I Have Low Cholesterol (How Can I Raise It?)

ANDREW CHIN

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May 22, 2019
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I have not been checked for an infection.

What test do you recommend for that?

I'm not very knowledgable in this area, but generally a stool test (specifically, an ova and parasites test) is ordered. You can order your own online, but I suggest you find a skilled practitioner you can work with.
Direct Access Laboratory Testing, Discount Online Wellness Blood Tests

When I saw my naturopath about this issue, she looked at my standard metabolic panel, and decided I likely didn't have an active infection. My basophil, eosinophil and neutrophil levels were very low.
 

LucyL

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Oct 21, 2013
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1,244
Also, Ray Peat doesn't seem to be a big fan of coconut in general because of that study that found women cooking with coconut milk were more likely to develop cancer.

NOooo! First I've heard of this, can you provide an article/study or something about this?
 

davvid_1

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Hi guys, something i found interesting was people with thalassemia seem to have lower serum cholesterol. I have thalassemia trait\minor, so not the serious kind, I have no symptoms and its known to have no effects on standard of life (sometimes mild anemic symptoms). However ive recently found studies showing that such carriers have lower cholesterol, as I do. You should be able to tell if you have thalassemia trait through red blood tests, mine for example show an extremely low mean corpuscular volume, and high red blood count. Doctors are usually concerned until they find out its thalassemia trait.

Does anyone know what mechanism is responsible for causing the low cholesterol, and if its connected to the size or volume of the red blood cell, or hemoglobin...

Lipid Profile in Minor Thalassemic Patients: A Historical Cohort Study - PubMed

Plasma Lipids in Beta-Thalassemia Minor - PubMed
 

Broco6679

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Jan 26, 2019
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176
My cholesterol pre-peat:
Nif9udY.png

Nif9udY


My cholesterol post six months of peat:
IAcGhQE.png

IAcGhQE


Diet alone increased my cholesterol from 135 to 197 mg/dl. I attribute the increase to a major reduction in starch, 1-2L of high quality oj and 200g of ice cream a day, as I haven't really changed anything else.

Alongside this increase, I saw my testosterone go up by 150ng/dL, my progesterone double, and dhea increase by 3 umol/L. My estradiol dropped from 90 to 55 pmol/L, too.
 
Last edited:

Gone Peating

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Sep 16, 2018
Messages
1,006
My cholesterol pre-peat:
Nif9udY.png

Nif9udY


My cholesterol post six months of peat:
IAcGhQE.png

IAcGhQE


Diet alone increased my cholesterol from 135 to 197 mg/dl. I attribute the increase to a major reduction in starch, 1-2L of high quality oj and 200g of ice cream a day, as I haven't really changed anything else.

Alongside this increase, I saw my testosterone go up by 150ng/dL, my progesterone double, and dhea increase by 3 umol/L. My estradiol dropped from 90 to 55 pmol/L, too.

What kind of starch did you used to eat a lot of? And what brand of OJ do you drink?

Those are very significant results
 

Broco6679

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176
What kind of starch did you used to eat a lot of? And what brand of OJ do you drink?

Those are very significant results

All of them, as my diet used to be very bad. Oats, brown rice, sweet potato, wheat-based cereal, etc - all the classic 'healthy' complex carbs. I still eat white rice two-three times a week, and oven baked white potatoes once in a while, but both digest fine so I don't see an issue. Any of the aforementioned would give me gut pain, bloating and gas. I'm going to try adding in sweet potato again soon.

The orange juice is from the supermarket Morrison's here in the UK. It's the only orange juice I've found so far that isn't acidic or tart. Even then, each bottle tastes different and can be hit or miss; but still, it's far, far better than the usual store bought stuff we have here.
 

