natural girls
Comments
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HELP !!!
While I have successfully lowered my triglycerides from 400 to 206, I can't lower my cholesterol.
I am hoping some of you knowledgeable serious researchers or someone who has succeeded in lowering their cholesterol or at least raising their HDL can help me. I do not want to take the statins the doc is pushing me to take. He says I may die in 3 days or in 10 years, he doesn't know. Whatever!!! I never know what to believe since I had the onc who said I would die without chemo and then I had an OncotypeDX score of 0. Some trust issues here. I do like my PCP and he does order more cancer marker tests than the ex-onco. I also like that he has my carotids ultra sounded every year. He is very thorough and quick to order tests...but with that comes the barage of suggestions of drugs.
I have been taking 20 mg of policosanol twice a day. I have researched Red Yeast Rice Extract and found that ER+ BC women should avoid it. I have been eating lots of organic apples and avocados and olive oil and krill and fish oils and avoiding cholesterol foods. I take phytosterols and eat walnuts and almonds and do not eat trans fats.
But my cholesterol is 262 HDL 28 when it needs to be greater than 39 and my LDL is 193 when it needs to be less than 99 and my VLDL is 41 and the range is 5-40
The only thing I can think of that I have not fully mastered in my new regimen is exercise. I also have not been eating oats.
What do you think I can do? I plan to lose 25 more pounds this year but the weight I took off last year did not help.
Since I completely changed to a healthy diet and cut out all alcohol in April 2009 and stopped eating most things I used to eat like lots of meat....my cholesterol has actually increased from 241 to 262 and my HDL increased from 22 to 28 and LDL increased from 139 to 193 but VLDL went down from 80 to 41...I guess due to the big drop in triglycerides from 400 to 206.
Please if someone can tell me how to stay on an anti breast cancer diet that will lose weight and lower cholesterol....I am all ears!!!
Thank you to all of you who do so much to help so many on these threads. I could not have stood all this without your help and guidance. This is where I come everyday where there is always support and comfort and never eye rolling disinterest or disbelief.
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Did your dr run a test on your homocysteine levels? A too-high level on that would be more worrisome than high cholesterol. You might want to search for a thread I started last year where I made some notes from a library book I found especially enlightening by Dr Ray Strand. I remember antioxidants was in the title.
I also have cholesterol that's too high but not alarmingly so, but it's my blood pressure that's borderline high. Despite all kinds of changes in lifestyle and food choices, my bp didn't ever budge, so I know how annoyingly irritating it can be to do things you think will help, then results are disappointing.
You also might want to investigate apple cider vinegar. That's my 'magic bullet' that finally nudges my bp to a better range. Can't recall if it's beneficial for cholesterol or not, but it's good for all kinds of reasons. I'm also feeling pretty good after many weeks of dinner recipes from Dr Sandra Cabot's Liver Cleansing Diet. Like my bp, my weight just would never melt away despite daily exercise and a diet that's gotten more squeaky clean with each new month. Finally, FOUR plus years into tweaking this that and the other thing, I've lost 10 pounds in the last 2 months.
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Ladies, this is off topic, but my panties are in a big knot! My mom is 82 yo with a pacemaker and recent history of dizziness and shortness of breath, for which the heart doctor is giving her digoxen (sp?). Today by chance I got involved with having her most recent prescription filled, and a different doctor is giving her CIPRO! Mom said it's for an infection, which I'm presuming is her ongoing long history of recurring urinary tract infections. She has them so often that it's now classed as 'urethral syndrome'.
I'm very concerned about her taking cipro for this! She's also on coumaden, and all it said on the scrip was to stop taking it during the course of cipro.
I'm tempted to make a trip to the vitamin shoppe and get some d-mannose. I think that's the one that will provide the infecting bacteria with all that it wants to eat so that it let's loose of the intestines and literally flushes out without any side effects. Does anyone have experience with using d-mannose for a uti?
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Althea, Cipro is a really nasty antibiotic. There have been so many adverse reports for this class of fluoride drugs that law suits and warnings are everywhere. http://www.fqresearch.org/
It probably should never be given to older people because they could tear a tendon and fall.
