Lipid results are in

[shadoww]

A few days ago I had a whole battery of blood work to see if they could find out why I'm hurting so badly. I stopped my Tricor and Lipitor about a month ago. I've had a "little" improvement, and I emphasize "little". But at least its an improvement. Dr's assistant said she thought it was my thyroid, but I didn't put any stock inthat. This one particular assistant is hung up on thyroidism. Well that came back normal. I knew my lipids were going to be high since I stopped taking the meds a month ago. Here they are in all their glory: NOt a pretty sight I might add. Dr. office called to make me an appt. and told me the dr. would give me medication...............well guess what? It ain't gonna happen. I'm NOT taking that crap again without doubling up on my Coq10 and I might be tempted to try ONE or the OTHER, Tricor or Lipitor. NOT BOTH, at least not at the beginning. Sure would love some imput from you guys. Here they are:

Triglycerides 306 should be under 150
Total Cholesterol 274 should be under 200
LDL 160, should be under 130
HDL 53, normal
5.2 ratio should be under 4.4

[harley2ride]

Shadoww
Have you tried fish oil and garlic pills yet? They could lower your cholesterol without causing any problems. They worked for me and some others. It sure is worth a try...

[shadoww]

[quote="harley2ride"]Shadoww
Have you tried fish oil and garlic pills yet? They could lower your cholesterol without causing any problems. They worked for me and some others. It sure is worth a try...[/quote]

________________________________________________________

Hi harley, I just started the garlic last week. Been trying to get in more fresh garlic too. Hubby's been on it a long time but it used to upset my tummy which is why I didnt take it. Doesnt seem too bad yet. I think its about 2 or 3 1200 mg pills a day, have taken omega 3 fish oil for a long time and the B vitamins. B6 I'm sure of, will have to check on the B12. I know hubby's not going to be happy when I tell him tonite. Feel like pulling my hair out.......LOL Would be funny if it wasn't so damned ridiculous.

[sos_group_owner]

Triglycerides 306 should be under 150 (PROBLEM)
Total Cholesterol 274 should be under 200
LDL 160, should be under 130 (NOT THAT BAD)
HDL 53, normal (EXCELLENT)
5.2 ratio should be under 4.4

Hi "shadoww",

High triglycerides are primarily due to a high carbohydrate diet.
The "white foods":
Sugar (biggest offender), flour, rice, potato, bread and pasta.
Pasta is probably the least likely offender.

Are you familiar with the "Glycemic Index"? Carbohydrate foods are
ranked according to their effect on our blood glucose levels.
Foods rated in the Glycemic Index also have a "Glycemic Load".
ww.glycemicindex.com/

"Foods containing little or no carbohydrate (such as meat, fish, eggs,
avocado, wine, beer, spirits, most vegetables) cannot have a GI value.
No carbs = no GI."

There are some books that claim to be Glycemic Index, but then tell
people to eat low fat. Fats (even saturated fats) are healthy.

The low fat - low cholesterol diet has taught us to eat "high carb" and
consequently many have high triglycerides.

Another supplement that helps with high triglycerides is:
Cinnamon - yes, the spice isle variety of cinnamon (C. cassia) helps to
control triglycerides, can also lower LDL and control blood sugar levels.

Within 3 months (I know Dr's want quicker results, but our bodies work
at their own pace), my husband lowered his triglycerides from 300 to
150 eating GI-GL and taking two 500 mg capsules of cinnamon daily.
If you use the spice isle variety, some sprinkle 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon daily
on any food item. Capsules are easier and available in most drug stores.

Fran

[shadoww]

[quote="sos_group_owner"]Triglycerides 306 should be under 150 (PROBLEM)
Total Cholesterol 274 should be under 200
LDL 160, should be under 130 (NOT THAT BAD)
HDL 53, normal (EXCELLENT)
5.2 ratio should be under 4.4

Hi "shadoww",

High triglycerides are primarily due to a high carbohydrate diet.
The "white foods":
Sugar (biggest offender), flour, rice, potato, bread and pasta.
Pasta is probably the least likely offender.

