Cholesterol levels

[Merlin5]

I was invited to see a health advisor today after the result of a cholesterol blood test in August. Obviously not urgent since my results were 2 months ago, but my cholesterol is 5.2mmol/L. It's meant to be 5 maximum. So it means I'm going to have to change my diet a fair bit.

She gave me an info sheet on what not to eat or at least, to moderate. Most importantly, avoiding food with saturated fat. Meat pies, sausages, butter, cream, hard cheeses, cakes and biscuits, and foods with coconut or palm oil. Everything I like to eat!

She also measured my blood pressure which was 155. But it was 144 in June. I suspect that is due to overdoing my vaping, so I'll cut back on that and hopefully that should lower.

I think that the 5.2 is not too bad, but because of the higher blood pressure, it's a recipe for potential heart attack or stroke. I'm going back in 2 weeks to see any improvements I've made.

Do you think I should avoid my macaroni cheese and cottage pies which in both cases I usually make a big amount and eat over 2 or 3 days, and try and eat mostly chicken, mackerel, boiled potatoes, fish with no batter for the next two weeks and see how that goes?

Has anyone else here had to change their diet due to high cholesterol?

 

[Merlin5]

Well yes. Obviously. You've just been given stone cold facts that demonstrate this

And not for "a few weeks" either. You need to make a lifestyle change. Wean yourself off lardy batter, butter, cheese, cream, fats. Grow to like other types of flavours. Grill some fish, enjoy the BBQ flavour or something.

You know what to do, yet it sounds like you just don't want to. Eat mac & cheese three times a week is clearly not good for you, you shouldn't have needed a doctor to tell you that.

Yes, you're correct and I didn't need to ask that question about mac n cheese. For clarity however, I make either of those about once a month, not every week.

No, I'm definitely up for changing my diet. I'm just going to have to rethink new meals to make instead of the usual things I cook, and just treat myself occasionally. I buy too many frozen things in batter or breadcrumbs like cod or kievs, and way too many oven chips.

I think staying away or seriously reducing red meat intake is something I should do, and there was a time I only ever did white meat. As you say, grilling fish would be good. Fish can be really expensive though. What fish would you recommend I buy that could get me a few meals without being too pricey?

The cake baking hobby I've developed will have to be cut back because of all the eggs, cream and butter.

 

[Merlin5]

last time mine was 6.7 im 40 years old

When was that last time and is it still that high?

 

[Merlin5]

Isn't exercise still king for helping reduce blood pressure ?

I thought that for cholesterol, if you're not eating excess of wrong foods, its still largely hereditary on how much your body takes from food,
so dropping the intake excessively may have negligible impact, so personally worry less about very specific food types and more about regular aerobic exercise,
which manages weight too.

It's a very good point. Doctor asked me if I exercise and my reply was that I'm a drummer and gig one to three times every week. Whether that is really enough to qualify as exercise I don't know but can be a workout depending on the gig. I also walk a fair bit each day, though not dedicated walks. I think I'll have to ask in the sports forum for a recommended aerobic regime.

 

[Merlin5]

^ That's a brilliant detailed reply! Thanks.

I eat porridge almost everyday and I've read it's kind of a miracle food as it can reduce cholesterol by up to 23%. Maybe had I not been eating it my total mmol/L might be higher.

 

[Merlin5]

Thanks Scam and Paul. That's a lot of good information and recipes for me to read through. I don't think I've had much sea bass before so can't think what it tastes like but looking forward to it.

Today I had porridge for breakfast, and mackerel and cucumber sandwiches for lunch from a tin of mackerel in sunflower oil. I've been pressure washing and cleaning outside my house all day, only just finished so a late dinner is currently cooking. I'm having chicken drumsticks which I've skinned and coated with paprika, salt (50% reduced sodium), pepper, curry powder, flour, cayenne and a teaspoon of chicken seasoning, boiled carrots with lemon juice sprinkled over, and boiled potatoes. I've left the potato skin on as it's fat and cholesterol free and has good vitamins. I'd say that's a fairly healthy days food.

