[QUOTE=arkie6]For starters, I think the medical profession places way too much emphasis on total cholesterol and LDL levels (hey, when you have a hammer, i.e. cholesterol lowering meds, every problem looks like a nail). Second, a total cholesterol level of 226 mg/dl is not classified as high cholesterol - it falls within the range of borderline high cholesterol (200-240 mg/dl). Over 240 mg/dl is considered high cholesterol. Third, of the standard blood lipid parameters, your triglyceride/HDL ratio is the best predictor of heart disease risk - like 16 times better at predicting future heart disease than total cholesterol level alone. A trig/HDL ratio of 5.0 is about in the middle of the risk scale, while a ratio of 2.0 or less is considered to be very low risk. For a triglyceride level of 106 and an HDL level of 48, the ratio is 2.2 which is very good (lowering those triglycerides to <100 and raising that HDL >50 would place you in the very low risk category). Finally, I think it is a good idea for everyone to lower their intake of cake, candy, rice (polished white rice in particular), and bread (refined white bread in particular - basically all high-glycemic, processed, and refined foods. I do not advocate diets with very low levels of meat and eggs since these type of diets tend to raise triglyceride levels and lower HDL levels - the exact opposite of what studies show reduces your risk of heart disease. You also need to watch your intake of fruit, especially sources of concentrated fruit sugar (fructose) like juices and soft drinks (due to the high fructose corn syrup sweetener). Studies have shown that diets high in fructose tend to significanly elevate triglyceride levels in some individuals (males in particular).[/QUOTE]
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Arkie6
I like to know the reason about why you say you don~{!/~}t advocate diets with very low levels of meat and eggs since these types of diets tend to raise triglyceride levels and
lower HDL levels. I hope you are right , Do you know any studies that support
this kind of opinion? My doctor always told me the Cholesterol comes from animal
meat I eat, specifically organ meats, egg yolks and animal protein.
Thanks!
Emanuelf
[QUOTE=emanuelf]Arkie6
I like to know the reason about why you say you don't advocate diets with very low levels of meat and eggs since these types of diets tend to raise triglyceride levels and lower HDL levels. I hope you are right , Do you know any studies that support this kind of opinion? My doctor always told me the Cholesterol comes from animal meat I eat, specifically organ meats, egg yolks and animal protein.[/QUOTE]
Why do I not advocate diets very low in meat and eggs? Because you have to eat something. And if you are not eating meat and eggs (which are excellent sources of protein, vitamins, minerals, and fatty acids), what are you eating? Most people turn to refined carbohydrates rather than increase their consumption of vegetables, beans, legumes, whole grains, and other whole natural unprocessed foods. I believe that these refined carbohydrates that are so commonly eaten in large quantities today are one of the major causes of degenerative diseases that we see today (heart disease, diabetes, etc.). This is due primarily to the effect that high-glycemic carbohydrates have on insulin levels, and the resulting damage that chronic elevated insulin levels cause (cellular insulin resistance and arterial endothelial damage in particular).
I don't have the studies at hand at the moment and don't have time to look for them again (you might try a search on google.com or medline). I recall a study that compared a low-carbohydrate diet with an Ornish type of very low-fat near vegetarian diet and the low-carb diet had significant improvements in triglycerides (on the low-fat, high carb diet triglycerides actually went up) and HDL levels (again, on the low-fat, high carb diet, HDL levels went down). The only positive aspect of the low-fat, high carb diet was total cholesterol and LDL levels went down.
Dietary cholesterol does in fact come from animal products, organ meats and eggs in particular. But far and away the majority of the cholesterol in your bloodstream is made in your own liver. In general, the less cholesterol you eat, the more your liver produces and the more cholesterol you eat, the less your liver produces. Cholesterol levels are tightly regulated by the body based on other factors (most of which are not fully understood yet). Studies have shown that eating several eggs per day (one study I recall involved a gentleman that ate ~25 eggs PER DAY for many years with a cholesterol level of <200 mg/dl) does not negatively affect blood cholesterol levels.
