Cholesterol and SW - long and rambling ;-)

[Hamsterjam]

Hi all

Has anyone noticed a move either way in their cholesterol since following SW?

The reason I ask is, I've always had a good cholesterol level (3.5-4.00) but then it shot up to 7.3 and I had a stroke. Since then I've watched carefully what I've eaten (including no eggs or cheese to speak of) and got it down, with medication and diet to 3.5 again - which has pleased my consultant and GP. I now need to have my annual stroke monitor check and whilst not worried about the effect on the SW way of eating on my cholesterol - working on the theory that I'm losing body weight so a bit of fluctuation won't hurt on the cholesterol front - I am intrigued to see whether it's had any effect on my previous 3.5 reading after eating lots of things I'd normally avoided.

Sorry, went on a bit there

 

[Hamsterjam]

Oh blimey, 57 mins, 11 views and no replies - I am officially a thread killer

 

[Lonestitcher]

:hmm:


Resus to thread cholesterol - STAT!!! :wave_cry:

Can't say that I've ever really had mine checked...Hmmmm......

Nothing much to add, but didn't want to read and run!!

 

[Starlight]

Havent had mine done since I started SW but my doctor was amazed how low it was when I did WW

 

[jaylou]

Unfortunately for me, losing 3 stone had no effect on lowering my high blood pressure or dropping my cholesterol which hovers around 5. My doc said that the cholesterol is genetic and no amount of diet change would alter it, as for the high BP, again this is "one of those things"....

Sorry, not the answer you wanted to hear I guess! SW does drop a lot of peoples BP and cholesterol but it didn't for me.

 

[Tracybackinuk]

Hi Hamsterjam, I am afraid I could not help either. I have not had my cholesterol checked since starting SW (I am absolutely terrified of needles, so unless forced, I will not have it checked).

I feel sorry for Jaylou with having no improvement on her BP and cholesterol; I would have expected it to make a difference.

Tracy

 

[paperclip]

The best way to think about cholesterol is to think of a pint of beer! The head is the proportion that you can change by diet, and the remaining part is controlled by your genes.

Although diet may alter your cholesterol slightly, it's not huge - there are much bigger benefits of eating healthily and following SW than cholesterol levels. If you do have high cholesterol, medication is needed to bring the levels down.

Hope that helps some people!

 

[judimac]

Good post Paperclip!
OH was diagnosed with high cholesterol a few months ago! It gave him the impetus to join me on SW! However his good cholesterol was as high as his bad so it was put down as genetic and he was put on sterols! He goes for a blood test next week. He's lost 2 stone without trying!

 

[Brightonrosie]

My sisiter had a diet very low in fat, she exercises eats extremely healthily and her cholesterol is around 7. Your analogy Paperclip is brilliant xx

 

[lesserme]

I have to say that, starting S/W my diabetes is well under control and my cholestrol is now within normal limits

 

[Hamsterjam]

Unfortunately for me, losing 3 stone had no effect on lowering my high blood pressure or dropping my cholesterol which hovers around 5. My doc said that the cholesterol is genetic and no amount of diet change would alter it, as for the high BP, again this is "one of those things"....

Sorry, not the answer you wanted to hear I guess! SW does drop a lot of peoples BP and cholesterol but it didn't for me.

5 is good though - my doc told me to aim for 5 but anything below was a bonus

 

[Hamsterjam]

The best way to think about cholesterol is to think of a pint of beer! The head is the proportion that you can change by diet, and the remaining part is controlled by your genes.

Although diet may alter your cholesterol slightly, it's not huge - there are much bigger benefits of eating healthily and following SW than cholesterol levels. If you do have high cholesterol, medication is needed to bring the levels down.

Hope that helps some people!

Thanks Paperclip, that's a great way to look at it. I certainly know mine in genetic in a lot of ways but why mine went from so low to so high remains a mystery. And I certainly know that since I joined SW I *feel* healthier than any tablet can make me feel so here goes the future

 

[Hamsterjam]

My sisiter had a diet very low in fat, she exercises eats extremely healthily and her cholesterol is around 7. Your analogy Paperclip is brilliant xx

Sounds just like me just before I had a stroke - so that makes me think it was nothing to do with diet and lifestyle but more down to what Mum and Dad gave me at birth lol.

 

[Wishfairies]

Since being on slimming world. My cholesterol
has gone from 7.0 to 4.4.

 

[squiddie]

I'm affraid I'm not going to be much use (as usual) but what I will say is it's like fats. There are good fats and bad fats, good cholesterol and bad cholesterol, good (natural) sugars and bad (artificial) sugars etc.

Again due to society a lot of people have the wrong information thinking that all fats, sugars, cholesterol and so on are bad, but they're not.

Hope that didn't sound patronising, just spreading the word

 

[Wacky Jacky]

I've never ever had my cholesterol levels tested - never felt the need to do so at all, I would hope that my healthy lifestyle means that I don't have a problem.

Hubby on the other hand, was tested 30 years or so ago when he had a medical for a new job, and they found that his blood pressure and cholesterol were very high - he's been on medication since! After losing 4 1/2st with SW, and is able to do loads of walking and running, he now has to take a lot lower dosage of medication and his cholesterol sits at 3 - the lowest it's ever been!

 

[Wacky Jacky]

Just thought I'd let you all know that I was at the doctors the other day and got my bloods taken for "routine tests" and although I told you all I'd never had my cholesterol checked, I found out that I have! ~ I asked the doc if he checked for cholesterol levels and he said that he did (as part of the tests) it turns out that mine was sitting at 5.4 last January, when I started SW and now it's down to 3.5! ~ Doc was really pleased, and so am I!