Just Google FLUOROQUINOLONE
As far as the UTIs, even mainstream Ob-Gyns often use intravaginal estriol or Vagifem because it gets the hormone into the urethral tissue which is dry and a good home for bacteria. There was a video link going around where they were talking about this for Medscape.
Sorry, I couldn't address the d-mannose. But addressing the hormonal cause of the infection might be an alternate way after treating the symptoms.
Good luch to your Mom.
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Thanks Jane. I just talked to my mom and asked what kind of infection the cipro is for, and she confirmed that it's for a uti. Then I was floored again when she told me that's what they usually give her for uti. So not only has she been prescribed cipro for a uti, she's already taken it who knows how many times over the years. This, from a doctor who named his practice "longevity and wellness center." Geez louise
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Althea....I did have a homocysteine test sometime during the last year. I need to find the print out. I don't remember it being high, but I will check. My holistic doc also ran the AM Cortisol test and I need to dig out those results as well. Not sure what level I should want of that.
What is the optimal homocysteine level?
How much apple cider vinegar? I have some organic unpasteurized unfiltered apple cider vinegar vinegar. Should I use that?
Thank you!
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Here is a copy of an abstract about apple cider vinegar from PubMed, a service of NIH. The italics is mine.
Apple cider vinegar attenuates lipid profile in normal and diabetic rats.
Shishehbor F, Mansoori A, Sarkaki AR, Jalali MT, Latifi SM.
Department of Nutrition, Para-Medical School, Ahvaz Jundishapour University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Islamic Republic of Iran.
Abstract
In this study, the effect of apple cider vinegar on Fasting Blood Glucose (FBG), glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) and lipid profile in normal and diabetic rats was investigated. Diabetes was induced in male Wistar rats (300+/-30 g) by the intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (60 mg kg(-1) of body weight). Both normal and diabetic animals were fed with standard animal food containing apple cider vinegar (6% w/w) for 4 weeks. Fasting blood glucose did not change, while HbA1c significantly decreased by apple cider vinegar in diabetic group (p<0.05). In normal rats fed with vinegar, significant reduction of low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-c) (p<0.005) and significant increase of high density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-c) levels (p<0.005) were observed. Apple cider vinegar also reduced serum triglyceride (TG) levels (p<0.005) and increased HDL-c (p<0.005) in diabetic animals. These results indicate that apple cider vinegar improved the serum lipid profile in normal and diabetic rats by decreasing serum TG, LDL-c and increasing serum HDL-c and may be of great value in managing the diabetic complications.
I am taking 1 tablespoon of vinegar in 8 oz of water once a day. I add about a teaspoon of Manuka honey which has a positive effect on all sorts of things. I eat at least one apple a day.
I went on a very strict low cholesteral diet avoiding meat and fat almost completely. My HDLs plumeted. I found out that we need a moderate amount of saturated fat to have good a HDL level. Exercise is vital in raising HDLs. If you can get you LDL's down to 130 and your HDLs up to 50 you should be able to avoid medication.
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Luna ~ Shortly after I finished rads, both my homocysteine level and my cholesterol were both quite high. My primary doctor felt this was due to chemo & rads, both of which can impact both of those. But she also told me that she would never put me or anyone on a statin unless their coronary calcium score (which measures the calcium build up in plaque on the walls of your arteries) was also high, because that would indicate a real problem going on. So you might want to ask about having that test to help assess what's really going on.
As far as homocysteine levels, normal range is 5.0 to 13.9. Last year, mine was 17.0. This year it has dropped back down to 11.1. The one thing I did to treat it was a high dose B supplement that contains B6, B12 & Folic Acid. I started out using Metanx (an RX), but have since switched to a natural homocysteine modulator by Solgar that's the same three B combo.
My cholesterol came down about 30 points in a year, but is still higher than pre-bc, which is disappointing and hard to understand in view of how very little animal protein and dairy I now eat and how much more I exercise I get compared to pre-bc. I have a call into the integrative doctor @ UCLA to get her take on this and will share any suggestions she gives me with you. Deanna
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Thank you so much Deanna for the info. I'm still looking for my homocysteine results. I'm sure I had that test but cannot find it....still looking. I will ask to have it re run anyway at my next blood test.
