My doctor ordered a cholesterol test for me June 08 pre-Atkins
Total: 184
Trys: 111
HDL: 42
LDL: 120
ratio: 2.9

I am 39, both parents high cholesterol on statins, Mom had 2 bad strokes at 61. I was taking Omega 3 fish oil but she wanted the HDL way up and put me on LOVAZA.

Retested 3 months into atkins and using Lovaza:
Total: 171
Trys: 85
HDL: 36
LDL: 118
Ratio: 3.3

They took me off Lovaza. Are very upset with use of coconut oil and higher fats, lower carbs which is causing HDL problem.

Took another cholesterol test today to see how big the particles are??? Big are better, small is bad.

1. what type of numbers should I be looking for on this new type of test?

2. She wants to see me in 3 months for another cholesterol test, doesn't care that I am 5 ft 2 and was 195.8 and lost 26 lbs. Skinny people die from this. She only said real evidence is low fat is the only way. I told her i would try to exercise 7 days a week and I have added Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA). Has anyone experienced a higher HDL from CLAs or exercise? Any other treatment?

3. Is coconut oil and high fat what I have to cut out to get the HDL higher. This is the only diet I have ever been on that has worked and I love it.

If anyone has any answers i would really appreciate them.

thanks,

Lisa

Lisa,

My HDLs went up aver 50% after I switched from low-fat to low-carb. Saturated fats raise HDL.

I now take fish oil to increase my omega-3 intake. I'm not sure what affect they have on cholesterol levels, but they are needed in the body for many healthful purposes.

thanks for replying, Mike.

I know it should be going up but it is going down. She had me taking a prescription Omega 3 that was stronger than the ones I was using. She said it was like taking 16 regular ones. She said my HDL was going to go way up. But it went down and it is the diet's fault, per her.

When my doctor told me low fat was the only way to improve my liver profile, I told her she would have to give me references to actual studies that prove it. She kept giving me handouts from the American Heart Association. I told her I wouldn't accept that, because I have no respect for the AHA. She couldn't come up with any studies for me. (I knew she wouldn't be able to, because they don't exist! )

She finally decided just to let me continue to do as I'm doing! Perhaps she concluded that I'm just a stubborn old woman!

It's really amazing - I am 36 and have had much worse numbers than you and have never had a doc even remotely suggest medication or even dietary change. I don't know what everything looks like now (I'm curious and I'll find out soon) but I am surprised that your doc feels the need to treat this so agressively. I would only be worried about the triglycerides. My husband has a cholesterol of 300 and he's not worried in the least.

hi-
you need to read stuff on this site. The Omega 3 will reduce your trys- not raise HDL. Your numbers are terrific- to raise the HDL you need to exercise.
and, my reading of Dr. Atkins and this site says to give it 6 months before you test for lipids.
This is the BEST food plan for your health and your lipids- and the new research proves it. Go to the research area here and look at the study published last month (?) from Israel that to their surprise showed the best lipid results were from LC, not LF.
and both Dr. Atkins and Dr. Agaston were/are cardiologists!

Good luck!

Eno,

Thank you. I did read that 25% of people with this low HDL on LC get better results with 30 minutes of exercise per day. But that for some none. I am more that willing to make time everyday for that and I will find the study you are talking about and read it. There is a lot posted in here. I haven't really been in it yet but I have a feeling I will be a new member over here. I just want to be sure that I continue high fat(80%) and low carb taking coconut oil, adding exercise, getting checked in 6 months is okay. She really made it seem like I was going to drop dead from this HDL number. I can't imagine that this is the most dangerous number but my family history is pretty bad. 61 year old mom had 2 strokes this year and had high cholesterol so we think that is what caused them. She doesn't understand much of anything anymore. If I need to work out more, I am in!!! for sure. I just don't want to have stroke because I am not following AMA advice. MD knew I was doing LC but she doesn't like it anymore with the results.

Lisa

I'm not sure but Vit. D3 might help with the HDL.

Check out this cardiologist's blog: http://heartscanblog.blogspot.com

I can't believe your doctor had you on a statin with your numbers.

My husband's Triglycerides were over 400. Everything else was terrible too. His Cardiac doc put him on Lipitor. Hubby's kidneys are not so great and Liptor is not good to kidneys. After 9 months on Lipitor, his numbers were worse and the Doc doubled the dose! I told him to quit the drug and do Atkins (1972) Three months later. I watched his Doctor hold the new lipid profile up against the old one to a light like she was reading an xray. Then she turned to my husband and asked him what he did. (Smarter than I thought, she knew it wasn't the Lipitor) The trig. were less than 100 and all the other numbers were well within the normal limits. Of course it never worked so well on me.

