What To Make Of These Numbers

[Dessert_All_Day]

Note: I ate some eggs around 11:30 pm then fasted until my test around 8:15 am the next morning.

(mg/dl)

Total Cholesterol: 169
LDL: 103
HDL: 32
Trig.: 168
Blood glucose: 89

Blood pressure: 114/80
BMI: 19


The doctor said I could raise HDL by adding more omega 3 fats to my diet. She said I could lower triglycerides by eating less saturated fat and more fiber. Any thoughts on her advice? I'm aware that it might be complete nonsense but any input would be appreciated.

I'm a bit concerned about the triglyceride level. Could it be partially explained by the fact that I had 5 scrambled eggs right before I went to bed? If not, any suggestions on how to bring the triglycerides down?

Any other general thoughts/opinions are welcome too. Thanks and cheers.

 

[Giraffe]

Reference values for triglycerides in my country is 150 - 200. Not sure why your doctor thinks you need to lower it. What doctors think about HDL being the good cholesterol and LDL being the bad one is nonsense. You do not want to specifically raise your HDL. Your total cholesterol is quite on the low side.

Cholesterol And Saturated Fats - East West Healing

JR: Talking about cholesterol, can you explain the basic differences between HDL and LDL ?
RP: Both of them are able to participate in detoxification, the protein of it helps to carry the cholesterol in the bloodstream. Itself, has some very specific anti-stress, even anti-viral activity, so they are part of our ability to respond to stress (the protein as well as the cholesterol associated with the protein). They are both defensive, and both important. But the LDL is mostly the one that carries cholesterol into the places where it's needed; the brain, the ovaries, testicles and the adrenal glands, anywhere you're making steroids, and that includes the skin. Skin is probably our biggest endocrine gland, brain is the next, and then the ovaries, testicles and adrenals. The HDL has probably some more specific anti-toxic effects, whether the LDL is more a delivery system of cholesterol itself. Toxins will tend to increase the HDL, relative to the LDL; toxins of most types will increase both of them defensively. But the chlorinated hydrocarbons, radiation, estrogen and alcohol for example will increase the HDL relative to the LDL because it has some more specific anti-toxic effect.

 

[Dessert_All_Day]

Thanks for the response, Giraffe.

The doc's advice to increase omega 3's seemed like a bad idea depending on specifics (replacing regular dairy products w/ dairy from grass fed cows could "increase omega 3's" by decreasing 6's which i suppose would be desirable) so I was skeptical.

I'm a little OCD about the triglycerides because of the occasional non-alcoholic fatty liver horror story on these forums. Elevated triglycerides are a strong predictor of NAFL (or so I thought).

 

[ecstatichamster]

Yes cholesterol is very low. That is concerning.

 

[Dessert_All_Day]

Yes cholesterol is very low. That is concerning.

Anything in specific i should be concerned about? Or dietary changes that may improve the numbers?

I generally feel quite good but am open to the possibility that there is room for improvement somewhere, especially if it involves eating more delicious food

 

[Giraffe]

I generally feel quite good but am open to the possibility that there is room for improvement somewhere, especially if it involves eating more delicious food

It does. :)

 

[ecstatichamster]

more sugar...fructose...good quality fruit, OJ, a few cokes now and then...

 

[Dessert_All_Day]

Courtesy of HDD from another thread:

RP: There was a study a few years ago of women in nursing homes, or rest homes, or convalescent hospital situations, and they followed them from the time they entered until they died and watched how the level of cholesterol corresponded to their longevity and ability to function. The optimal cholesterol level for that purpose, living a long time and keeping their mentality sound, was 270 mg/dl.


Cholesterol Is An Important Molecule, KMUD, 2008


HD: Getting back to cholesterol, given that you would consider a value of 270mg/dl to be acceptable, is this more for elderly people, or would this apply to younger people?

RP: That's for old people. It's the same as the blood pressure thing. The cholesterol rises as there is a problem to be soothed; and when the tissues are less efficient, they need more blood supply. So the blood pressure and the cholesterol tend to rise with aging as the tissues need more care and attention.

Peat's above quote makes it seem like low cholesterol isn't necessarily a problem, right? Is it only a problem when you've clearly got inflammation that isn't being soothed? Or is it "setting you up for a disaster" down the road when inflammation does start to occur? Or aren't we sure? Me confused.

 

[Giraffe]

Cholesterol is a protective substance, and it is converted to other protective substances. It is the raw material for steroid hormones and bile acids, and it is involved in repair processes in the body. In inflammation cholesterol will raise, after surgery it skyrockets. In hypothyroidism it tends to be high as a protective mechanism,

On the other hand if your liver is sluggish and not producing enough cholesterol (to little sugar preferably from ripe fruit or fruit juice and/or too little T3), you will have low cholesterol levels. Quite a few people have "perfect" cholesterol levels because they undereat.

The levels healthy people have change a bit with age, with older folk having higher cholesterol levels. Peat said that anywhere between 160 and 230 is good.

 

[Dessert_All_Day]

That makes sense. More sugar is doable. After all, I'm 6 ft 1 and only 145 lbs, so I could very well be under eating without realizing it.

I did a not-very-strict paleo-ish thing all throughout my teens and early 20's and didn't feel that anything was wrong until about a year ago, and that's when my cholesterol levels were at their absolute lowest (around 150). At the time, I was intellectually convinced the low number was a good thing, but then stumbled upon Dr. Peat's work. Like many others here I assume, I knew I'd struck gold after reading a few of his articles. Still, it's taken a while to incorporate this stuff into my daily routine.

I think this is an "aha moment" for me; I'm still unnecessarily skimping on the sugar and the salt. Listening to these cravings rather than putting up with them for an extra hour or two may allow me to consume more calories and boost my metabolism and cholesterol. For years I programmed my brain to ignore cravings. It's weird actually listening to them now. But fun!

Thanks for the replies.

 

[Giraffe]

For years I programmed my brain to ignore cravings. It's weird actually listening to them now. But fun!

Enjoy your food! And good luck on your journey! :)