Blood Work - High Cholesterol - High Triglycerides - Low Testosterone

[johns74]

I would be careful about taking supplements, including any non-topical magnesium. You have a lot of potential for having the contaminants interact with excess iron. I would though take vitamin D to protect from the problems of excess iron, and whatever it takes to reduce those triglycerides (except polyunsaturated fats such as krill oil or liver oil or fish oil).

I guess in this situation I wouldn't take the tocotrienols in your supplement.

 

[Iron Man]

Thanks Haidut and johns 74 for the clarifications. Ok, I am sold after seeing that research. I will finish off the Tocosorb and then get this - http://www.iherb.com/A-C-Grace-Company- ... tgels/8627

Is the A-C Grace Vitamin E still ok? One of the forum members had it linked to a site and it was the best of the two he rated.

I have a real "thing" with Doctors, surgery, giving blood and all of the above. I need to be about comatose to visit a Doctor, so giving blood is really off the cards unless I take some sedation. This is why I am leaning on the supplements to ditch the excess iron. I am taking IP6 a the moment.

I take Vitamin D3 already (5,000 - 10,000 IU per day).

I think most of my issues are all with the high iron levels and high cortisol.

I need to read up on why Ray Peat says Krill and Cod Liver oil capsules are so bad. I am certainly hooking into these to get my cholesterol and triglycerides down.

 

[Iron Man]

I do take zinc, but only about 15-30mg per day and the day of the blood tests, I fasted a full 12-14 hours from food and supplements.

 

[Iron Man]

I would be careful about taking supplements, including any non-topical magnesium. You have a lot of potential for having the contaminants interact with excess iron. I would though take vitamin D to protect from the problems of excess iron, and whatever it takes to reduce those triglycerides (except polyunsaturated fats such as krill oil or liver oil or fish oil).

I guess in this situation I wouldn't take the tocotrienols in your supplement.

So is Magnesium Citrate not good? I am taking that 3X a day at present.

Again, I am leaning on the supplements at the moment (whilst I have a good clean diet) in order to reverse these numbers. If I come back from a second blood test with high numbers, family members (who are Doctors and Nurses) will certainly lean on me to take Statins and TRT. I do not want this...

 

[haidut]

Aspirin, vitamin E, milk thistle, tetracycline/doxycycline, thiamine, etc all lower iron. So, you have some other options, given that charcoal causes constipation in doses needed to lower iron (15g - 30g daily).

Do they reduce iron in the blood, or do they reduce total iron in the body? I think one should do the latter, one should remove iron from the body.

Aspirin can remove iron from the body if it causes bleeding.

Apsirin raises ceruloplasmin and that gets iron out of the cells and especially brain. Milk thistle specifically chelates iron out of the liver where it is most dangerous. This effect explains at least partially the beneficial effects of milk thistle on the liver. The tetracyclines directly chelate iron and will reduce it everywhere - cells and plasma. Doxycycline is especially effective since it is much more fat soluble than tetracycline. Just like milk thistle, the strong iron chelating effect explains some of the anti-cancer effects of the tetracyclines.

 

[johns74]

Apsirin raises ceruloplasmin and that gets iron out of the cells and especially brain. Milk thistle specifically chelates iron out of the liver where it is most dangerous.

So it doesn't get it out of the body and just allows it to do damage somewhere else?

If so, it's terrible, harmful advice to tell people with excess iron stores to take these things that don't remove iron from the body.

 

[johns74]

I am taking IP6 a the moment.

If you don't remove iron from the body I don't think you'll solve your health problems. Bleeding, through blood donation or otherwise, is the proven way to do this.

Do you know if IP6 removes iron from the body, and how, or does it just reduce ferritin? Ferritin stores iron in a safer form. If IP6 reduces ferritin without taking iron out of the body, that would just mean that IP6 moves the iron found in ferritin to a more dangerous place where it will do more damage.

 

[haidut]

High ceruloplasmin lowers bod iron stores reflected by lower ferritin and higher TIBC. This would indicate that the iron is leaving the body, right? How exactly ceruloplasmin does that I am not sure. Maybe a doctor can chime in here.
Btw, aspirin also seems to directly chelate iron.
viewtopic.php?f=75&t=6769&p=83204

 

[Iron Man]

Sorry, but I am a bit confused now...