Nancy,

she didn't have me on a statin. Just a prescription of omega 3. I was taking them from the health food store and she said she had ones that were better and my HDL would be better than 42. I took them for 3 months and did LC which should also raise HDL and it went down to 36. She just told me that the high fat 80% and Coconut oil were going to kill me at an early age. I need to be on low fat and i can't again ever. I have 2 parents on statins. My mom had 2 strokes at 61 so I don't think her Lipitor worked as well as my dad's Lipitor. My doctor said she has a history of bad cholesterol and she is going to go on a statin for sure. i said not me. Why are you scared of them? It just went on and on. I am willing to change my fat intake a bit and bend a bit but she was NOT.

Tigertu,

I wished that happened for me. I actually thought it was going to and I could dance around and say SEE LC works but i got the opposite. Maybe I will have big particles and not small ones because I don't know what she's going to want if i have that. I don't know what I will say yes to but I am really feeling better than I ever have. i am going to start a 7 day per week no matter what work out tomorrow. No matter what. I heard that can help HDL in about 25% of people with my problem. There really isn't a drug for HDL like a statin. They are used more for the other numbers. I might be in a lose lose situation.

Lisa

Hi everyone,

I had a second blood test to measure my HDL particle size. It said my HDL level is now 44, not the 36 it was last week. BUT she needs me to take Niacin 500mg because on the test HDL-2 subtype, most protective subgroup my number was 9 and not above 15 where it should be.

My doctor talked to me about taking Niacin when I was there last week but must of forgotten that I can't take that because the side effects of redness, I have rosasea and take something to counteract the redness, 800 mg of folic acid. Also, can cause itching and i have an allergy no doctor has been able to determine but causes unbearable hives. Not very often but bad enough you want to scratch them with a very sharp knife. So we discussed that Niacin would not be an option for me.

My question is since my HDL isn't great now but in the normal range on their table, I wouldn't have been given the HDL-2 test so I would have never known my number is 9 and not the over 15 it should be. I am 39 years old. Would anyone here think she is getting a little crazy with the niacin and freaking out that by being on this diet, i want to die young because skinny people die of strokes and heart attacks everyday.

I was just going to get it tested again in 3 more months. I added exercise and CLAs but will continue with my diet of fat that will kill me. Does anyone think this would be a normal action and that she is overreacting? All my numbers are on the first post on this thread, oh, except the 36 HDL went to 44 now.

Any ideas? Do you think this is a pretty good plan?

thank you for your help. This cholesterol is pretty new. I have read as much as i can but the HDL-2 is hard to get a straight answer on.

Thanks,

Lisa

Statins don't work in women at all. Really, they only work in men that have had heart attacks before the age of 65. So I wouldn't even consider it at all. If you want some studies to give her, I'm sure I could dig up at least a couple.

Someone here had a good rise in their HDL from taking niacin. Look into that blog I posted for you, that doctor deals with it all the time. You might want to join that "Track your Plaque" group if you're truly concerned. Don't let your doctor scare you into a treatment that a) doesn't work b) potentially has dangerous side effects.

Nancy LC:

I have never been on statins and have never been asked to be on statins ever.




I didn't have any questions about niacin since I already spoke the fact that I am unable to take as I put in my last post. Also, i would never let anyone talk me into taking anything ever that I wouldn't want to take.

Thanks for posting. I am really just interested in the numbers for the HDL-2 test because I haven't been able to find anything yet.

thank you,

Lisa

You and me both. I literally raised my voice to the Dr, because he would NOT listen to me. I told him I'm NOT taking them. They just pulled TWO of them off the market for KILLING people. And they all seem to work on the same principle. Not to mention there was an INCREASE of plaque... EVEN though the "numbers" looked good..

And my numbers at the time were TC 235/HDL 75/ LDL 150 / Tri 65 (Um, Bullsh*t that I need a statin) AHA doesn't even say LDL is bad until 160. I think your doctor has the same problem mine does. She's treating you by what your parents have. I tried to explain to my DR that I don't do the same things my parents do. I don't smoke, I don't eat crap. I did drink a little wine (which also raises your HDL), but I'm not now as it may be holding up my weight loss.

I personally feel like we're all being "pharmed", kinda like the Matrix Only they get us so scared of a natural thing that we will take dangerous medication to "treat" it.

PS. Tris are also considered okay up to 150. Why was she so hot to lower it from 111? Indications:
You were nowhere near 500. That medication may have lowered your HDL.

The effect on other lipid parameters

Here's the site I'm quoting. http://www.lovaza.com/hcp/about/efficacy.html

Another possibility is that this Omega 3 is somehow not like natural Omega 3, and you were a person who reacted differently. Fish oil and Flax seed oil are natural sources. Borage oil and Primrose oil are helpful too. (GLA)

PPS. It isn't the same. I had thought that Flax seed was acceptable, but it's not...
http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthre...t=statin+plaque

PPPS. Link to tris at AHA
http://nhlbisupport.com/chd1/tri.htm
You weren't even borderline....
Triglyceride Levels
Normal Less than 150 mg/dL
Borderline-high 150-199 mg/dL
High 200-499 mg/dL
Very High 500 mg/dL or above