Rambo

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I agree with the “calories are too low” group. RP has mentioned several times that he consumed a GMAD (gallon of milk a day) for 35 years. As a male, I would supplement pregnenolone (transdermal) to support until I figured it out. If you’re eating the right foods and are not dealing with PUFA poison I found it nearly impossible to gain fat weight. We’re working towards more calories = better metabolism and away from more calories = more fat storage. If you eat more “good calories” and gain fat that is a sign of a problem that needs addressed...
 

movebetter

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Messages
198
@Jman
Peat has mentioned a few times on Kmud that its important to keep the intestine clean to keep cholesterol production up. If the liver is being burdened by endotoxin it can interfere with cholesterol production. So raw carrot or boiled mushrooms or cooked bamboo shoots are things to try.

My cholesterol was 135 a couple years ago, at the time I was experiencing bouts of severe depression with suicidal ideation, as well as a lot of other hypothyroid symptoms. At the time I wasn't eating any fiber, my diet was basically the same as what you listed ( and It still is, its a good diet) but I wasn't eating the carrot at the time, because it seemed to give me anxiety and headaches. I decided to try introduce it very slowly, one bite of a carrot, well chewed, per a day for a week, then the next week 2 bites per day, etc. Until I got to about half a carrot which is what I do to this day. After the first few weeks it started working how it should, anxiety way down, migraines gone. I think my cholesterol was still low though because when I tried to introduce a little cynoplus and cynomel Id become depressed by about the 4th day. So I decided to try Progesterone, progest-e at 2 to 4 drops orally per day. That completely stopped depression and anxiety, and bought my resting pulse from 68 to 78. After 2 months of progesterone I decided to try thyroid again, and tolerated it just fine. I had my cholesterol tested about a year after starting the thyroid and it was 160.

You can mitigate allot of the bad effects of the low cholesterol by supplementing with pregnenolone and or progesterone. Though I don't use pregnenolone because Ive found it irritates my intestine strongly.

Also its good to consider that using supplements orally could be irritating to the intestine, so using them topically is another idea, you need to use about 10 times the amount on the skin to match the oral absorption. It makes it more expensive and inconvenient but for me Ive found its been worth it.

Also Peat has mentioned somewhere that little bits of t3 like 1 - 3 mcgs is very supportive to the liver and can help it produce more cholesterol.

So yeah, bit of a brain dump of a post here but in summary; Clean intestine = happy liver = better cholesterol production, supplementing with progesterone can help compensate for the low cholesterol.
hi James, how is your cholesterol mine is the same as yours was. Do you still take progesterone?
 

Jman

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@Jman

hi James, how is your cholesterol mine is the same as yours was. Do you still take progesterone?
It's been a few years since I've had it tested but I'm pretty sure it was something like 180. I still use progesterone topically every day, It supports my well being like nothing else.
 

movebetter

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It's been a few years since I've had it tested but I'm pretty sure it was something like 180. I still use progesterone topically every day, It supports my well being like nothing else.
Thanks, mine is around 135 and I feel quite low mood and energy. I just got some progest e but I am afraid to try it because I hear it can lower cholesterol and for males it can be a problem. how much do you use topically and do you think it's better to use it topically then orally?
 

Jman

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Thanks, mine is around 135 and I feel quite low mood and energy. I just got some progest e but I am afraid to try it because I hear it can lower cholesterol and for males it can be a problem. how much do you use topically and do you think it's better to use it topically then orally?
Progesterone would only help lower cholesterol if cholesterol levels were high, by activating thyroid metabolism and steroid synthesis. But if cholesterol is low it would help by filling in for inadequate progesterone production, sparing cholesterol for other processes and other steroid producition, and also because it lowers inflammation which uses up cholesterol / burdens the liver - impairing cholesterol production.

I use 50 - 100 mg topically. But from that only 5 - 10 mg gets absorbed into the bloodstream. I use it topically because I have a very sensitive intestine, and the vitamin-e in progest-e seems to create a mild irritation, which if I use it everyday leads to bothersome symptoms.

It's much more economical and practical to use it orally. Always taken with a meal to lower the chances of it causing irritation. Sometimes people need to use large amounts temporarily to overcome a problem.
 

