being able to lower my weight. Last month, I had a GYN appt, and seeing that it's been so long since I had bloodwork, my doctor ordered a series of tests. My cholestorol came back at 174!! 

I started at calorie-count last July. There are no foods I avoid: I still eat cheese, I still eat eggs several times a week, the yolks too - just eat everything more in moderation now - pay attention to serving sizes. I have switched to whole grains, though, and I've noticed looking at my daily analysis that my average cholestorol intake is around 150 mg.

I've heard, though, that your cholestorol is half diet, half genetics.

united -First I HATE cheese - so that was never an issue for me.  I do like cheese on some stuff like pizza but I never could eat it plain no matter what kind it is.

Niacin is just a vitamin supplement - if you get the "non flushing" kind it doesn't cause that "hot sensation".  I would break out in hives on the regular niacin but the non flushing kind is fine for me.  My husbands cholesterol has been so high it was undetectable by the tests.  He has taken lipitor for ages but recently had it tested and it was actually down around 200 - he eats alot of cheese but I had switched from 2% milk to skim milk and I think that helped him. 

dbackerfan--thanks for the info on using niacin to raise your good cholesterol level.  I had mine tested last spring, and although my total was 115, and my bad cholesterol was low also, my good cholesterol was only 31. (normal is greater than 40-which makes 31 increased risk)  I had been eating oatmeal nearly every day for the 3 months prior to the test and the last test before this, my total was 196.  I started taking extra B vitamins last week, so maybe when I get tested next month, my good # will be higher. I wouldn't have had it tested at all, but at my work, they offer this and glucose testing for free twice a year.  My glucose was 72.  I am extremely happy with all these numbers, since there is diabetes and high cholesterol on both sides of my family.

Wow Marjael ~ that's fabulous!!! 

I read in the "Type 2 Diabetes diet book that using "Chitosan" before eating a high fat meal helps keep fat from entering the intestines.  Its made from shellfish so if you are allergic to shellfish you can't use it.  I found it in a health food store.  I will take 2 supplements before going out to my favorite italian diner and having the bread dipped in olive oil/ garlic stuff YMMM....

Also if you eat shrimp before a high fat meal it also blocks cholesterol.  Shrimp is supposedly high in cholesterol but its actually good because shrimp are vegetarians and their cholesterol is a natural statin.  I'll have to search for my post from months ago on this

Well I couldn't find my post the search will only bring up 100 and I guess I post too much LOL  --   But basically from what I recall from the book is that the intestinal track absorbs cholesterol but eating shrimp which is a vegetable based cholesterol your body thinks its absorbing cholesterol and your body will only absorb so much at one time so if you eat shrimp first it prevents the "real cholesterol" from being absorbed.

nods

considering albacore tuna

from the American Heart Assoc on soluble fiber

http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml? identifier=4574

from Wegmans

http://www.wegmans.com/eatwelllivewell/health yEating/fiber.asp

List of Soluble Fiber Foods from the fat free kitchen!

http://www.fatfreekitchen.com/soluble-fiber-f oods-list.html

(wow ~ who knew peas were so good for you? adding back into grocery list ;)

Interesting article and tips on fiber :)

http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/1997/597_fib er.html

... so much to understand

Day 2 :)

It's really encouraging to know people who have actually lowered their cholesterol by changing the way they eat!

I understand that the liver makes our own cholesterol and lots of it....  and some people may need to take the cholesterol lowering medications in order to actually see any significant reduction in their numbers.

Shrimp have a high level of cholesterol, but have essentially no saturated fat (slightly over I gram per serving, compared to beef, which can have 10 to 20 grams). And shrimp's cholesterol is harder to absorb than that from other high-fat foods, although the reasons are not known.

In the past, scientists could not differentiate the different sterols and measured them all as "cholesterol". This is why the amount of cholesterol in shrimp and other shellfish reported is very high.

The Type 2 Diabetes book said this same thing but in fact the body doesn't differntiate the plant sterols from fat cholesterol so it will absorb this sterol first thereby not allowing the bad stuff in - like my earlier post said your body will only absorb so much cholesterol at "one meal" and once your body registers it has enough it won't let the bad stuff in.  So that is why eating shrimp before a high fat meal  or taking the chitosan helps in blocking the absorbtion of the bad fat.  My bottle of chitosan does say it is from crabshell but maybe there are others out there.  Maybe just have 2 -3 shrimp before a meal.

Heridatary high cholesterol is common.  I do think that eating right and exercise can help decrease cholesterol so no matter what your genetics say to make you may be able to counteract that. 

Although high in sodium I do like egg beaters.  They are a great substitute in recipes.  I also don't think you have to totally give up eggs - in fact my dr said I could still have eggs even when my cholesterol was borderline.  I think just cutting the higher fat red meats will help alot.

I didn't know that about cholesterol blocking... very interesting.