I did find my C-Reactive Protein results from Nov 2009...2.48 mg/L reference range 0.00-3.00
My Cortisol AM April 2010 was 18.7 ug/dl reference range 6.2-19.4
And my D 3 was finally 61.5 in April up from 22 in January.
Is the coronary calcium score the one on the Basic Metabolic Panel? On that my most recent Calcium is 9.1 mg/dL reference range 8.7-10.2. Is this the one you mean or is there a different test I need to ask for?
Thank you. What would I do without you and so many others guiding me on this site?
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Luna,
Has anyone suggested your cholesterol went up after your ovaries were removed?
But, that aside, I would look into the Weston A. Price information on why in most people cholesterol levels should be disregarded. They have been researching this a long time. They call it the "lipid hypothesis."
Gary Taubes has a great interview after researching the subject five years for his book.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCBMV6d9HSg
Also see http://www.thincs.org/
Your body is making cholesterol to make good stuff you need. I would not use any substance to block it.
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Hi Friends,
Can anyone help? It has been 48 days since my last normal period started. On day 13 of my cycle, I started some very unusual spotting, which lasted 2 days. Nothing since. I have been having very irregular periods...seems like it is possibly related to DIM, which I started taking shortly before all this irregularity started.
I saw my gyno the other day for my annual exam, and I told her about this. She is aware of my bc, but of course is no expert. She wrote me a prescription for Aygestin (noretindrone) which is progestin, I believe. It is 5 mg per day for 5 days to help start my period so that she can do a saline sonogram next week. She thinks it would be harmless. I told her I was uneasy about this, and that I would have to look into it. Does anyone have any thoughts/experience? Thanks all!
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mathteacher...I agree that I do not want to take drugs to block my cholesterol. I will try whatever natural things I can find to try to lower it at least to 200 or 220 at which time I would just tell my PCP that I am following the older cholesterol guidelines not the newer ones and to just put on my chart that he suggested statins and I refused so that he is covered. Mostly, I would like to get it low enough that we don't have to talk about it every time I go in.
Also, I am concerned that it has gotten worse since I started all the healthy living.
What's this about cholesterol going up after ovaries removed? I was 10 years past menopause when I had them removed. During the months that my LDL went up 54 points...I also lowered my estradiol from 30+ to 15.7. Would this have caused the rise in bad cholesterol?
I don't think my PCP cares about the cause. He thinks I am going to die from a heart attack or be a "heart attack cripple" if I don't lower my cholesterol. So, he just shakes his head and thinks I am nuts for not taking drugs. When I told him I had read conflicting research about statins helping stop cancer but also that it might increase it for ER+ BC...he said "well, what are your chances of your cancer recurring?" I told him I think my prognosis is good. But, what I didn't tell him is hearts are easier to fix than cancer, so I am definitely not going to take a drug that might encourage cancer when so far there is no indication that my arteries are clogging.
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notself....Thank you! I will try the vinegar. Maybe I have cut out too much saturated fat as well.
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Luna, that coronary calcium test isn't a blood test but a type of scan:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/heart-scan/MY00327
notself ~ What is manuka honey? Don't think I've ever heard of that one.
I also recall some discussion last year about high cholesterol not necessarily being a bad thing. In fact, I'd run off a couple of articles that talked about this for my PCP. I think vivre had some good info back then -- maybe along the lines of what mathteacher referenced? I'll see if I can find those articles again for us all. Deanna
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If I may...
Manuka honey is something I'm passionate about. It has been extremely popular here in Australia and New Zealand for many years now. I have mentioned taking it a while back. It is a mighty potent force in OBLITERATING harmful bacteria!
It's also used for wound dressing in hospitals. I remember watching a wonderful documentary on the health channel about it's beneficial use in hospitals. The doctors actually had a high level in a tube they were using on patients after surgery.