Jman

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Thanks, mine is around 135 and I feel quite low mood and energy. I just got some progest e but I am afraid to try it because I hear it can lower cholesterol and for males it can be a problem. how much do you use topically and do you think it's better to use it topically then orally?
Oh and it's never caused low testosterone symptoms for me. The opposite actually. It reliably boosts libido, strength / muscle tone, facial hair growth etc.. I was 22 when I first used it, and I feel like it facilitated a completion of a stunted puberty; my sparse facial hair filled out. My appreciation for the female form become extremely rich and flexible (before I was fixated on a very specific type). I wasn't measuring but it seemed like my size increased. My musculature filled out and I just overall looked more androgenically developed.
 

movebetter

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Messages
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Progesterone would only help lower cholesterol if cholesterol levels were high, by activating thyroid metabolism and steroid synthesis. But if cholesterol is low it would help by filling in for inadequate progesterone production, sparing cholesterol for other processes and other steroid producition, and also because it lowers inflammation which uses up cholesterol / burdens the liver - impairing cholesterol production.

I use 50 - 100 mg topically. But from that only 5 - 10 mg gets absorbed into the bloodstream. I use it topically because I have a very sensitive intestine, and the vitamin-e in progest-e seems to create a mild irritation, which if I use it everyday leads to bothersome symptoms.

It's much more economical and practical to use it orally. Always taken with a meal to lower the chances of it causing irritation. Sometimes people need to use large amounts temporarily to overcome a problem.
thanks, that is good to hear and it makes sense. I hope i will be ok orally. Do you think DHEA or pregnenalone will help?
 

movebetter

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Messages
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Oh and it's never caused low testosterone symptoms for me. The opposite actually. It reliably boosts libido, strength / muscle tone, facial hair growth etc.. I was 22 when I first used it, and I feel like it facilitated a completion of a stunted puberty; my sparse facial hair filled out. My appreciation for the female form become extremely rich and flexible (before I was fixated on a very specific type). I wasn't measuring but it seemed like my size increased. My musculature filled out and I just overall looked more androgenically developed.
that sounds great, i am 77 but my libido is high and i was worried it would decrease with progesterone. I guess we are all different , so i hope i will be ok.
Peat has mentioned a few times on Kmud that its important to keep the intestine clean to keep cholesterol production up. If the liver is being burdened by endotoxin it can interfere with cholesterol production. So raw carrot or boiled mushrooms or cooked bamboo shoots are things to try.

My cholesterol was 135 a couple years ago, at the time I was experiencing bouts of severe depression with suicidal ideation, as well as a lot of other hypothyroid symptoms. At the time I wasn't eating any fiber, my diet was basically the same as what you listed ( and It still is, its a good diet) but I wasn't eating the carrot at the time, because it seemed to give me anxiety and headaches. I decided to try introduce it very slowly, one bite of a carrot, well chewed, per a day for a week, then the next week 2 bites per day, etc. Until I got to about half a carrot which is what I do to this day. After the first few weeks it started working how it should, anxiety way down, migraines gone. I think my cholesterol was still low though because when I tried to introduce a little cynoplus and cynomel Id become depressed by about the 4th day. So I decided to try Progesterone, progest-e at 2 to 4 drops orally per day. That completely stopped depression and anxiety, and bought my resting pulse from 68 to 78. After 2 months of progesterone I decided to try thyroid again, and tolerated it just fine. I had my cholesterol tested about a year after starting the thyroid and it was 160.

You can mitigate allot of the bad effects of the low cholesterol by supplementing with pregnenolone and or progesterone. Though I don't use pregnenolone because Ive found it irritates my intestine strongly.

Also its good to consider that using supplements orally could be irritating to the intestine, so using them topically is another idea, you need to use about 10 times the amount on the skin to match the oral absorption. It makes it more expensive and inconvenient but for me Ive found its been worth it.

Also Peat has mentioned somewhere that little bits of t3 like 1 - 3 mcgs is very supportive to the liver and can help it produce more cholesterol.

So yeah, bit of a brain dump of a post here but in summary; Clean intestine = happy liver = better cholesterol production, supplementing with progesterone can help compensate for the low choleste

Peat has mentioned a few times on Kmud that its important to keep the intestine clean to keep cholesterol production up. If the liver is being burdened by endotoxin it can interfere with cholesterol production. So raw carrot or boiled mushrooms or cooked bamboo shoots are things to try.