Is aspirin ok to take? The soluble type in water?

For high iron, I am already taking IP6, but am considering adding milk thistle and aspirin as well.

I am wanting to get iron out of the body as I think this high iron level is effecting my other areas.

Thanks.

 

[haidut]

Sorry, but I am a bit confused now...

Is aspirin ok to take? The soluble type in water?

For high iron, I am already taking IP6, but am considering adding milk thistle and aspirin as well.

I am wanting to get iron out of the body as I think this high iron level is effecting my other areas.

Thanks.

Aspirin has been shown to lower ferritin, so i may help your case. Milk thistle is also potentially helpful, especially if you have liver issues.

 

[Iron Man]

Haidut - I really appreciate your input, thank you!

How much aspirin should I take? One dissolved in a glass of water per day at bed time?

I am going with that AC Grace E to replace Tocosorb to help boost Testosterone (which is still low, I can feel it is still low).

On the cortisol front, I am increasing the quality of sleep and am taking two Ashwaganda per day. Not sure what else to do there.

 

[Iron Man]

I am also seeing that garlic might be beneficial in my case with increasing testosterone, lowering ALT, lowering overall cholesterol and helping the liver. Any thoughts on this?

 

[haidut]

Haidut - I really appreciate your input, thank you!

How much aspirin should I take? One dissolved in a glass of water per day at bed time?

I am going with that AC Grace E to replace Tocosorb to help boost Testosterone (which is still low, I can feel it is still low).

On the cortisol front, I am increasing the quality of sleep and am taking two Ashwaganda per day. Not sure what else to do there.

I would not take aspirin with vitamin E - thins the blood too much.

 

[montmorency]

My Cholesterol was VERY high. My Triglycerides were so high, they could not even measure them.

I am taking IP6 to ditch the excess iron from my system.

Another set of blood tests in 4 weeks will tell me how I am going. My Testosterone is really low and I can still feel that it is low. Crazy when I factor all the weightlifting.

Renky,

I am coming in late to this, but if you haven't already considered it, you might think about supplementing with Niacin, aka Vitamin B3. I will probably be criticised for throwing yet another supplement at you, but anyway, please bear with me for a moment and read on.

Before you actually take it, I'd suggest trying to read something by the late Dr Abram Hoffer (e.g. "Niacin: The Real Story"), and then make up your own mind.

However, you will find that Niacin/vitamin B3 comes in several forms. The basic one, simplest and probably cheapest, is nicotinic acid, which you can get in capsule form from, e.g. Solgar. This is the one that Hoffer recommended in most cases, provided that the person can tolerate the "flush", which can be alarming at first, but I can verify that you do get used to it, and in fact, if you take it regularly, it usually stops occurring.

Hoffer was a contemporary of Pauling's, and they did interact to some extent; I think Pauling partly credits Hoffer with the idea of vitamin megadosing, and by the way, Hoffer suggested taking niacin with vitamin C.

Niacin seems to have a lot of benefits, but one of them is normalising blood lipid levels, i.e. reducing total cholesterol, and improving the HDL to LDL ratio, and I think reducing triglycerides.

I think that Ray Peat has respect for the work of both Hoffer and Pauling, and I think I have read that he thinks that as well as normalising blood lipid levels, it is doing something to strengthen the health of the blood vessels.

I have noticed people here recommending the niacinamide (non-flushing) form of vitamin B3 in preference to nicotinic acid. However, according to ""Niacin: the real story" (Abram Hoffer) niacinamide has no beneficial effect on blood lipids. If you want a no-flush form of vitamin B3 which does have beneficial effects, you could try Inositol Hexaniacinate.
however, Hoffer says that it's not as effective as nicotinic acid, and I think it's more expensive.


@Renky: I think nicotinic acid is something worth trying in your case, since as you say, your levels were so high, even if it is supposedly not ideal from a Peat point of view. I've seen the comment made that niacin causes PUFAs to be released in the blood. Well, that's a risk I suppose, but presumably you have already taken steps to remove PUFAs from your diet (if they were in it to begin with).

And take it with vitamin C...but ideally read what Hoffer has to say about it first.