I am currently using...Manuka Health New Zealand, Manuka Honey MGO 400 (UMF 20+)
UMF® (Unique Manuka Factor) is an additional anti-bacterial activity first discovered by Dr Peter Molan (University of Waikato, NZ) in some Manuka honey. Unlike hydrogen peroxide activity present in most kinds of honey UMF® was found stable to the effect of light, heat and body fluids. The level of UMF® activity in Manuka honey varies significantly from 10 to 25+, and a special assay has been developed to measure it. Research has proved only Manuka honey with the rating of UMF® 10 and higher has reliable health properties. The higher the rating the higher the level of anti-bacterial activity in the honey. UMF® Manuka honey works against a wide range of bacteria including the causes of stomach ulcers, sore throats and major wound infections. This honey has also proven to be effective in helping the natural healing of skin ulcers, burns, boils, cracked skin and the "superbug" MRSA
MRSA ...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MRSA
Some more vital info on manuka honey...
http://benefitofmanukahoney.com/tag/medical-grade-manuka-honey/
I will add that this amazing honey does not come cheap. It can cost up to $80 AU dollars. I just bought my 20+ on sale for $56. I usually pay around $70 - $80 for anything between 20- 25+.
The apple cider vinegar I take is BRAGG... Organic, Raw, Unfiltered, with the ‘Mother' http://bragg.com/products/bragg-organic-apple-cider-vinegar.html
My pH level fluctuates between 7.6 - 8.0. - depending on what I've eaten.
Of course I can't boast enough about micro algae. I even pack this "food for the soul" into my children's lunchboxes.
http://www.botanicalpreservationcorps.com/microalgae.htm
Like you guys, the list of things I do and take...is endless.
But I'm pretty fit and healthy...so my protocol is working for me.
Healthy days ahead for us all...xoxo
Victoria
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Luna,
Please, please, please, forget about cholesterol.
Thankfully, the tide of thought is turning away from the whole issue as important. There are now dozens of books and articles showing there is no evidence for addressing cholesterol. Unfortunately, the statin companies have cooked the books and are fanning fears in doctors and on TV.
If you want to take care of your heart, a good cod liver oil is better.
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Thank you, Deanna.
I had a nuclear stress test about 3 years ago and it was fine. I had a heart ultrasound within the last year and it was fine. My carotid artery scan...good also.
Weirdest thing though....when I saw my PCPs PA at my previous visit, she said I might have to take drugs because the carotid ultra sound showed 0-49% blocked so since it didn't indicate the actual # I could have 49% blockage. The same guy who did that ultra sound did my heart one so I asked. I reminded him that he had told me my carotid looked fine. He pulled up my file and said, "Your carotid to your brain is fine. The one the PA was talking about is the one to your face. We don't measure that unless it is at least 50% blocked which is why it said 0-49%. As long as it stays within that we don't care and don't bother measuring it." Thought I would pass this on as I didn't know about the one to the face.
I'm going to put together a file on cholesterol so that I can show the doc why I don't want to take the drugs. I like him in a lot of other ways, so cholesterol and my blood pressure are our only conflicts. I like that he orders all three cancer blood markers when my ex onco only ordered one. I like that he understands D 3. I like that he has me do a yearly ultra sound of carotids. As far as I know, ultra sounds are safe so why not ...at least until I hear they aren't.
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Victoria,
Thanks for the info on manuka honey. I had never heard of it either.
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Thank you also, Anon. I agree with you, just trying to document it so I am conversant.
I have read about cod liver oil. My mother took that every day when she was young.
Is cod liver oil better than krill? Right now I am taking Mercola's Krill Oil and Life Extension's Super Omega 3 EPA/DHA with sesame lignans & olive fruit extract molecularly distilled 5 star rating IFOS. I have been taking both because I didn't know which is best.
Further advice? Should I just take one? Which one? Which brand?
Thank you to you and everyone else on here who shares links and research and doc opinions and your own opinions which I value.
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Victoria, what do you use to test your PH level? What is the optimum level?
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I agree 100% with anondenet concerning cholesterol. Here is an article from Life Extension and the date on this is 2004. I have more articles, but not the time right now to look for them.
http://www.lef.org/magazine/mag2004/nov2004_report_statin_01.htm
In David Servan-Schreiber's book..."Anticancer a new Way of Life", there was a footnote on page 116 which stated.."The drug Lipitor is the pharmaceutical industry's biggest money maker. At its sales peak, it brought in a million dollars an hour, 365 days a year (nine billion dollars a year).
As he stated, "If there's a problem, there's a drug".
