High cholesterol

[TheMightyQuin]

Darwin award incoming.

Yeah...for you.

 

[Sensorei]

No, he is broadly right.

First, dietary cholesterol has little effect on blood cholesterol. Eating a low cholesterol diet does not help.

First, your body absolutely requires cholesterol - it literally cannot live without it. It can also make cholesterol, and in fact, 80% of the cholesterol in your blood stream is made by your own body. This is why eating a low cholesterol diet is pointless - what you don't eat, your body has to make.

Total cholesterol is also not a good predictor of heart attack risk - the amount of bad cholesterol is. Bad is an oversimplification, but basically it is the kind that can get stuck into arterial walls.

So, just getting one measurement and claiming that this predicts your heart attack risk is nonsense, and in fact this is borne out by recent studies where there was shown to not really be a correlation. You really need to look at the type of cholesterol floating around in your veins to get an idea of your heart attack risk.

You're preaching to the choir. I've read more papers cholesterol and blood pressure than most GPs. Most of us should know the difference between LDL, HDLand triglycerides.

But latest research does not show little correlation between cholesterol and heart attacks. To have a total cholesterol over 7 and just assume you'll be fine with what could potentially be very serious is just stupid. Yes some people can have a total cholesterol of 7 and be fine but not most of us.

Using your total cholesterol number over 7 as an indicator to decide you don't need medication is worthy of a Darwin award.

 

[The Voice]

No, he is broadly right.

First, dietary cholesterol has little effect on blood cholesterol. Eating a low cholesterol diet does not help.

First, your body absolutely requires cholesterol - it literally cannot live without it. It can also make cholesterol, and in fact, 80% of the cholesterol in your blood stream is made by your own body. This is why eating a low cholesterol diet is pointless - what you don't eat, your body has to make.

Total cholesterol is also not a good predictor of heart attack risk - the amount of bad cholesterol is. Bad is an oversimplification, but basically it is the kind that can get stuck into arterial walls.

So, just getting one measurement and claiming that this predicts your heart attack risk is nonsense, and in fact this is borne out by recent studies where there was shown to not really be a correlation. You really need to look at the type of cholesterol floating around in your veins to get an idea of your heart attack risk.

The key factor here is definitely LDL (bad) cholesterol. I think most people don't realise there are two parts to it, or that it's actually your liver that processes it - it's no coincidence that alcohol abuse leads to high cholesterol figures and eventual heart disease.

Statins are designed to not only bring the LDL level down but, here's the important part, maintain it for people who are at risk. It's also beneficial for people who have had heart attacks and strokes because it does it very quickly (my reading dropped significantly in just a couple of months). Some of them can actually increase the HDL (good) cholesterol, too.

I totally agree that it's not a good idea to just take your GP's word for it, and to just start taking statins. Mine was prescribed by one of the best cardiologists in the UK. I've seen reports of people being prescribed statins by their GP's willy nilly, and that's just so irresponsible. It's the same as people taking an aspirin every day to thin their blood "just in case" (and this is more common than you think - people in their early 20's with no risk just screwing themselves up as a precaution).

There are side effects, as with most medicines, but it depends on the type of statin you're taking. My advice, if your cholesterol is high, is to go get checked out thoroughly, and ask for a referral to a cardiologist if necessary, but avoid putting any unnecessary chemicals into your body if possible. They may be able to guide you on how to clean your insides up without going down the statin route, too. Remember, not all medical professionals are Big Pharma zealots.

 

[3Gee]

The key factor here is definitely LDL (bad) cholesterol. I think most people don't realise there are two parts to it, or that it's actually your liver that processes it - it's no coincidence that alcohol abuse leads to high cholesterol figures and eventual heart disease.

Statins are designed to not only bring the LDL level down but, here's the important part, maintain it for people who are at risk. It's also beneficial for people who have had heart attacks and strokes because it does it very quickly (my reading dropped significantly in just a couple of months). Some of them can actually increase the HDL (good) cholesterol, too.

I totally agree that it's not a good idea to just take your GP's word for it, and to just start taking statins. Mine was prescribed by one of the best cardiologists in the UK. I've seen reports of people being prescribed statins by their GP's willy nilly, and that's just so irresponsible. It's the same as people taking an aspirin every day to thin their blood "just in case" (and this is more common than you think - people in their early 20's with no risk just screwing themselves up as a precaution).

There are side effects, as with most medicines, but it depends on the type of statin you're taking. My advice, if your cholesterol is high, is to go get checked out thoroughly, and ask for a referral to a cardiologist if necessary, but avoid putting any unnecessary chemicals into your body if possible. They may be able to guide you on how to clean your insides up without going down the statin route, too. Remember, not all medical professionals are Big Pharma zealots.

