My story so far :-)

[JJ]

OK, our family has a history of longevity, yet both my sister & I have discovered we have what is said to be high cholesterol. She has just started taking Simvastin, and said she feels better for it only after a month.

I know mine has been high for quite a few years and I only just decided to do something about it and then found this forum.

My figures are 277 - HDL 46, LDL 185, Trig 228

I was initially prescribed Prevencor by a doctor without much explanation as to what it did. I stopped taking it after two months as it was so expensive here.

I then started taking Simvastin 2 days ago but you've clearly worried me here. I live in Spain. I do eat dairy products, cheeses, etc but I'm beginning to wonder if diet may be a better option. I haven't dared tell my sister what I found yet, as the doctor really frightened her by telling her she was at increased risk of a heart attack or stroke - she ended up intially on a constant diet of porridge

I read about things that we simply can't get here such as blueberries. Kiwi fruit are plentiful which I believe are good, and I also read here Vit C supplements are a help. We eat a lot of fish.

I know you must get fed up of people asking you this and I apologise in advance, but what would you recommend. I found a local Pharmacia that will test my blood instantly whenever I need it, so I can check. I must admit I dont quite understand if there are separate ways of bringing down the LDL/HDL and the Trigs.

I really appreciate your input on this .... maybe in simple language I can understand

[JJ]

Apologies to admin, I realise I have posted this in the wrong place and have moved it to a forum lower down. I couldn't edit the post once I placed it ... sorry

[Allen1]

Hi there JJ,

you don't mention if you are male or female or your age, but here is a link from the homepage on this site about women and cholesterol lowering.

*http://www.spacedoc.net/women_statins.htm

Remove the (*) and paste the link in your browsers address bar. If you are sure you want to reduce your cholesterol then the porridge approach does work although slowly. In reality as long as you are active and eat a varied nutritious diet and don't overindulge too often, then you should be ok.

People have different cholesterol levels and Dr's want everyone to be the same, what level works for one person may be disastrous to another. Lowering your levels may and probably would have a small benefit, but I am pleased to see you have had the good sense to look for answers before the problem of side effects start from taking medications.

I will leave this as is for now, there are plenty of folk on here that will have a better knowledge of dietary needs and what works best, so I will leave the explanations and food types to them.

It really is good to see someone finding the answers before they become another addition to this mess.

All the very best,

Allen

[cjbrooksjc]

JJ: I posted a response to your first entry under Cholesterol-What is normal?; you will find my reply there.

Brooks

[JJ]

Thanks both
I am male, aged 54
My sister is 61