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Here are a couple of interesting articles re. cholesterol:
http://www.ultrawellness.com/blog/lowering-cholesterol-levels
http://www.truthaboutabs.com/cholesterol-myths.html
http://www.prevention.com/cda/vendorarticle/high-cholesterol/HN1028005/health/conditions.treatments/ (vitamins that can help)
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Manuka honey is honey from the Manuka bush in New Zealand. There are several studies being done including a randomized placebo controlled study on the affect of manuka honey in preventing mucositis (mouth sores) due to radiation given to oral cancer patients. You can find manuka honey in any health food store in the US. Look up Manuka Honey in PubMed for more information on scientific studies. Not all the claims made for this honey are holding up but a suprising number of them are.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/
As for LDLs, my PCP is not a fan of statins and follows the research done in Europe on cholesterol. She says that no woman should be put on statins for LDLs 130 or below. The research indicates that women do just fine with LDLs as high as 130.
If you want more information on lowering LDLs check out PubMed. Also check out apple cider vinegar, apples, dandelion root.
This is what one study said about HDLs, LDLs and the risk of heart disease. It is more important to have high HDLs than low LDLs. The bold is mine.
When the analysis was stratified according to LDL cholesterol level in patients receiving statins, the relationship between HDL cholesterol level and major cardiovascular events was of borderline significance (P=0.05). Even among study subjects with LDL cholesterol levels below 70 mg per deciliter, those in the highest quintile of HDL cholesterol level were at less risk for major cardiovascular events than those in the lowest quintile (P=0.03). CONCLUSIONS: In this post hoc analysis, HDL cholesterol levels were predictive of major cardiovascular events in patients treated with statins. This relationship was also observed among patients with LDL cholesterol levels below 70 mg per deciliter. (ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00327691 [ClinicalTrials.gov].). Copyright 2007 Massachusetts Medical Society.
Studies indicate that HDLs rise with low intake of quality saturated fat with most fat coming from monounsaturated fats, plus plenty of exercise and apple cider vinegar walnuts and various other natural foods.
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Hey Luna,
I use litmus paper strips, indigo acid+base pH test papers, and another type I use when I visit my naturopath. As long as the paper is blue or at the darkest point of the paper chart...I'm pretty chuffed. I like to keep my pH level above 7.4. It's bloomin hard work though, maintaining levels around 7.6-8.0 all the time (which I do), cause if you've binged on something naughty for the day...it shows up, immediately. My hubbys is almost always around 6.0 - 7.4 (depending) - he's not at all careful with his diet. My brothers was way down at 4.0 - 4.4...a very dangerous range to be at. Not long after he was hospitalised over night and bed ridden for days with a bad case of stomach ulcers. He's back on track now...keeping an eye on things with the pH strips, and then of course having blood tests, like we all do to make sure all is well.
If your naturopath can't get the strips for you, you should be able to order pH strips online, or simply get your pharmacist to order them in.
Some info...
Victoria0 -
Thanks Victoria for the info. on PH testing. I will ask my ND for the strips straight away.
Glenis
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Me too, Thanks Victoria!
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Hey Luna... re ph and alkaline.... be careful not to go higher or lower than 7.4. My naturopath told me to take a tsp of baking soda in a glass of water in the AM to make my body the correct alkaline and then forget about it. Just eat healthy after that. It will fluctuate throughout the day but that's normal. Irene (aka Gracie1955)
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Also on the topic of cholesterol and bp, besdies a healthy diet, a +1 hour power walk every day should bring bring both down within a very short time frame. Six weeks ago my bp was 90 over 180 and after 1 month of brisk walking with a few good hills for good measure (killer at first!) it's now 72 over 124.
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Thanks Anon, Nan, Deanna, Victoria, Irene and notself. This is all great info which I will definitely get on board with.
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Ok ladies, I need some help. I have inflammation in my shoulder. I had to have an mri and was thankful it wasn't a torn rotator. My gp wants to inject steroids into my shoulder. I am not thrilled with that idea. My shoulder really hurts when I use it in a certain way. I have been babying it and it limits me a lot. Does anyone know of an alternative to the steroids injections or are the injects not harmful. I would appreciate any advice!
Love to all, Patty
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