High cholesterol is high cholesterol. A GP is more than qualified enough to put you on statins

The only reason to consult a Cardiologist is if you’ve had a cardiac event or your condition is outside the scope of the GP eg Ventricular Tachycardia just to mention one condition.

You get different classes of statins. Side effects vary , its trial and error whether its a GP or Cardiologist

 

[Nod]

Low cholesterol is associated with mortality from stroke, heart disease, and cancer: the Jichi Medical School Cohort Study - PubMed

Low cholesterol was related to high mortality even after excluding deaths due to liver disease from the analysis. High cholesterol was not a risk factor for mortality.

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Low Cholesterol Levels Associated with Increased Mortality

www.aafp.org

Total cholesterol and all-cause mortality by sex and age: a prospective cohort study among 12.8 million adults - Scientific Reports

It is unclear whether associations between total cholesterol (TC) levels and all-cause mortality and the optimal TC ranges for lowest mortality vary by sex and age. 12,815,006 Korean adults underwent routine health examinations during 2001–2004, and were followed until 2013. During follow-up...

www.nature.com

 

[geezer]

The last time my cholesterol was checked, I was told it's getting to be too low. It was 3.88 mmol/L. My GP said he will lower my cholesterol medication's dosage when it's time for a repeat script and the levels still are on the low side. A few years ago my cholesterol levels was >12 mmol/L and was brought down with medication and regular cycling. I cycle on average 6 times per week, 5 days to work and back and a longer distance (>50km) on Sunday mornings.

We have a family history of heart problems, my father passed away at 42, my older brother at 32 and my younger brother at 34, all from heart attacks. I recently turned 60, so I am winning the race...

 

[RedViking]

The last time my cholesterol was checked, I was told it's getting to be too low. It was 3.88 mmol/L. My GP said he will lower my cholesterol medication's dosage when it's time for a repeat script and the levels still are on the low side. A few years ago my cholesterol levels was >12 mmol/L and was brought down with medication and regular cycling. I cycle on average 6 times per week, 5 days to work and back and a longer distance (>50km) on Sunday mornings.

We have a family history of heart problems, my father passed away at 42, my older brother at 32 and my younger brother at 34, all from heart attacks. I recently turned 60, so I am winning the race...

Sheesh, that's horrible.

 

[geezer]

Sheesh, that's horrible.

My fathers' passing was terrible and it happened in the beginning of my matric year. Life happened and I did not attend school for about a month when things were being sorted out. We had to move and relocate to another province. Moved from Roodepoort to Sutherland. The small school in Sutherland did not have the subjects that i had (Maths, Science, Biology, Geography, Afrikaans and English).

I had to ditch geography and tried to catch up on accounting which was the only alternative available. This did not work since I last had accounting in Std. 6 and 7. I then was sent to Villiersdorp where I was put in a boarding school. At least the school (Hoërskool De Villiers-Graaf) had the correct subject combinations.

Changing schools and missing out on schooling three times in your matric year is not recommended...

 

[RedViking]

My fathers' passing was terrible and it happened in the beginning of my matric year. Life happened and I did not attend school for about a month when things were being sorted out. We had to move and relocate to another province. Moved from Roodepoort to Sutherland. The small school in Sutherland did not have the subjects that i had (Maths, Science, Biology, Geography, Afrikaans and English).

I had to ditch geography and tried to catch up on accounting which was the only alternative available. This did not work since I last had accounting in Std. 6 and 7. I then was sent to Villiersdorp where I was put in a boarding school. At least the school (Hoërskool De Villiers-Graaf) had the correct subject combinations.

Changing schools and missing out on schooling three times in your matric year is not recommended...

Yeah that does not sound great. Oh well.... Life happens, suck some times.

 

[The Voice]

GP doubled my Amlodipine because my BP was still too high. Readings were still a bit whack until today, but not sure if it’s the meds finally working or because I took codeine and CBD for my back pain that have given me my first almost perfect reading:

 

[syntax]

Although it has drawbacks and some scare factors, cardarine (GW501516) worked very well for me for reducing LDL

 

[neoprema]

Regardless of what new study comes out next week, bad cholesterol is bad, and causes your arteries to get lined with fat, which leads to them narrowing, which inevitably leads to a heart attack (or stroke). There are multiple reasons for arteries failing in that way, but bad cholesterol is one of them.

After 4 heart attacks, I'll be taking statins every morning for the rest of my life, probably. I'd rather keep taking them knowing they'll keep my bad cholesterol in check, keeping me alive just a little bit longer, than going off of them on the advice of whoever suddenly decided they're an expert cardiologist and spewed out some crap article somewhere.

Science saved my life, and I'm happy for it to keep me alive, too.

Yes but the current cancel culture flavor of the year is to be against anything a pharmaceutical company made ;-)

 

[BBSA]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1778198895262314831