Low LDL Cholesterol

Question: Can One have atherosclerosis if one has good levels of cholesterol low LDL 100 and high HDL 44?

Answer: To Odysseus -- You're absolutely wrong! The discovery of the relationship between elevated cholesterol and atherosclerotic disease was what drove the pharmaceutical companies to search for medications that could lower cholesterol. My grandmother, back in the 1950's, knew that a high cholesterol was bad, and that was before we knew about cholesterol fractions such as HDL-C, LDL-C, and VLDL-C. At that time, the only known way to counter a high cholesterol was through diet.

Question: Can I develop Coronary Artery Disease if I have low cholesterol? I just found out that I have a very low LDL/HDL cholesterol ratio, meaning that my cholesterol is very good. Does this mean that my chances of developing diseased arteries is reduced?

Answer: You want a low ratio, but the higher HDL the better. Exercise 5 times a week. Or walk a mile three times a day, every day. Checkout "Longevity Made Simple"

Question: Doe's anyone know how low your LDL cholesterol can go down before it's to low? My LDL cholesterol was 143, 7 weeks ago,its 33 now and my HDL was 34 and its 29 now.My total was 197 now its 70.I had a blockage of 99% in July.Had to have a stent.Most people havn't heard of cholesterol dropping that low so Quick.Of corse I was on Lipitor 40mg for 7 weeks.I'm off of it now.No one can tell me how low to low is,some say 40 is as low as you need to go some say it hasn't been proven how low you can go to be safe.

Answer: I sat in a lecture with a lipid guru who had studied exactly the question you asked. He maintained that he saw continued improvement in the reduction of plaque formation down to a LDL of 25. After having a blockage and requiring a stent I can't imagine why you would be off of your anti-cholesterol medication!!! I have never heard of someone dying from low cholesterol but I sure have from heart disease! You may not need 40mg of Lipitor but you could trial 10mg and have your numbers rechecked in 12 weeks. There have also been some studies that have demonstrated REVERSAL of plaque formations with low enough cholesterol numbers. Regardless, it isn't always the numbers, but rather the process of getting the plaques to be stable, rather than unstable and in danger of rupture - resulting in a 99% sub-occluded artery - and heart muscle damage. Good luck.

Question: What does it mean if I have high triglycerides but my LDL cholesterol is low and my HDL cholesterol is high?

Answer: You are talking about three separate things here. Triglycerides are part of the total cholesterol reading you will get from lab results. High Triglycerides can be treated with medication. Also part of the total cholesterol is a level of High Density Lipoproteins (HDL) which should be low, and Low density lipoproteins (LDL) which should be high. In your case, the HDL needs to be lower and the LDL needs to be higher. All of these problems can be fixed with proper diet and increased exercise. You can also fix them with medications that will help along with changes in diet and exercise. Eating oatmeal or Cheerios will help, but you must decrease the amount of fats in your diet. No breakfast meat, only eat lean meats and have more skinless chicken and fish. Take garlic tablets and omega 3 fatty acid supplements if you want to. Above all, get your doctor to help you make the decisions about any changes you will be making to your diet, exercise and treatment. The older you are, the more important it is to get healthy. Good luck to you, RobR

Question: Is it possible to have a LDL (Bad) cholesterol that is too low? I got blood test results saying that my LDL levels of cholesterol are at 80, where normal levels are between 90-171, and that my levels are too low. I thought the lower the bad cholesterol, the better?

Answer: Thank you for the question. Your LDL level of 80 is excellent! Better than mine, actually. Don't worry, you're fine. The "normal levels" that are reported by the laboratory do not apply to everyone. Only your doctor, who assesses a patient's cumulative risk factors for heart disease and calculates the Framingham score, can determine what is your goal LDL level. If I may ask, 1. What is your age? 2. Have your parents or siblings ever been diagnosed with heart disease? 3. Do you smoke? 4. Do you have high blood pressure? 5. Do you have diabetes? 6. What was the value of your good cholesterol (HDL)? If you can provide this information, I can tell you what should be your goal LDL.

Question: Can I have ATHEROSCLEROSIS, if my BP is under 125/75 and my cholesterol is low. LDL 80 and HDL 48? and triglycerides 75. I always feel like i have chest pain.an inflamation all over my chest area. Anyone out there have this experience?

