I get what you are saying, but 25% of a low number is still a low number. Why be miserable for 20 years for that risk. My cardiologist consult is tomorrow. I'm guessing I will be put on a different statin.
High Cholesterol
- Thread starter fsanford
- Start date
Always good to ask your physician if you can go on a lower dose and to mention any side effects you are experiencing. However please, please, please, do not go off any heart medication without consulting your doctor first. You don’t even necessarily need an appointment just a quick call to let them know and get their opinion. Also let your family know as well in the event something happens.
If you can make the dietary and lifestyle changes there is a very good chance you can go off the medications. Be sure to let your PCP know you want to go off the meds however, most patients don’t even bother so the topic might not come up unless you bring it up. This is especially important because if the dietary changes make little to no effect it gives your primary additional information.
Yep, never have taken meds in my life aside from Tylenol etc. So hope it is short term
The dosage is 10mg ( Crestor) so not too strong or so i am told.
I went to Sam's loaded up high fiber cereal, cashews etc.
I am doing the fruit smoothy thing at home making it with fresh fruit and honey. Pretty darn refreshing
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Yeah, my Doc changed my Crestor from 20mg to 40mg (failed the stress test but the heart ultrasound was normal). That's when I felt I got the side affects. My numbers are not horrible at the lower dose. Meds do nothing for my HDL. I lift at least 3 times a week for 45 minutes and bike at least 50 miles a week. I would think HDL would be higher.
| Component | Your Value | Standard Range |
|---|---|---|
| Cholesterol | 130 mg/dL | 0 - 200 mg/dL |
| Triglycerides | 128 mg/dL | <150 mg/dL |
| HDL Cholesterol | 29 mg/dL | >40 mg/dL |
| LDL, Calculated | 76 mg/dL | <100 mg/dL |
Yep, never have taken meds in my life aside from Tylenol etc. So hope it is short term
The dosage is 10mg ( Crestor) so not too strong or so i am told.
I went to Sam's loaded up high fiber cereal, cashews etc.
I am doing the fruit smoothy thing at making it with fresh fruit and honey. Pretty darn refreshing
I do oatmeal with sugar maple syrup and teaspoon of peanut butter every other day. I eat a green banana (or as green as possible), which are better for you everyday. I store in the fridge wrapped in a bag and they do not wripen nearly as fast.
Got hooked on a smoothie with blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries along with a couple of teaspoons of greek yogurt, crushed ice and some almond milk. May even through in some small pieces of rhubarb for tartness.
So the 5 nights I had brisket last week followed by 2 nights of steak followed by 3 nights of tri-tip is probably not the best schedule to follow? If I had Canes for lunch one of those days to add chicken, does that offset things?
Enjoy your rapid weight loss via ketosis my friend!
That recipe sounds great going to give it a try. It's amazing how many fruits you can mix and get such an amazing taste
What's the good side of this one? It's a matter of opinion on whether that one is covered, IYKWIM.
Amazing stuff. Know lots of people that take it. They typically have that agreement with their primary provider and say I want to try this for 4-6 months and if it doesn't work I'll take the statin. They almost all lower their levels to acceptable limits and this does not come with a lot of the statin side effects.
Everyone is different, but honestly, this type of diet would spike my blood pressure. I can't eat near that many carbs and still keep that metric in-check.
I'm very much an eggs, cheese, & meat guy. Very limited breads/pasta. Cholesterol & triglycerides have always and continue to be very low.
It seems like the sugar vs saturated fat debate has really swayed these last 10 years. I guess I don't see how that relatively recent shift couldn't impact what we thought we knew about cholesterol & statins. But we'll see.
Bingo. It took 3 pages for me to finally see someone mention it.
Fasting - because research shows it is beneficial for a number of reasons:
Promotes weight loss
improves heart health
helps control inflammation and helps heal the digestive tract
cholesterol
You can implement a number of various ones - 16/8, 24 hour fasts multiple times a week, and some longer. I have done up to 36 hour fasts (as the longest I have gone) and yes it is a mental game. I highly recommend working this into anyone's routine.
Just look at Russell Okung and what he has done lately with fasting. He said he's in a much better place than prior both physically and mentally.
I vividly remember my grandfather's 90th birthday party, where he was chatting with him 92yo brother about their cholesterol medication and it conflicting with other medications. Sure it's important to maintain quality of life - but when you get to that age, it is what it is and just enjoy it!
This is very similar with me. My dad's side of the family has a very high genetic component - I think my dad and all of his brothers are on some form of statin - but there hasn't been any issues with heart attacks or issues other than the high cholesterol since my great-grandfather dies of a heart attack pretty young (in the 1940s).
My grandfather had high cholesterol his whole life and lived to be 93.
My dad and his siblings all have high cholesterol and none have had any heart issues.
When my dad was in his 30s he went all-out on diet to try to bring his (which was >300) down, but it just went up further. One of my uncles has done the same thing with exercise. I'm convinced its just genetic and there's not really anything we can do with diet/exercise to bring it down.
I put off taking anything until I was in my 40s (mine was well over 300 too), but started on statins last year and it came down to the normal range immediately
Maybe I should stop taking statins to get rid of my achey joints. How do I get on them so I can then stop taking them?
I have been making my son a fruit smoothie every day before school. I usually make it big so I get about half of one from the leftovers. It generally has a banana, strawberry, blueberry, raspberry, yogurt, orange juice base. I will then add any of frozen mango chunks, pineapple, tomato, cucumber, or mixed greens depending on my mood and what we have handy. I will also often add a splash of muscle milk as well to make sure he is getting enough protein. The kid is still a rail.Yep, never have taken meds in my life aside from Tylenol etc. So hope it is short term
The dosage is 10mg ( Crestor) so not too strong or so i am told.
I went to Sam's loaded up high fiber cereal, cashews etc.
I am doing the fruit smoothy thing at home making it with fresh fruit and honey. Pretty darn refreshing
For weightloss, it's all about energy balance (calories in / calories out). There are many ways to accomplish that, and different methods are more palatable (pun intended) to different people. I do fine limiting carbs. Some people do better limiting eating time. Some track macros. Some use meal prep services. As long as it's sustainable, the method doesn't matter. In every case, the result is fewer calories in. Weightloss improves pretty much every health metric. There's nothing super special about keto or Caveman or intermittent fasting or grapefruit or [silver bullet].
I cannot recommend enough though that people NOT do Russel Okung's 40 day water fast.
I listened to a podcast last weekend about metabolic syndrome in athletes that was really good: It discusses how the drive for bigger athletes leads to worse health outcomes even for professionals - dudes who train really hard for 10+ years.
Your point of “as long as it is sustainable” is the most important advice you can give someone.