Are you familiar with the "Glycemic Index"? Carbohydrate foods are
ranked according to their effect on our blood glucose levels.
Foods rated in the Glycemic Index also have a "Glycemic Load".
ww.glycemicindex.com/

"Foods containing little or no carbohydrate (such as meat, fish, eggs,
avocado, wine, beer, spirits, most vegetables) cannot have a GI value.
No carbs = no GI."

There are some books that claim to be Glycemic Index, but then tell
people to eat low fat. Fats (even saturated fats) are healthy.

The low fat - low cholesterol diet has taught us to eat "high carb" and
consequently many have high triglycerides.

Another supplement that helps with high triglycerides is:
Cinnamon - yes, the spice isle variety of cinnamon (C. cassia) helps to
control triglycerides, can also lower LDL and control blood sugar levels.

Within 3 months (I know Dr's want quicker results, but our bodies work
at their own pace), my husband lowered his triglycerides from 300 to
150 eating GI-GL and taking two 500 mg capsules of cinnamon daily.
If you use the spice isle variety, some sprinkle 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon daily
on any food item. Capsules are easier and available in most drug stores.

Fran[/quote]

__________________________________________________________

Hi Fran, thanks for the informative post. I take cinnamon caps now, 2 500 mg ones daily, just like your husband, however haven't been on them except for about a month. When I got off the Lipitor I started on the CoQ10, Acetyl L-Carnitine and the cinnamon. All this has only been for 3-4 weeks time frame. I know I need to cut down my carbs. I love my pasta but we don't have it that often. My culprit is the sugar, flour and rice I think. I've pretty much made up my mind I'm not taking those lipids drugs again. At least not without the CoQ10 and L-Carnitine.

What I don't understand is why this seemed to hit all at once. I guess I never noticed it creeping up on me all the time I'd been on them. I"ve been achy with total body aches for awhile, while on the Zocor. But chalked it up to getting older. Then when dr. changed me from Zocor to Vytorin, my feet started to swell and the body aches were very pronounced. Extremely painful with rock bottom fatigue. I told her the Vytorin was making my feet/ankles swell so she changed me again to Lipitor. I took it for about a month and the pain got so bad I stopped taking all of it. Now this is where I'm at, my numbers are not great, but the way the girl at the dr. office made it sound, it sounded like I had to get in there asap, that I was on my last legs and due to keel over any second.

I'll look up that Glycemic Index and give that a try. Thanks for the information. I'd heard about it but didn't really know what it was all about.

[sos_group_owner]

Re: What I don't understand is why this seemed to hit all at once.

Hi "shadoww",

As you've probably read, statins cause CoQ10 deficiency. I believe (from
my husband's experience) that even when someone takes CoQ10 with
statins, the statins are using the same CoQ10 pathway and that person
might not get anough CoQ10 benefit.

CoQ10 deficiency can occur slowly. My husband took 100 mg of
CoQ10 with Lipitor 10 mg. Later, 10 mg was increased to 20 mg, but
we didn't increase his CoQ10. Over the course of a couple of years, he
experienced increased neck/shoulder pain/stiffness, short term memory
loss that progressed to several bouts of TGA, dark/splotchy pigment
all around the neck area, aggitation & anger, muscle atrophy and
probably a few I've missed. All of these were attributed to "getting older",
or some other lame excuse.

You might also want to read this article by Dr Graveline:
"The McCully Heart Protection Diet"
http://www.spacedoc.net/mccully.htm

Re: I've pretty much made up my mind I'm not taking those lipids drugs
again.

When you eat something that contains "sugar, flour or rice", remember
the pain you experienced with Zocor, Vytorin and Lipitor. Statins are
appropiate for a very small portion of very high risk patients. If your
only risk factors are high triglycerides and mildly elevate LDL, you are
NOT a high risk patient. Your triglycerides can be controlled with
proper diet and elevated LDL cholesterol is not the problem; it's when LDL
cholesterol become "oxidized", primarily due to elevated homocysteine.

