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Tuesday, June 01, 2010

The Doctor's Cholesterol

I just got my own cholesterol numbers back:
Total cholesterol - 160
Triglycerides - 86
HDL - 71
LDL - 72

Thought I'd share what a healthy vegan diet and exercise have done for me. :)

16 comments:

Amanda said...

Awesome! My husbands levels were out of control, and after 6 months of being Vegan (we're going on a year and a half now), he's A-ok :)

I have a 9 month old, I'm a little worried about what to do once she eats "real" food. My pediatrician says veganism isn't good for her :(

Anonymous said...

tell your pediatrician you'd be willing to talk to a nutritionist to make sure she's getting adequate nutrients. if your pediatrician still gives you grief, you need a new pediatrician!

Anonymous said...

Wow...that's like getting an "A+"..

Congratulations!

The Selfish Vegan said...

that's great! If you don't mind me asking, do you know what your numbers were before?

Anonymous said...

Congrats! But I have the same numbers on a diet with meat, so I thank my happy genes. Or just healthy moderation.

P.S. I totally agree with anonymous, Amanda, you need a new kid doc! I'm a family physician and take care of several kids being raised as vegans without any issues. There are certain nutritional issues that can come up, most of which are easy to address in the office and if not, can be addressed by a dietician. What a great start for your kiddo!

Anonymous said...

Regarding the paradox of the hospital cafetaria -- Breaking Bad just had a scene about that.

The injured person's wife started ragging on the hosp. cafe.: it was clear she was transferring her anxiety about her husband's condition onto the cafeteria.

A lot of people in the hospital cafeteria are going to be under a lot of stress and would benefit them if the cafeteria obviously promotes health. It helps make the hosp. seem like a place that can be trusted.

-victoria

Debby said...

Impressive! I wonder how you keep your HDL so high. I'm having trouble with mine (it's been as low as 30 recently) and have had three different medical professionals tell me I *need* to eat fish and that veganism is the problem.

Sara said...

I'm sorta curious - where are you getting ANY triglycerides in your diet?

Anonymous said...

Debbie said...

Here are my numbers. I went Vegan on November 17, 2010. My test was done on April 1, 2011. Total Cholesterol 114, LDL 69, HDL 27
and Triglycerides 91. I follow the plant based diet of Caldwell B. Esselstyn the author of Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease.

‎On 4/2010 my test was Total Cholesterol 143, LDL 92, and HDL 40. On ‎6/2008 my test was Total Cholesterol 195, LDL 133, and HDL 53.

The goal Total Cholesterol below 150mg/dl and LDL less than 80 mg/dl. Going to plant based diet was the only way to reduce LDL below 80. Test from 2010 was based on Salmon as primary protein. Test from 2011 was based on Beans and whole grains as primary protein.

I go to see my doc to discuss results on April 19, 2011.

VeganLinda said...

I don't get my cholesterol tested often, but I was wondering after my last test (a couple months ago) Blood Pressure - 102/68
Pulse - 72
Total Cholesterol - 167
HDL - 48
TC/HDL Ratio - 3.5:1
LDL -110
Triglycerides - 43

because I've been vegan for over 17 years and my numbers were much better seven years ago. I found that a woman's cycle can effect the numbers and other factors (or so said some articles on the internet).

How often would you suggest someone get their cholesterol tested? What factors can effect the results besides diet?

Oh and Amanda, I have three healthy vegan kids and our ped has always been very supportive of our diet. Get a new ped.

Elisabeth said...

Any suggestions for a long time vegetarian and now 7 month vegan with very (298) high cholesterol? I use only spray oil, make nut based salad dressings no oil, eat modest amounts of refined carbs, prefering whole grains. Love my kale. Totally baffled why levels haven't gone down.

VeganHeartDoc said...

Elisabeth -- cut out the oil completely, spray or not, oil is oil. Cut out the refined carbs and processed food. Aim for a whole-food plant-based diet. Then recheck your lipids -- I'll bet they'll be better.

Michele said...

I recently gave up all animal products. My cholesterol went from 195 to 159 in less than 2 months. My triglycerides, however, have gone from 129 to 172. While I have not completely given up sugar and white flour, I have not increased my intake of these. What has increased is my intake of nuts and avovados. Could this be the culprit? (Not sure if it matters but my weight of 129 has not changed since my diet has changed.)

VeganHeartDoc said...

Michelle -- hard to say, though if you are otherwise healthy, a triglyceride level of 172 isn't something to worry about. But, do look at your diet -- how much processed food are you eating? I'd cut back on that. I don't think that a slight increase in nuts and avocadoes would affect your triglycerides that much.

vegan4life said...

just got my bloodwork back my total cholesterol is 193 which has gone down about 20-30 points in the last 2 years since i became vegan (vegetarian for 16 years before that) high cholesterol runs in my family but i would like to get my number lower what do you recomend i do?

Deb Hadden said...
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