 

[Merlin5]

Training to be a nutritionist.

There's no miracle/super-foods - some are just more nutrient-dense than others - and it's not about one particular food or even meal, but the diet as a whole. That said omega 3 fish oils (either from eating oily fish or through a high quality supplement like Nordic Oil) and a good dose of vitamin D3 (4000iu) do seem to benefit nearly everyone as Western diets and weather conditions lack both.

If you're overweight (or perhaps your BMI puts you in the healthy range, but your body composition isn't great, e.g. plenty of visceral fat but not much muscle mass) then the biggest difference to your levels will be addressing this through a calorie deficit then maintaining a healthy weight long-term... and of course being active, getting enough sleep and keeping stress low.

Ah a nutritionist, very cool.

Well the health advisor was going to weigh me and take my height but she forgot to and I never got a BMI number. But I would say I'd be in the healthier range. I'm 60, 5' 10.5"/11", not sure, and 12 stone 3lb. I'm basically slim and never put on weight until I got past 50 as my metabolism was fast. I think I would have been described as an ectomorph. But now, all the cake and less healthy foods have given me a bit of paunch, or as you mentioned, visceral fat.

Interested in your thoughts on my lipids results.
The LDL is one higher than the good lipids.
https://i.postimg.cc/8zcSg7F2/20191004-173552.jpg

 

[Merlin5]

Did the Dr's not talk about statins ? Diet, exercise and cutting smoking are where they start, but if that doesn't work you'll probably get prescribed them.

You sound similar to me. Cake & biscuits are the downfall, I try as much as possible to snack on fruit instead, but willpower can fail.

No, statins are only prescribed if you have coronary heart disease or cardiovascular disease or if family is known to have a history of it. Though I should think the doctor probably would suggest it if my BP or cholesterol were to get any higher.

Hah yeah, the cakes! If you've seen any of my posts here, I bake and eat a lot of cakes and desserts, but need to really moderate that. I eat fruit but not as much as I should. I eat grapes and bananas quite a lot though which are apparently good for lowering cholesterol. I ought to eat oranges and apples a bit more.

 

[Merlin5]

I'm not sure jpaul. Once of my brothers is on statins now, I think his cholesterol was 5.5. I'll have to see what they say after another blood test which I think they're going to want to do.

I received my blood pressure machine, an Omron M3 Intellisense. I've had readings varying from 132 (< only once) to 166, and quite a few were 150+, but I think the higher readings were when I hadn't sat down and rested for a few minutes first.

At the press of a button, this machine can give me an average of the last 3 readings done within 10 minutes and my last average this afternoon was 145 over 89. I guess it's not too bad. What I've noticed is that whatever the top number is, the bottom diastolic has been high. Max should be 84. I had a few readings last night below 84 but today they're all around 90 to 92.

Edit: just got an average score 140 over 84. Happy with that!

Anyway, back to healthy food. I bought fresh Mackerel today. Very impressed with the amount I got for under £3, wasn't expecting that. Should give me 2, maybe 3 meals. I've frozen it all, just wondering if it was ok to wrap in cling film?

By the time I got home from Tesco, it had been off the ice for the best part of an hour. I read that it should be good for 2 to 3 months frozen, but if it hadn't have gone above 0°( which it did of course) then it would have kept indefinitely?

Just wondering about bones, is there an easy way to debone?

 

[Merlin5]

First of all your health adviser doesn't have a clue what is good cholesterol and what is bad.

Coconut oil is good for you. Replace all cooking oil with coconut oil - the refined stuff is fine and cheaper.

Butter - again is good for you in moderation - avoid margerine. margerine is man made it's refined and the body see's it as a toxin and stores it which is bad.

Avocado's again whilst having high saturated fat - are probably the best thing you could be eating. start having avocados with egg, toast, wraps, salads, etc.

Basically you have people out there spreading myths like saturated fat is bad and all saturated fat is the same. it is not. complete myth. nuts for example have saturated fat and again very healthy for you. again everything in moderation.