Answer: Unless you get a special scan their is practically no way of knowing if you have athersclerosis. BP has nothing to do with it and although cholesterol levels are important to know high levels do not always mean you have blocked arteries. You need an angiogram or 64 slice CT to see inside the vessels to know if you have atherosclerosis.

Question: What does it mean if someone has high blood HDL Cholesterol and low LDL Cholesterol levels? Here are the exact lipogram (or whatever they call it) results: S. Cholesterol: 146 mg/dL (Normal level: up to 200 mg/dL) S. Triglycerides: 99.7 mg/dL (Normal level: 60 to 165 mg/dL) HDL Cholesterol: 69 mg/dL (Normal level: 41 to 58 mg/dL) LDL Cholesterol 57 mg/dL (Normal level: 60 to 166 mg/dL) --------------------------------------… This is for a 24 years old male by the way. Thanks in advance! =]

Answer: These are SUPER good numbers. HDL is 'Good' cholesterol, you want to be over 40 on this one. Your HDL is SUPER high for a male. LDL is 'Bad' cholesterol. You want to be ideally below 100 on this one. Your LDL is SUPER low. Yoru Triglycerides are fine. Your ration of total cholester divided by good cholesterol is 2.12. You want to be below 4. Again, this is a SUPER number

Question: How to lower LDL Cholesterol? I work at a hospital where we have to take cholesterol tests. I recently found out I have a LDL cholesterol level of 120. My HDL level was 50. I am also Hypoglycemic. I don't know if that has anything to do with cholesterol. How do I lower my LDL cholesterol? With out drugs. And if I could get a simple life of what to eat and what not to eat that would be apreciated.

Answer: Unhealthy cholesterol levels can boost your risk of heart attacks, strokes, and other problems. According to experts, there are four basic ways to get your cholesterol where you want it: Eating a healthy diet. Exercising Losing weight Taking medicine -- in some cases While each of these works, some people have more success with one than another. Many need a combination of approaches. No matter what your age or the state of your health, you can reduce your risks of serious problems by controlling your cholesterol -- and it's not as hard as you think. 1. Lower Cholesterol by Eating Right You've probably heard it before, but foods that are high in saturated fat and -- to a lesser extent -- high in cholesterol, boost your cholesterol levels. These include foods like egg yolks, fatty meats, and full-fat dairy products. You also cut down on trans fatty acids as well, which are more often found in processed and fried foods. But eating a heart healthy diet isn't just about deprivation. In fact, some foods -- eaten in moderation -- can actually improve your cholesterol levels. They include: Fatty fish, like tuna and salmon Nuts, especially walnuts and almonds Oatmeal and oat bran Foods fortified with stanols, like some margarines and orange juices 2. Improving Cholesterol With Exercise Exercise is another way to improve your cholesterol levels. Increased physical activity can have a modest effect on cholesterol, lowering bad LDL cholesterol to a lesser extent, while boosting your good HDL cholesterol. The type of exercise is up to you. Walking is the simplest and easiest. Buy a pedometer to measure your progress and start moving. 3. Lose Weight: Lower Cholesterol Being overweight tends to lead to unhealthy cholesterol levels. Losing weight can lower your bad LDL cholesterol and triglycerides. It also can raise your good HDL cholesterol. Of course, weight loss is usually a product of a good diet and exercise. So what if you've already improved your diet and started exercising but still need to lose weight? Then you need to make some further adjustments -- gradually. Once you've reduced your intake of saturated fats, trans fats, and cholesterol, you can focus on cutting out some calories. In the same way, once you've gotten into an exercise routine, you can step up the intensity to lose some pounds. 4. Controlling Cholesterol With Medication So what happens if diet, exercise and weight loss aren't enough to bring your cholesterol under control? Your doctor might recommend medicine. Do not self-treat yourself, and do not rely on a pill: cholesterol-lowering drugs have many adverse effect, and you may end curing one illness while getting another. Taking medicines is a drastic measure, and you can start doing it only after consulting your doctor.