 

[Iron Man]

I just received the results from my latest blood tests today. As a refresher, this is what they were in April 2015;

Chemistry (serum)

Sodium - 140 mmol/L ( Reference range - 135 - 145 )
Potassium - 4.7 mmol/L ( Reference range - 3.5 - 5.5 )
Chloride - 103 mmol/L ( Reference range - 135 - 145 )
Bicarbonate - 26 mmol/L ( Reference range - 20 - 32 )
Anion Gap - 11 mmol/L ( Reference range - 5 - 15 )

Ca (corr) - 2.46 mmol/L ( Reference range - 2.10 - 2.55 )
Phosphate - 1.2 mmol/L ( Reference range - 0.8 - 1.5 )

Urea - 7.2 mmol/L ( Reference range - 3.0 - 8.0 )
Urate - 0.37 mmol/L ( Reference range - 0.20 - 0.50 )
Creatinine - 81 umol/L ( Reference range - 60 - 110 )
eGFR - >90 ( Reference Range - >59 )

Fast Glucose - 5.2 mmol/L ( Reference range - 3.6 - 6.0 )

Total Protein - 79 g/L ( Reference Range - 66 - 83 )
Albumin - 51 gL ( Reference Range - 39 - 50 )
Globulin - 28 g/L ( Reference Range - 20 - 39 )
T Bilirubin - 11 umol/L ( Reference range - 4 - 20 )
ALP - 78 U/L ( Reference Range - 35 - 110 )
AST - 33 U/L ( Reference Range - 10 - 40 )
ALT - 55 U/L ( Reference Range - 5 - 40 )
GGT - 39 U/L ( Reference Range - 5 - 40 )
LDH - 203 U/L ( Reference Range - 120 - 250 )

Cholesterol - 8.8 mmol/L ( Reference range - 3.9 - 5.5 )
Triglyceride - 7.8 mmol/L ( Reference range - 0.6 - 2.0 )
HDL - 1.07 mmol/L ( Reference range - 0.90 - 1.50 )
LDL - ( Reference range - 0. 0 - 4.0 )
Cholesterol/HDL Ratio - 8.2 ( Reference range - 0. 0 - 4.5 )

Haemolysis Index - 15 ( Reference Range - 0 - 40 )

Comments on Lab - Suggested optimal treatment targets for patients are:
LDL Cholesterol - <2.0 mmol/L
HDL Cholesterol - >1.00 mmol/L
Triglycerides - <1.5 mmol/L

Triglycerides exceed 4.5 mmol/L. This prevents calculation of the LDL cholesterol level.

Measured LDL Cholesterol

Measured LDL Cholesterol - 3.6 mmol/L ( Reference range - 0 - 4.0 )

Comments on Lab - This LDL has been measured directly. A calculated LDL level using the Friedewald equation was not valid for this sample as the triglyceride level was >4.5 mmol/L

Androgens

Testosterone - 7.6 nmol/L ( Reference Range - 11.0 - 40.0 )

Anaemia Profile

Iron - 22 umol/L ( Reference Range - 5 - 30 )
TIBC - 62 umol/L ( Reference Range - 45 - 72 )
Saturation - 35% ( Reference Range - 20 - 55 )
Ferritin - 242 ug/L ( Reference Range - 25 - 220 )

[shadow=blue]This is today's (Sept 4th, 2015) results;[/shadow]

Chemistry (serum)

Sodium - 141 mmol/L ( Reference range - 135 - 145 )
Potassium - 4.7 mmol/L ( Reference range - 3.5 - 5.5 )
Chloride - 105 mmol/L ( Reference range - 135 - 145 )
Bicarbonate - 22 mmol/L ( Reference range - 20 - 32 )
Anion Gap - 14 mmol/L ( Reference range - 5 - 15 )

Ca (corr) - 2.41 mmol/L ( Reference range - 2.10 - 2.55 )
Phosphate - 1.1 mmol/L ( Reference range - 0.8 - 1.5 )

Urea - 5.5 mmol/L ( Reference range - 3.0 - 8.0 )
Urate - 0.37 mmol/L ( Reference range - 0.20 - 0.50 )
Creatinine - 72 umol/L ( Reference range - 60 - 110 )
eGFR - >90 ( Reference Range - >59 )

