Just how bad is cheese?

[Roundhands]

I am interested in health and diet and aim to eat well - I do think it makes a difference to how I feel. My main criteria is that I eat real food, nothing very processed and very little refined sugar. I enjoy food and pretty much eat what and when I like within that.

I'm very active and my BMI is right in the middle of the healthy range.

I'm also high risk for oseoporosis, in that I'm middleaged and both my parents have it.

I eat a lot of cheese, in the belief that the calcuim may protect me. I know there are other ways to get calcium..... but I like cheese.

Someone has remarked that I'm storing up all sorts of other problems with all the saturated fat, but if I'm a healthy weight with cholesterol in the normal range how much cheese is too much cheese?

aged cheese has all the important nutrients in a form that our body can use very well. especially the protein and calcium.

just be mindful of the calories if trying to lose weight. it's very calorie dense and it's easy to eat a large anount if not measured carefully.

https://www.bhf.org.uk/informationsupport/heart-matters-magazine/nutrition/cheese

Britsih heart foundation seem to think it's moderation that's needed - like with most diet items I think.

Chesse is a concentrated source of calcium, phosphorus, and vitamin K2 which are all good for bones.

just be mindful of the calories if trying to lose weight. it's very calorie dense and it's easy to eat a large anount if not measured carefully.

Good lord, how many times does the OP have to point out she's not worried about the calories? 🤦‍♀️

Most cheese is high in salt, something else you need to keep an eye on

I too am staving off osteoporosis with cheese. It's working well so far.

Cheese is life

The Swedish eat a ton of cheese, but they cut it with a cheese parer. You don’t need a lot each time you eat it. It’s not great to have huge amounts of saturated fat, but some real (not ultra processed plastic ) cheese is good for you as it’s a fermented product.

That's true, but I think if you're not eating much processed food (accepting that cheese is processed) and don't routinely add salt, salt isn't the enemy either - we do need some. It's very easy to have too much if you're eating a lot of processed food, not such a risk otherwise.

Cheese is disgusting. 🤮 if I was PM I’d ban it. 🤮 hiding this thread. 🤮 And reported for no trigger warning 🤮

I don’t think this is the case really. It depends what you mean by lots of cheese

Say you eat 2000 calories a day and 100g of it is cheese that’s the best part of 500 calories from cheese. The 1500 calories left has to provide all your fibre, and most of your vitamins and minerals and carbs. It’s not a great idea every day.

im not sure whether loads of saturated fat does cause high cholesterol tbh, but if it does, surely the issue isn’t what it is today, but how your storing up problems for the future? As you get older your body isn’t resilient to these things. They don’t come instantly, they come after years of bad habits

that said, It’s not normal to be so into what you eat that you raise a concern about this one thing you enjoy- have you considered whether you have orthorexia? Mental health is just as important as your physical health.

Is the someone medically qualified or a dietician or just an expert in everything busybody?

I think cheese is absolutely fine, provided all your health stats are OK.

I love cheese and was eating moderate amounts in the midst of a relatively healthy whole foody sort of diet.

I found out I have high cholesterol.

I got my cholesterol down without statins by cutting out red meat and cheese. Go me.

Then I re-introduced cheese (I love cheese) wondering if maybe just cutting red meat was enough.

Nope, cholesterol is creeping back up.

So -- cheese is fine, but look at your consumption of it in the round and if you have issues (cholesterol, high blood pressure etc) then you may need to make choices about your consumption. For me, for now, no cheese and no statins.

I’d recommend eating more potassium too. By lowering blood acidity, potassium stops the body from leaching calcium out of the bones and excreting it through the urine. This can help to maintain bone density alongside calcium, vitamin D and plenty of dark leafy greens.

If you are active and have a healthy BMI and eat cheese along with a balanced diet, you will almost certainly not be storing up problems for the future. If you get high cholesterol then maybe think about it your consumption at that point.

I'd be worried about my cholesterol if i was eating a lot of cheese

Saturated fat doesn’t necessarily CAUSE high cholesterol alone. Its part of a system - and it allows the cholesterol to get ‘stuck’ in the blood because it reduces the livers ability to clear LDL cholesterol as well as possibly making the liver secrete more and causing it to build up in the liver.

Higher LDL = higher risk of atherosclerosis which = higher risk of cardiovascular disease.

calories are good. fat is good. we need both to live...

This ^

Uhhhh why is cheese bad at all? It's amazing.