Question: Can regular intake of psyllium husk lower cholesterol level, specifically LDL? I've consistently had cholesterol levels over 240 over the last 25 years. I want to lower my LDL now that I'm older and possibly more prone to heart disease. Increased intake of soluble fiber is supposed to help lower cholesterol.

Answer: It can have a little effect, but not much. It will definitely affect your digestive track and make it better. You need to make sure you are properly hydrated and that your adrenal glands are working well. The adrenals are responsible for keeping the water in your intestines. Drug companies and doctors would have you believe that cholesterol is the problem with heart disease and that if you reduce your cholesterol intake from food, you will reduce your chances of getting heart disease. The real truth is that your body produces, on the average about 85% of all the cholesterol your body needs in the liver. Your diet only contributes about 15%, that is unless, your body senses that you are eating less cholesterol foods, then it increases it's production of cholesterol in your liver to compensate for the reduction in what you are eating. Cholesterol is what repairs tissue. Your bile is made from cholesterol. This good cholesterol / bad cholesterol thing is so ridiculous. All cholesterol is good, it all has a purpose in your body. Do you actually believe that your body would make all that cholesterol if it were bad for you? What happens is inflammation happens in your arteries and your body does what it is supposed to do and try to repair the damage by sending LDL cholesterol to the site. LDL cholesterol is a Low Density Lipid PROTEIN. It is a transporter. In fact, there are two main types of LDL cholesterol, the pattern 1 and pattern 2 types. The pattern 1 LDL is larger molecules than the pattern 2 type. It is the pattern 2 LDL cholesterol that gets lodged in the nooks and crannies of the INFLAMED arteries that oxidize (go rancid) and generate some problems. The HDL cholesterol (High Density Lipid PROTEIN) is the material that goes to the inflammation site and removes the LDL cholesterol that has done it's job and the HDL takes the LDL cholesterol back to the liver to be "RECONJUGATED!" So, it can be REUSED. Now why would the body do that if it were so bad for you? The "ROOT CAUSE" of this issue is INFLAMMATION. So, what does the medical industry do, they treat symptoms, so instead of fixing the real culprit, the tell you to reduce the cholesterol. Since most people have a very difficult time of doing this because the body is trying it's best to make up for the lack of cholesterol in the diet by making more, the drug companies come to the rescue. The make Lipitor. This makes the liver produce less cholesterol. And yes, you don't get as much build up in your arteries, but what about that inflammation issue? And without the necessary cholesterol to repair the tissue, what does the body do? The arteries just get thinner and you now become very susceptible to getting a STROKE! So what do the doctors do, they tell you that you have to watch your blood pressure. Why, because if it gets a little high, your artery could burst because it's not getting repaired. This treating "symptoms" and not the "root cause" has generated huge revenues and profits for drug companies. In turn huge bags of money is being given to politicians to keep them in power to allow drug companies to get away with this insanity. Who do you think gives doctors scholarships and trips and perks to help them through medical school? Drug companies. What you need to do is watch for a change in cholesterol numbers more than the total number. It's important to identify ALL infections in the body and inflammation. If you focus on fixing those issues, the body will take care of the cholesterol issue. If you focus on the symptom, cholesterol, your health will be greatly diminished and you will end up being a drug taking, unhealthy, dying younger than designed person and joining the statistics of the majority of Americans. I strongly suggest you seek out a Certified Nutritional Therapist that can test you for specific deficiencies and take all the guess work out of wondering what nutrients you need. Then they can suggest a diet specific to you and maybe supplements with exact dosages to what your body needs. It's not easy to be healthy in America today. good luck to you

Question: How do i lower my LDL Cholesterol? I work at a hospital where we have to take cholesterol tests. I recently found out I have a LDL cholesterol level of 120. My HDL level was 50. I am also Hypoglycemic. I don't know if that has anything to do with cholesterol. How do I lower my LDL cholesterol? With out drugs. And if I could get a simple life of what to eat and what not to eat that would be apreciated.

Answer: Pretty simple stuff really,reduce your animal fat intake,increase your intake of oily fish (omega 3 oils) and take regular exercise,to have an effect it has to be vigorous. The hypoglycaemia is irrelevant and usually does not indicate any real pathology.