My cholesterol was 135 a couple years ago, at the time I was experiencing bouts of severe depression with suicidal ideation, as well as a lot of other hypothyroid symptoms. At the time I wasn't eating any fiber, my diet was basically the same as what you listed ( and It still is, its a good diet) but I wasn't eating the carrot at the time, because it seemed to give me anxiety and headaches. I decided to try introduce it very slowly, one bite of a carrot, well chewed, per a day for a week, then the next week 2 bites per day, etc. Until I got to about half a carrot which is what I do to this day. After the first few weeks it started working how it should, anxiety way down, migraines gone. I think my cholesterol was still low though because when I tried to introduce a little cynoplus and cynomel Id become depressed by about the 4th day. So I decided to try Progesterone, progest-e at 2 to 4 drops orally per day. That completely stopped depression and anxiety, and bought my resting pulse from 68 to 78. After 2 months of progesterone I decided to try thyroid again, and tolerated it just fine. I had my cholesterol tested about a year after starting the thyroid and it was 160.

You can mitigate allot of the bad effects of the low cholesterol by supplementing with pregnenolone and or progesterone. Though I don't use pregnenolone because Ive found it irritates my intestine strongly.

Also its good to consider that using supplements orally could be irritating to the intestine, so using them topically is another idea, you need to use about 10 times the amount on the skin to match the oral absorption. It makes it more expensive and inconvenient but for me Ive found its been worth it.

Also Peat has mentioned somewhere that little bits of t3 like 1 - 3 mcgs is very supportive to the liver and can help it produce more cholesterol.

So yeah, bit of a brain dump of a post here but in summary; Clean intestine = happy liver = better cholesterol production, supplementing with progesterone can help compensate for the low cholesterol.
I am just reading your post. You said: "Also Peat has mentioned somewhere that little bits of t3 like 1 - 3 mcgs is very supportive to the liver and can help it produce more cholesterol." I have been being told not to use T3 until my cholesterol picks up to at least 180 or even 160. It sounds like you were okay with a small dose of T3 even when your cholesterol was low. Is that true?
 

Jman

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that sounds great, i am 77 but my libido is high and i was worried it would decrease with progesterone. I guess we are all different , so i hope i will be ok.



I am just reading your post. You said: "Also Peat has mentioned somewhere that little bits of t3 like 1 - 3 mcgs is very supportive to the liver and can help it produce more cholesterol." I have been being told not to use T3 until my cholesterol picks up to at least 180 or even 160. It sounds like you were okay with a small dose of T3 even when your cholesterol was low. Is that true?

Yeah 1-3 micrograms of t3 a few times a day never caused problems when I was that low, and seemed to help a little. The liver needs t3 for healthy functioning, so little bits like that, used cautiously and always with food, could help someone break out of a cycle.

At your age some Dhea would be worth a try.
 

movebetter

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Yeah 1-3 micrograms of t3 a few times a day never caused problems when I was that low, and seemed to help a little. The liver needs t3 for healthy functioning, so little bits like that, used cautiously and always with food, could help someone break out of a cycle.

At your age some Dhea would be worth a try.
Thanks, I will try a bit of t3. Hard to measure that small of an amount.

Didn't you say to avoid DHEA with cancer?
 

Jman

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Thanks, I will try a bit of t3. Hard to measure that small of an amount.

Didn't you say to avoid DHEA with cancer?

I don't think I've said anything about dhea and cancer. Do you have cancer?

To get small doses accurately I powder cynomel tablets and use these micro-scoops:

Superdosing 2-in-1 Static-Free Micro Scoop With 10-15 mg + 25-30 mg Measuring Spoons 25 Pack. Sturdy For Easy, Mess-Free Nootropic Supplement Powder Measurement. Multipack = A Tiny Spoon for Each Jar!

The small end of the scoop measures roughly a 1/12th of a cynomel tab, so about 2 mcg.
 

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