My Blood Has Too Much Cholestrol, I Do A Fair Amount Of Exercise, But Was Told..

[piggynose]

By my doctor, to be more rigorous eg, 40 mins fast walks/30mins jogging every day, basically was told i´ve got to feel like i´m sweating a lot!
At the moment i tend to walk about 3 hours every day between monday - friday, and every other weekend i run about 10km(6miles), or walk about 19km(12miles) in the mountains. Was told i will need to stick to the above routine for 3 months, and then get another blood test to see if theres an improvement, if there isn´t i could be prone to heart attacks, or worse strokes in the near future.

[grasscarp]

My cholesterol was high, and the only change I made was to start the day with porridge. It brought the number down and I still eat it.

[Gavmacp]

I would consider looking at your diet but will wait to see what Squad suggests.

[piggynose]

my diet is pretty healthy, the doc said it wasn´t the food whch was the problem, as i seem to have a pretty healthy diet, its not doing enough exercise. i use to eat porridge for years, only stopped about 6 months ago.

[grasscarp]

Perhaps you should restart Piggy. There is loads of research behind it - Studies have suggested that the fibre contained in porridge can reduce cholesterol levels by as much as 23%.

[Sqad]

That exercise regime is certainly admirable and any increase is unlikely to lower your blood cholesterol levels.

You do not give us the levels of cholesterol in the blood.

The relationship between diet and blood cholesterol and blood cholesterol and cardiovascular disease is a contentious issue in the medical profession.

Your lifestyle is fine and I would not get too anxious about your chances of heart disease and strokes.

[Gavmacp]

Squad does your body produce fatty acids? I watched Lorenzo's oil which was about the body producing bad fatty acids.

[piggynose]

sorry sqad, i´m sure the doc said something like 226, i actually didnt bother reading the print out, as i relied upon my spanish partner to read to me, i´ll have a look later and tell you exactly.

[Sqad]

Thanks piggy.....2 levels will interest me:

HDL (high density lipoprotein.)
LDL (low density lipoprotein)

[piggynose]

to be honest i can be a little inconsistent when it comes to a healthy lifestyle, the doc said try a mediterrean diet, eg salads and blue fish, olive oil. i do but not all the time, maybe i should be more rigid, will get back to the porridge routine, it wont hurt for 3 months. will miss the occasional fry up, and pizza though.

[piggynose]

let you know later sqad.

[Scarlett]

ADF has a really good reputation for lowering cholesterol.
My feeling is that high cholesterol is genetic and exercise has little to do with it. You already sound really for but clearly have a predisposition to it. Look up the fasting programme which was on Horizon a while back with Dr Michael Mosley.

[Sqad]

Gavmacp...sorry, I have just noticed your post.

Some fatty acids the body can produce, but the important ones are two which the body cannot make and have to be taken in the diet. I am not a biochemist, but the metabolism of fats and its relationship with atheroma ( plaques in the arteries)is, in my opinion still ill understood.

[237SJ]

Maybe you just inherited high cholesterol - it happens.

[jno]

my OH gets plenty of exercise, eats a very healthy diet and is a respectable weight; my diet is kind of random, I'm overweight and don't get much exercise. But OH has the cholesterol problem, not me. So do what's suggested and monitor theresults but don't expect miracles; cholesterol is just one of those things in life that isn't always fair.

[grasscarp]

The book The Great Cholesterol Con is interesting. Here is what it says.
http://www.thegreatcholesterolcon.com/

[piggynose]

sqad, my cholestrol readings as promised....
HDL..47.0
LDL... 160.0
VLDL..22
total.. 229

[Sqad]

Thanks piggy...they all are "borderline" high.....no big deal, but "could do better".

They would not bother me, but your GP has reasons to want your levels lower and that will depend on many factors including your family history of strokes and heart disease.

The bottom line is......is there a direct association between heart attacks and strokes with a raised blood cholesterol, particularly the LDL levels?

Your GP clearly has his finger on your pulse so take his advice.

[piggynose]

sqad, yes i´m sure my gp means well, but isn´t she being a touch melodramatic, my diet is exemplary, i do a lot of exercise, if i try to do more i´ll wear myself out. family history, dont think so unless it goes back many generations. looking at grassharps link, is there a cholestrol scam? having said all that i´m still going to adhere to my gp´s advice til april(my next blood test)

[Sqad]

Good thinking piggy.