Pies (cheap ones have terrible meat), sausages (terrible meat), cakes, biscuits, cream - this is all pretty obvious. Anyone should know this isn't good for you. Do I really need to add crisps, fried food, bacon, chips, etc to this list? You need to avoid cheap sources of meat especially red meat, avoid dairy as it's not normal for a human to be drinking cows milk, avoid obvious crap.

However butter in small amounts is fine, so is coconut oil and try and have 1-2 avocados per day as part of a meal.

Well, you're definitely correct about avocados. I don't like avocado much, but I'll start eating them if they're good for opening arteries.

Not sure about your thumbs up for coconut oil and butter though? Here's the info sheet I was given.

The tins of mackerel you can find in most supermarkets are really good. Probably a bit of sugar etc in them but one of those on toast is great for a light lunch.

I got the impression you're not much of a cook. If I'm wrong I apologise, but would you not be better off buying fillets? I love cooking and experimenting and I am relatively skilled in the kitchen, yet I mostly wouldn't faff with whole fish unless it's needed for a particular recipe or I'm showing off. Keep it simple, and do things you'd be happy to do on repeat once a week.

Nice to know the tins are good. I buy those from Aldi, only about 55p per tin.

Well, I can cook a few things, but only have a small repertoire and not that healthy. Never cooked fresh fish though other than boil in a bag cod, lol.

I enjoy baking bread and cakes a lot more and am pretty good at that. But will have to severely reduce it.

Yes I'd be better off with fillets. Thing is, that is more expensive and I'm trying to do healthy on a budget. BUT, I think deboning might be a pain in the ass so I think filleted will be the way and as you say, more likely to keep me repeating it. The mackerel I bought was under £3 for almost 800g. I'll be interested to find out how much 800g of filleted mackerel would cost. Hopefully not too much more.

you didn't immediately have a fresh grilled mackerel , with mashed potato, or fresh bread ?
they reiterated on r4 this morning 80% of uk mackerel/herring catch go abroad ... maybe brexit will fix that, if people then switched some of their red meat consumption.....
if I were freezing them I'd probably filet them first.

Yeah I should have eaten a piece while fresh, but I had chicken waiting to be cooked plus I was panicking about the fish getting to room temperature, so thought I'd better just go ahead and freeze it. And yes, I should have filleted before freezing. So, how long does it take to defrost a fish in the fridge, and do I need to slice off a thin layer across the fish get rid of most bones? I don't even know how to grill it properly. I guess season it with salt and pepper and stick under grill for 5 minutes a side?

 

[Merlin5]

Thanks Hilly, noted. I guess still worth eating some avocado then if it's good for the arteries, even if they don't open them.

mackerel -
you'd need to buy them with head on to fillet them really .. the head holds the spine was surprised T don't charge for weight of original fish, asda do.
must be some pics on line showing how to do it - for each side - knife behind head towards tail, release section above spine, then do more delicate lower section by rib(?) cage.

unfilleted can grill, laying like a book with back upwards, and flip once .. usually season salt only, with some malt vinegar too once cooked.

I just found this video which makes it look pretty quick and easy to fillet. I reckon I can get 3 meals out of my 3 mackerels, although they're not massive, but decent sized fish. I've got one defrosting for tomorrow night's dinner. Once I'm familiar with filleting and cooking it, I can buy and eat fresh in future instead of freezing all of it.

A few questions for you if you don't mind:

So will I not be able to fillet it without the head? Surely I just locate the end of the backbone as he shows, and slit along it?

I can still grill if filleted though right? And for how long per side?

What about the pan frying in the above video, would that be good or much unhealthier than grilling?

 

[Merlin5]

The major benefit of avocado is the amount of potassium which is great for arteries - there's more potassium in avocados than there is in bananas; You're still fighting a losing battle in the long run if you have a poor diet, a family history of cholesterol etc etc; there's more than just the whole 'you need to cook it in this and eat this food'. But you are what you eat, what you put in you get out. Everything in moderation, always; For example, today you've learnt that potassium is good for you and your heart. However, if you have too much potassium in your diet and your body can't get rid of the excess you can suffer from hyperkalemia.