Fast Glucose - 5.6 mmol/L ( Reference range - 3.6 - 6.0 )

Total Protein - 77 g/L ( Reference Range - 66 - 83 )
Albumin - 47 gL ( Reference Range - 39 - 50 )
Globulin - 30 g/L ( Reference Range - 20 - 39 )
T Bilirubin - 10 umol/L ( Reference range - 4 - 20 )
ALP - 66 U/L ( Reference Range - 35 - 110 )
AST - 37 U/L ( Reference Range - 10 - 40 )
ALT - 53 U/L ( Reference Range - 5 - 40 )
GGT - 30 U/L ( Reference Range - 5 - 40 )
LDH - 186 U/L ( Reference Range - 120 - 250 )

Cholesterol - 7.4 mmol/L ( Reference range - 3.9 - 5.5 )
Triglyceride - 5.0 mmol/L ( Reference range - 0.6 - 2.0 )
HDL - 0.91 mmol/L ( Reference range - 0.90 - 1.50 )
Measured LDL - 3.7 mmol/L ( Reference range - 0. 0 - 4.0 )
Cholesterol/HDL Ratio - 8.1 ( Reference range - 0. 0 - 4.5 )

Comments on Lab - Suggested optimal treatment targets for patients are:
LDL Cholesterol - <2.0 mmol/L
HDL Cholesterol - >1.00 mmol/L
Triglycerides - <1.5 mmol/L

Androgens

Testosterone - 9.0 nmol/L ( Reference Range - 11.0 - 40.0 )

Anaemia Profile

Iron - 22 umol/L ( Reference Range - 5 - 30 )
Transferrin - 2.3 g/L ( Reference Range - 1.9 - 3.1 )
Haemolysis Index - 7 ( Reference Range - 0 - 40 )
TIBC - 57 umol/L ( Reference Range - 45 - 72 )
Trans Saturation - 39% ( Reference Range - 20 - 55 )
Ferritin - 287 ug/L ( Reference Range - 25 - 220 )

 

[Iron Man]

The numbers seem to be improving, but I have to keep working on it.

I have been taking Choline, for the liver.

I have been taking Taurine (4g) each night

I have been also taking 4g of Fish Oil (Doc insisted) capsules per day

I have been taking IP6 and milk thistle to ditch the excess iron

I have also been cutting back body fat and am now down to about 14%-15% bodyfat

What else can I be doing and what do people think of my latest results?

THANKS in advance!

 

[narouz]

post 98340 The numbers seem to be improving, but I have to keep working on it.

I have been taking Choline, for the liver.

I have been taking Taurine (4g) each night

I have been also taking 4g of Fish Oil (Doc insisted) capsules per day

I have been taking IP6 and milk thistle to ditch the excess iron

I have also been cutting back body fat and am now down to about 14%-15% bodyfat

What else can I be doing and what do people think of my latest results?

THANKS in advance!

Personally, I would stop the fish oil.

 

[Iron Man]

If I stop the fish oil, then what will bring down the cholesterol? The Doctor is adamant that this is what I need to take if I want to avoid statins.

My iron levels seem to be getting worse too and someone said I may have hemochromatosis?

I am just stumped on what to do...

 

[Iron Man]

One thing I just noticed on my lab results is that they changed the range for ferritin levels and the upper range is now 300. My latest result is 284, so it is apparently within range but still rising. Not sure what is going on or what to do.

Is it a matter of high dosing milk thistle, IP6 and choline?

Thanks

 

[tara]

post 98414 Personally, I would stop the fish oil.

Ditto.

post 98340 The numbers seem to be improving, but I have to keep working on it.

I have been taking Choline, for the liver.

I have been taking Taurine (4g) each night

I have been also taking 4g of Fish Oil (Doc insisted) capsules per day

I have been taking IP6 and milk thistle to ditch the excess iron

I have also been cutting back body fat and am now down to about 14%-15% bodyfat

What else can I be doing and what do people think of my latest results?

THANKS in advance!

Have you been trying any of Peat' ideas for improving metabolism?

Want to update whatever you data you have on base metabolism? Resting pulse and body temps? Did you get any thyroid tests? Other hypothyroid symptoms? Since high cholesterol is a possible hypothyroid symptom.