High Cholesterol

[hollyisalovelyname]

WiseMumsnetters...
What did you do to bring it down ?
I know I shall have to cut down on cake and cream and chocolate and prawns
Any other advice please ?

Exercise, statins and getting down to a healthy weight. According to the consultant I saw, making dietary changes only has a small effect in reducing your levels.

Why no prawns???

I agree about eating less carbs, I lost a lot of weight doing the complete opposite of what the nhs recommends (which is loads of pasta, rice, etc and low fat everything).
I reduced my carbs, but didn't cut them out completely, I eat full fat dairy, red meat, eggs, plenty of nuts and olive oil. My cholesterol level is normal now.

Exercise and weight control. Statins and those benecol/floraactive things if you are so inclined. Like Obfus says, the cholesterol you eat has been shown to have little effect on the cholesterol in your blood - all that stuff about not eating eggs is very old thinking.

Lose weight. Half a stone reduces cholesterol by 10% according to my GP. She also recommends a benecol drink a day to reduce it by a further 10%.

Thank you

Plenty of pulses (esp soya)
Nuts (esp walnuts and almonds)
Oats (porridge every day)

Stick to GDA for total fat intake. Reduce saturated fat and use fats from other sources, but beware of swapping sat fat for all omega 6 fat, as this upsets the omega3/6 balance, and some people think that is as bad as sat fat. Chicken and sunflower oil are all omega 6, so don't overdo them.

change to low fat yogurt and milk (not fat free), small amounts of very strong cheese and have low fat mayonnaise in sandwiches, or nothing. Def not low fat spread - it is useless and tastes disgusting do not waste your 'daily fat intake' on it.

(No more doorstops with a slab of butter and thick layer of marmite, at three o'clock in the afternoon, because you haven't eaten properly all day )

Plenty fish (prawns ok) and vegetables.

Wholemeal everything. Try not to have too much bread and pasta - replace it with the pulses, veg and nut based dishes, and salads (but make your own dressings so you know what/how much fat goes on)

Use good olive oil (not heat extracted) and rape seed oil. (Not sunflower as it is all omega 6s and upsets your omega3/6 balance.)

Check out low GI on diabetes uk, and fats on Arthritis uk diet sheet.
www.arthritisresearchuk.org/arthritis-information/arthritis-and-daily-life/diet-and-arthritis/how-can-changing-my-diet-help-my-arthritis.aspx (down load info booklet on LHS)

Go for a brisk walk every day after dinner and before washing up (this was a tip passed on to me that I have not been able to follow up, sadly.)

Sorry - booklet to down load is on the right hand side - I have two left hands, as well as two left feet

DayLillie thank you so much.
I don't eat much bread or pasta/ rice / potatoes. I have portidge and / or an egg most days for breakfast.
I have a bar of chocolate most days. If out for coffee i do have a cake but that would be 2 / 3 times a week. I watch my dairy intake so few yogurts and little cheese.
I need to lose between a half stone and a stone so not hugely overweight.
I eat lots of vegetables and fruit.

I lost half a stone just trying to keep the the Guidline Daily amounts, in the early days. I found it impossible to get enough calories in as the only thing I had left to eat was fruit and wholegrains with nothing on. I did a spreadsheet for a couple of weeks with everything I ate on it and the fat, fat types and calories. It was interesting and a good base to work from, but I'm not doing it now.

Try small amounts of high cocoa plain chocolate. Definitely less cake. You need some dairy for the calcium for your bones (or eat more tinned sardines etc).

Surprising saturated fats are: cocoa butter, coconut, palm oil.

Biscuits are particularly bad and wafer biscuits (kit kats) have a really bad balance of fats.

I make a lemon cake, which is just eggs, sugar, and ground almonds with good quality lemon essence or lemon rind. (make it like fatless sponge, but separate the eggs and whisk the whites separately and fold in). This can have lemon juice and sugar syrup drizzled on, or you can cut it up and dry it out, like biscotti (they are probably nice dipped in Lindt 80% - must try that!).

I have put the weight back on after 5 years due to dealing with allergies and hrt, so I am jumping back on the wagon................

Good luck.