Everything in moderation, always. A balanced diet, regular checkups, medication if required. But for me, don't let it detract from the quality of your life - if you want a piece of bread and butter every once in a blue moon, just ****ing for it.

Agreed. I've eaten reasonably healthily for the last week, at least, I've had no cakes, chocolates, chips or frozen battered stuff. I had chicken, broccoli and salad potatoes last night and have fish defrosting for tomorrow. But I've got nothing healthy for tonight. I've got some boxed frozen chicken steaks in breadcrumbs. I guess it might be ok to eat a couple of those since I regard it as in moderation. I'll have with a baked spud and carrots.

 

[Merlin5]

Never liked sardines but definitely worth trying again.

Was looking at the price of avocados. Didn't realise they're pretty expensive for a single fruit. Some are £2 a piece. Also, I've checked them on every supermarket website, and it's pretty much a 2 out of 5 star poor ratings across the board for the quality of avocados being supplied to shops.

 

[Merlin5]

Yes, I was wondering about fish oil pills, do they compete well with fresh fish?

Edit: just found the answer to my question.

https://www.cleaneatingmag.com/personalities/if-i-eat-fish-should-i-still-take-a-fish-oil-supplement

"Even if you eat fish twice a week, you may not be getting the levels of omega-3 fatty acids that your body needs for maximum heart disease prevention. The reason for this is that not all fishspecies contain the same amounts of omega-3s. We recommend that you get at least 1,000 milligrams of omega-3 per day in the form of EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid)"

On the other hand..

https://www.livescience.com/46635-fish-oil-supplements-science-hype.html

"But although fish oil supplements may have benefits for people at risk of heart problems, their benefit has been strongly questioned for healthy people, as high levels of omega-3 intake been linked with increased risk for stroke. High levels may also interfere with some medications, such as blood thinners, according to the National Institutes of Health."

 

[Merlin5]

What did your cholesterol drop to that didn't require statins? Good tips. I love houmous and have been thinking about buying chick peas for a while.

 

[Merlin5]

I'd introduce almonds over avocados into diet .. but, maybe even more expensive.

I bought a bag of almonds and a bag of hazelnuts today, good price. And 4 avocados too for £1.60. Aldi prices are good. I bought 7 cans of mackerel, 53p each, but I must have dropped one in the car park. As these nuts are healthy and unsalted, does it matter how many I eat?

Quite pleased with my blood pressure results. I'm testing with my new toy every morning and evening and keeping records. The more I practise with it, the more I feel relaxed. Diastolic could be lower though.

 

[Merlin5]

Yes because they're very calorie dense, you could easily chomp 500kcals without really noticing.

True. Would you say a good daily portion should be no more than about a single handful?

 

[Merlin5]

Depends on the size of your handfuls that could still be a large portion of your daily calorie intake. I'd say around 25g is a sensible portion size which works out around 150kcals.

Thanks Tom. I like that. Each bag is 185g so 25g a day is 2 weeks worth.

 

[Merlin5]

Yay, I filleted my first fish! Not a single bone to choke on. The first part was easy, slicing each side away from the backbone, I got two clean cuts.

But you experienced fish cooks, don't laugh but as you can see in the second photo, I ****** up getting a clean removal of the second part, the remaining length of bone running down the centre of each half, hence the roughed up look of the flesh. I thought that bit would be easier but I butchered it a bit.
Should be better when I do the next one though.

Anyway, lightly greased foil in a pan with olive oil, seasoned the fish and grilled for 7 minutes skin side down. Flipped, was going to do another 7 minutes skin side up but after 5 minutes, the skin was bubbling up and slightly burnt. So I guess 3 or so minutes is probably all it needed after flipping. But it tasted awesome. That one piece of fish was about enough, although I could have eaten a bit more. But that means 3 meals of mackerel for under £3. Excellent.