Healthy eating combat high cholesterol

[IndigoBluey]

As a super fit person who likes to think has a generally healthy diet, I was a bit surprised and now a little worried to learn I have high cholesterol, it is 6.5 aged 38. I am trying to find out ways to get it back to normal levels. I know I need to cut down on the wine consumption, I already do 3 or 4 intense exercise classes a week so otherwise I think I need to look at upping healthy eating. I don’t eat any fruit, I prefer veg but definitely don’t eat 5 a day. I do rely on carbs for convenience (wraps at lunchtime, pasta once a week, rice maybe a couple of times a week). Ex smoker (4 per evening) but gave up cold turkey almost 2 years ago) and have read this can impact HC level. Just looking for some advice / healthy food suggestions generally. Wondering whether to give fasting a go.

Alcohol is a big culprit of higher cholesterol in the younger person. Sounds like you're addressing that. Also eggs and avocado are good for you but high in cholesterol (although good cholesterol) you ideally need a cholesterol ratio taken for a full breakdown. You want your HDL/total cholesterol ratio under 3.5.

Mediterranean diet is good to lower cholesterol.

Any family history of heart attacks in mum and dad ? (High cholesterol is usually a culprit alongside other accelerating factors ) Cholesterol metabolism can be genetic.

I’d cut out the alcohol and the carbs/processed foods. Eat fruit, veg, protein and healthy fats. I have a family history of high cholesterol. Not quite the familial genetic type, but everyone in my family has high cholesterol, even if otherwise healthy. I started having to have it monitored as a child.

My cholesterol was highest when I was a vegetarian for 20 years. I ate a lot of carbs and processed foods. It was lowest when I did a paleo style diet. It’s normal now and I eat lots of fruit and veg, nuts, avocados and protein (meat/fish/tofu). I also don’t drink anymore.

The cholesterol in your blood largely comes from your liver not the food you eat, but putting stress on the liver (alcohol, smoking, eating lots of crap) with stuff it needs to filter out to keep you ticking along is going to mean higher cholesterol. Basically, you want to eat food and drink drinks that don’t tax your liver, and live a healthy lifestyle.

I was diagnosed with high cholesterol over 20 years ago, about 6.7 and also high bad cholesterol, which came as a shock as I don’t have a fatty diet or eat takeaways or processed foods or ready meals but enjoy fruit, salad and veg. I increased exercise levels and tried to reduce or replace saturated fats, changing to skimmed milk, low fat options etc.

I was really reluctant to take statins and had annual blood tests but it gradually went up to 7. Heart attacks in our family so reluctantly started statins 6 years ago and continued with the healthy diet. It’s still hovering around 5 even though I am now on 40mg Atorvastatin.

High cholesterol does run in families
and you may not be able to get it down without medication.

The other thing to be aware of is that high cholesterol can cause other conditions, I now have a vision problem which can be caused by HC and have had a lot of treatment at opthamology with some permanent sight loss. It’s worth talking to your GP about the pros and cons of medication and the importance of a healthy diet.

British Heart Foundation has some good information on this and also diets.

It’s good to reduce alcohol because there has been some correlation with HC.

https://www.bhf.org.uk/informationsupport/conditions/familial-hypercholesterolaemia#Diet_and_familial_hypercholesterolaemia_FH

Q risk is often done by the GP. It’s a tool to assess your risk and you can complete it yourself:
https://qrisk.org/

DH has high cholesterol (siblings had heart attacks in their 50s) and takes statins as he couldn’t bring it down by diet alone. But the dietician he saw at the time advised against processed food, red meat, full fat options etc. So we swapped things like beef mince for turkey, semi-skimmed for skimmed milk, margarine that doesn’t contain lots of saturates (we use I can’t believe it’s not butter) and also things like venison burgers instead of beef. We actually love them and they’re very low fat!

You need to experiment with good fats and good carbs to find the right personal balance.

My cholesterol crept up over the years and there is a lot of heart disease in my family. Lije @ronconcoke ’s DH, low saturated fat is best for me. I do eat a good amount of veg, especially - this is recommended no matter what approach you take - and some fruit. I prioritise fish, poultry, game birds, rabbit and venison but have.red meat about once or twice a week and a modest amount of good cheese a couple of times a week.

I believe good food was made for good wine so staying within 14 units/wk (sometimes much less) takes vigilance and isn’t always achieved during stressful times.

Fibre, particularly legumes and whole grains, helps a lot to bring (mostly bad) cholesterol down.

Low saturated fat and lower UPF is more important than low cholesterol - our bodies make much more cholesterol than we eat. (Avocados don’t have cholesterol. Only animal foods do)

All of this is from the NHS and brought my cholesterol down some. I still mostly practise this guidance. 20 mg/day (lowest dose) of a statin has brought it into a very healthy range. My individual numbers are also good. No side effects.