Hi,
I am a 30 year old male, 6' tall, weighing around 176 pounds. I don't smoke, rarely drink and exercise a few times a week (club/league badminton).
Around 7 years ago, I was found to have a raised blood pressure of around 140/90 with a 24 hour average of 128/83. After lots of investigations, no apparent cause was found for hypertension and I was put on 2.5mg of Ramipril. Due to various side effects (low libido!), I decided to stop taking them - probably unwise. However, my blood pressure has actually dropped to around 130/95 during day time.
During the above investigations, my blood test showed that I had a total cholesterol level of 5.9 and was given a leaflet on lowering it. However, a few months ago I was undergoing underwriting by a life insurance group whose blood tests showed that I had a total cholesterol of 7.1! Other figures were:
Triglyceride: 1.5
HDL: 1.5
LDL: 4.9
% of HDL out of total: 21%
I don't eat particularly healthy foods - there's nothing "low fat" in my fridge but, that said, I don't eat microwaveable rubbish (don't even own the oven!) and very few canned foods. However, I do eat a lot of eggs and meat... everything fried in butter - no good.
What do you suggest I do? Change my foods to try and reduce my HDL cholesterol level or go to GP and ask for statins? I am worried that high cholesterol and raised BP is going to spell a short life for me!
Any advice highly appreciated.
Thanks
Alex
Hi,
I am a 30 year old male, 6' tall, weighing around 176 pounds. I don't smoke, rarely drink and exercise a few times a week (club/league badminton).
Around 7 years ago, I was found to have a raised blood pressure of around 140/90 with a 24 hour average of 128/83. After lots of investigations, no apparent cause was found for hypertension and I was put on 2.5mg of Ramipril. Due to various side effects (low libido!), I decided to stop taking them - probably unwise. However, my blood pressure has actually dropped to around 130/95 during day time.
During the above investigations, my blood test showed that I had a total cholesterol level of 5.9 and was given a leaflet on lowering it. However, a few months ago I was undergoing underwriting by a life insurance group whose blood tests showed that I had a total cholesterol of 7.1! Other figures were:
Triglyceride: 1.5
HDL: 1.5
LDL: 4.9
% of HDL out of total: 21%I don't eat particularly healthy foods - there's nothing "low fat" in my fridge but, that said, I don't eat microwaveable rubbish (don't even own the oven!) and very few canned foods. However, I do eat a lot of eggs and meat... everything fried in butter - no good.
What do you suggest I do? Change my foods to try and reduce my HDL cholesterol level or go to GP and ask for statins? I am worried that high cholesterol and raised BP is going to spell a short life for me!
Any advice highly appreciated.
Thanks
Alex
Hi Alex
I can't answer you in detail, but can give you general guidelines. For detailed assessment please refer to your GP or my choice would be to get a consultation from a qualified Nutritional Therapist, see [DLMURL="http://www.ion.ac.uk/directory.htm"]here[/DLMURL] or . There are many possible causes and the therapist will help to sort these out - not to just treat the symptoms of hypertension or cholesterol.
Meanwhile I would suggest a wholeood diet - at least half of which is vegetables and fruit - as a guideline about half a kilo daily, of a rainbow assortment of colours - have a good look at the selection in the greengrocers or large supermarket. This will help supply the many phytonutrients that your body uses as building blocks for enzymes and co-factors needed to function properly. Eating oily fish (salmon, herring, mackerel, sardine) 2-3 times a week will help supply essential omega-3 oils. These two things alone will help to reduce internal inflammation and could make a difference. A high meat diet can be pro-inflammatory for some. Eggs are fine so long as they are organic, omega oil-rich eggs. Columbus used to produce them, but I've not seen them recently.
To reduce your cholesterol levels, if you have a drink of hot water with some fresh lemon juice added on waking to activate the emptying of the gall bladder which gets rid of excess cholesterol. You then have oatbran (2 tablespoons, probably better pre-soaked overnight) with your breakfast - added to porridge or in an oat-based, unsweetened museli. The oatbran traps this cholesterol, stopping it from being reabsorbed through the gut wall lower down into the bloodstream, and carries it out of the body in the faeces. A simple and most effective way of reducing cholesterol! Wheat bran doesn't do this - it traps minerals and carries them out, so is best avoided in quantity. High cholesterol is not an illness, it's a symptom of things not functioning quite right, and particularly noticeable where there is inflammation.
Sugar could be making things difficult - pro-inflammatory - and will be converted to triglycerides (fats) so avoid it as much as possible, also cakes, biscuits, puddings etc. For sweetness use mineral-rich blackstrap molasses or unprocessed honey in small amounts. Snack on nuts and seeds and sprouted seeds.
The rest will be sorted through by your nutritional therapist and I am sure it can be done without too much difficulty!
Wishing you the best of health.
Hi Captain Jack
First, you are aware that your diet is high in fat. Maybe just a slight change there will go a long way
Second, Don't worry youself sick with high colestrol. I have two friends who have abnormally high cholestrol levels. It does not kill everybody! Relax.
Third, Please do see your GP. but there are lots of things which medical profession has bog standard remedies for. Sometimes they help in one area and completely wreck another. Sorting things for yourself can be the best option.
About 10 years ago my husband's cholestrol shot up from 3.1 to 5.8 ( All cakes baked with butter, I am slapping my wrist...)
As I had caused it, I took personal responsibilty to bring it down with my husband's co-operation, of course.
I prescribed Kapal Bhati pranayam for 3 months. Gradually building up from 25 to 200 times each morning. Sure enough that was that! His cholestrol is back to where it was before since. But he did it everyday. I now bake in sunflower oil. Still use butter a lot but fry, bake etc in oil.
It can help your high blood pressure too.
Good luck