Another good article to read:
"Cholesterol Levels & Cardiovascular Disease"
http://www.spacedoc.net/cholesterol.html

Ask your doctor to check your homocysteine levels. You might get a
blank look or just get brushed off. There is no safe levels of homocysteine
(Hcy), but optimal levels should be 6.2 or less, although most labs say
that as high as 11.4 is OK. Folic acid, B6 and B12 control Hcy, and no
side effects. B vitamins are part of Dr Graveline's "Statin Alternatives":
http://www.spacedoc.net/statin_alternatives.htm

Fran

[shadoww]

[quote="sos_group_owner"]Re: What I don't understand is why this seemed to hit all at once.

Hi "shadoww",

As you've probably read, statins cause CoQ10 deficiency. I believe (from
my husband's experience) that even when someone takes CoQ10 with
statins, the statins are using the same CoQ10 pathway and that person
might not get anough CoQ10 benefit.

CoQ10 deficiency can occur slowly. My husband took 100 mg of
CoQ10 with Lipitor 10 mg. Later, 10 mg was increased to 20 mg, but
we didn't increase his CoQ10. Over the course of a couple of years, he
experienced increased neck/shoulder pain/stiffness, short term memory
loss that progressed to several bouts of TGA, dark/splotchy pigment
all around the neck area, aggitation & anger, muscle atrophy and
probably a few I've missed. All of these were attributed to "getting older",
or some other lame excuse.

You might also want to read this article by Dr Graveline:
"The McCully Heart Protection Diet"
http://www.spacedoc.net/mccully.htm

Re: I've pretty much made up my mind I'm not taking those lipids drugs
again.

When you eat something that contains "sugar, flour or rice", remember
the pain you experienced with Zocor, Vytorin and Lipitor. Statins are
appropiate for a very small portion of very high risk patients. If your
only risk factors are high triglycerides and mildly elevate LDL, you are
NOT a high risk patient. Your triglycerides can be controlled with
proper diet and elevated LDL cholesterol is not the problem; it's when LDL
cholesterol become "oxidized", primarily due to elevated homocysteine.

Another good article to read:
"Cholesterol Levels & Cardiovascular Disease"
http://www.spacedoc.net/cholesterol.html

Ask your doctor to check your homocysteine levels. You might get a
blank look or just get brushed off. There is no safe levels of homocysteine
(Hcy), but optimal levels should be 6.2 or less, although most labs say
that as high as 11.4 is OK. Folic acid, B6 and B12 control Hcy, and no
side effects. B vitamins are part of Dr Graveline's "Statin Alternatives":
http://www.spacedoc.net/statin_alternatives.htm

Fran[/quote]

_______________________________________________________________

Thanks Fran. What exactly does it mean when you say the cholesterol becomes "oxidized"? Is that the same thing as "inflammation" and how do you know if you're inflamed, cholesterol wise? I know I'm already "inflamed" with my dr. for putting me on this junk a few years ago and the way its making me hurt!!!!

[sos_group_owner]

Re: What exactly does it mean when you say the cholesterol becomes
"oxidized"? Is that the same thing as "inflammation" and how do you
know if you're inflamed, cholesterol wise?

Hi "shadoww",

"How to Avoid a Broken Heart" is a pretty good article that explains the
different aspects of coronary inflammation:
(also... Using Nutrients to control the leading risk factors of heart disease)

ww.vpico.com/articlemanager/printerfriendly.aspx?article=88117

The current blood tests to check for inflammation are:
* Lp(a) - Lipoprotein (a)
* hs-CRP - high sensitivity C-Reactive Protein
* Homocysteine (should be 6.2 or less)
* VAP - Lipid Profile (measures LDL directly) + ApoB/ApoE, VLDL, IDL, etc.

Re: I know I'm already "inflamed" with my dr. for putting me on this
junk a few years ago and the way its making me hurt!!!!

There are a lot of us that are "inflamed"!

Fran