How do you cut cholesterol urgently and drastically?

[stressed2007]

My mother has to do this urgently due to claudification(sp?) (hardening of the arteries). Does anyone have experience of how to do this (other than/as well as medication) - she seems to have been given very limited information.

On a specific question am I right in thinking that one of the biotic drinks like Aptimel(but not that one I think) can help to cut cholesterol?

Thanks

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I have higher than normal cholesterol due to an inherited condition called familial hypercholesterolaemia (FCH). Looking at diet alone would not bring my cholesterol down significantly enough to make a tangible difference. Like another poster said, changes to diet can only make about a 10% difference- good if your cholesterol is at the margin of being high, but not helpful enough for those of us needing a more significant change.

I take simvastatin and ezetimibe and have had no side effects. I'm 34 and will be taking these for life now I think, along with lisinopril for my high blood pressure. But I want to be here to see my children grow up so I'm happy to take them (my parents have both had heart bypasses).

OP- depending on the reasons for the high cholesterol medication may be needed. But dietary changes do go hand in hand with this.

why is high carb such a culprit skihorse?

Fayrazzled - i didn't get the breakdown of my cholesterol reading, just that it is too high at 6.6 and i have to go on a low fat diet and be re-tested in Jan. I guess if it doesn't come down by then they will look into it further, plus medication.

does anyone have a link to a definitive list of low cholesterol food rather than generic categories? For example i always thought fish was good, we eat a lot, but apparently prawns are extremely high in cholesterol. I had no idea.

Do you have a decent Health Shop where you could go for advice? (I mean one with qualified staff or owner...not a H and B!!)

Have a look into:
Sytrinol
Lecithin
Resveratrol
Fish Oil
Kyolic Garlic (must be 1000 mg to lower it, then 600 mg to maintain low levels)
Milk Thistle

Its also well worth getting a good brand, not a supermarket/boots/HollanfBarret. There is a massive difference in both quality and strength.

Ditto all the food advice given above

oops didn't realise this was an old thread...but its probably a useful thread for lots anyway

amidaiwish - in a nutshell, if you've got a problem with insulin intolerance (e.g., sincity2lover) - then it'll provoke an insulin response. Insulin turns "sugars" to fats and elevated triglyceride and LDL levels (cholesterols).

I stopped my Dad from going on statins. Cholesterol shares a synthesis pathway with Coenzyme Q 10 up to a point - CoQ10 is essential for mitochondrial energy production, particularly in muscles, particularly in the heart. Statins block the synthesis pathway BEFORE it splits to either cholesterol or CoQ10 - meaning that statins ALSO prevent production of CoQ10. The manufacturers of statins know this but have no intention of doing anything about it.

Type II diabetes can be reversed by dietary means - mostly by following the advice given earlier and again here:
Reduce processed carbohydrates
Reduce red meat and dairy
increase whole grains but not all as wheat - include a variety of other grains
Oatbran is excellent for reducing cholesterol
Increase fruit and veg intake
INcrease oily fish - but because of pollutants, no more than 3 portions a week
Drink more water
Reduce caffeine and alcohol
Avoid low fat spreads/reduced fat anything - have stuff as natural as possible. 99% fat free stuff (or that ghastly Go Ahead stuff) has far too much refined carb and sugar in it, far worse than the fat.

All of the above dietary suggestions can help reduce cholesterol levels as well.
And as someone earlier said, "safe" cholesterol levels have been altered so that more people can be put on statins, an invidious thing to have done.

In itself, a cholesterol of 5.1 is not a major issue - but complicating factors such as insulin resistance/type II diabetes or obesity can make it a warning flag.

dh has high cholesterol and diet makes absolutely no difference: its genetic. He takes statins, eats a reasonably healthy diet, and they are very effective indeed. He has never been overweight.

My mother had slightly high cholesterol in her 70s (6.3, IIRC) and has lowered it to 5ish by being careful not to eat saturated fats etc, taking lecithin on cereal, and eating porridge. She's nearly 82 and healthy. She has never been overweight.

My sister ditto to my mother (though 25 years younger!)

I think statins v diet is not an argument worth having without details on an individual, really.

agree with everything Thumbwitch says re the lowering of "safe" cholesterol levels (the poor pharma giants need more money). The side effects of statins are well known. I've lost track of the number of people I've known with extreme pain/muscle problems.

Its unfortunate that patients are not advised to take extra CoQ-10 while they are on statins. Its rumoured that one of the pharma companies are in the process of adding a tiny bit of CoQ10 to their product (as when the license for the current patent expires they can no longer make money out of you when you use this existing one. They will need you to buy/get the newly patented version)

this is all great, thanks.

I read recently that Bad Cholestorol turns out to be part of a double act. What's more, this discovery suggests that a new treatment for heart disease could be a simple vitamin tablet. Researchers found that bad cholesterol has a twin called lipoprotein(a), which can also raise your risk of heart disease. Having both of them would be a double whammy and raise the risk of blocked arteries even further.
Doctors have known for some time that people with a high level of Lp(a) as it is known were more likely to have a heart attack or a stroke. Now reasearchers have found a definite link between higher levels of Lp(a) and cardiovascular problems.
Your levels of Lp(a) are thought to be more the result of your genes than anything else. The good news is that it seems to respond to a number of different vitamins and supplements the best known of which is the Vitamin B niacin.
Niacin is a fantastic all-round treatment for protecting hearts. It brings down both LDL and Lp(a) and it also pushes up HDL.

interesting... thanks