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help interpreting blood work results

Posted on 7/3/20 at 8:24 am
Posted by aldawg2323
Lafayette
Member since Jan 2010
494 posts
Posted on 7/3/20 at 8:24 am
Particulars: 41 yo white male, 5'8", ~184lbs; history of CVD in family, grandfather died of heart failure at 75 yo weighing 215 at 5'8", father had quad-bypass at 65 yo and stroke with blockage in carotid artery at 68 yo.

fitness: Ive been xfitting for appx 4 years, appx 3x/week, running from home to gym and back for all workouts for appx one year (appx 0.45 miles ea way)

diet: for appx 2 years have been on mostly red meat diet, grass fed beef (bought whole animal at a time). was following a quasi-carnivore diet, with appx 2 dz eggs/week for past year, lots of grass fed butter (kerrygold, mostly mixed in coffee, eggs cooked within), lots of olive oil (drizzled on all home meals before eating). i drink lots of coffee. Though i love all veggies, my current understanding is they are not as necessary as one thought, still eat appx 1-2 lbs carrots/week. one addiction is pistachios as i eat perhaps 2lbs/week. at least one day a week i give in and eat sweets or carbs of some kind

blood work results:
cholesterol 342
HGL 90
triglycerides 73
direct LDL 201.5
eGFR 71

BP: averaged appx 125/75 for last 3 weeks (purchased home BP monitor on doctors recommendation)

Planned adjustment: ive scheduled blood draw for October with plans to cut out pistachios, butter and largely cut out eggs. plan to increase fruits and veggies, still have red meat as center of diet

the mostly-carnivore diet has me feeling as good as ive ever felt physically. average daily energy level has greatly leveled-off in past 2 years. ive often thought im willing to sacrifice some heart longevity for short term physical benefits but that thinking may change tomorrow. id appreciate anyone willing to comment and provide feedback

thanks to all, love this board

Posted by Mingo Was His NameO
Brooklyn
Member since Mar 2016
37536 posts
Posted on 7/3/20 at 8:58 am to
quote:

41 yo white male, 5'8", ~184lbs


You fat or a ball of muscle?
Posted by aldawg2323
Lafayette
Member since Jan 2010
494 posts
Posted on 7/3/20 at 9:12 am to
more muscle than fat. heres a pic, not certain how to make them show in the post...

This post was edited on 7/8/20 at 6:27 am
Posted by Adam4848
LA
Member since Apr 2006
19777 posts
Posted on 7/3/20 at 9:16 am to
Your BP looks great but overall cholesterol is high and LDL/HGL higher than normal. Maybe a hereditary thing.

Honestly it might be time to up the fruits and veggies as you said. Pistachios aren’t bad but I’d be more worried about your “balance”.

What were your results before you started this diet 2 years ago?
This post was edited on 7/3/20 at 9:18 am
Posted by aldawg2323
Lafayette
Member since Jan 2010
494 posts
Posted on 7/3/20 at 9:22 am to
this is my first blood work results, so nothing to compare to. more fruits and veggies coming for the next blood test. perhaps the carnivore diet for me was wishful thinking
Posted by Adam4848
LA
Member since Apr 2006
19777 posts
Posted on 7/3/20 at 10:38 am to
At your age your in better shape than 95% of your colleagues it’s all about tuning up the inside now
Posted by Hulkklogan
Baton Rouge, LA
Member since Oct 2010
43482 posts
Posted on 7/3/20 at 11:05 am to
Some people are 'hyper responders' to low carb diet and LDL skyrockets. Experts still don't know how bad this may be in the context of a keto or carnivore diet, but since the jury's still out doctors are going to recommend getting that cholesterol down as that's the current consensus.
Posted by Rep520
Member since Mar 2018
10476 posts
Posted on 7/3/20 at 11:09 am to
quote:

overall cholesterol is high and LDL/HGL higher than normal.


I swear I'm not asking to be a dick. Take it as a compliment, bc from the pic, you're very muscular for your age. Have you ever used exogenous hormones, test, etc?

I ask because he's right, the only issues you have are cholesterol related and one major side of hormone use is its effect on cholesterol.

I don't preach to anyone if they do/did use, just that it's a choice and to be smart. If you don't/didn't use, take it as a compliment that you look like you did.
Posted by aldawg2323
Lafayette
Member since Jan 2010
494 posts
Posted on 7/3/20 at 1:21 pm to
this is what has me concerned - the worry of my doctor. he advised a statin, i said let me try adjusting my diet and testing again. ive read enough of this board and others to understand why he would say that, high cholesterol being a historical risk factor for heart disease. i want to believe that the generally poor SAD contributes to that, and i do not eat that way. but i want to keep my eyes open also
Posted by aldawg2323
Lafayette
Member since Jan 2010
494 posts
Posted on 7/3/20 at 1:23 pm to
no, never used any exogenous hormones. im certain genetics play a large factor here and there may be little that can be done. i appreciate your feedback and any other your willing to share about your health lessons etc. thanks
Posted by Rep520
Member since Mar 2018
10476 posts
Posted on 7/3/20 at 1:33 pm to
quote:

no, never used any exogenous hormones.


Cool, I figured I'd raise it just in case.

I would recommend trying some dietary adjustments before a statin. The cholesterol #'s aren't great, but not really beyond repair if you can find a dietary solution. Do you like fish?

If not, you'll probably need the statin. The upside, the remainder of your #'s are pretty solid for someone your age with risk factors, so the majority of what you're doing is working.
This post was edited on 7/3/20 at 1:36 pm
Posted by aldawg2323
Lafayette
Member since Jan 2010
494 posts
Posted on 7/3/20 at 1:48 pm to
i like fish, but im not a fisherman and dont really like buying from the market. but ill take your advice and work some into my diet. thanks
Posted by Junky
Louisiana
Member since Oct 2005
9220 posts
Posted on 7/3/20 at 4:21 pm to
quote:

HGL 90
triglycerides 73


You good

High cholesterol doesn't mean dick in the real world if your HGL is higher than TG. If anything, as we age, we need higher cholesterol to protect us. Lower cholesterol with aging increases the number of deaths over a large cohort.
This post was edited on 7/3/20 at 4:24 pm
Posted by windshieldman
Member since Nov 2012
12818 posts
Posted on 7/3/20 at 5:00 pm to
quote:

heres a pic,


You look hot, IWHI
Posted by TutHillTiger
Mississippi Alabama
Member since Sep 2010
49830 posts
Posted on 7/7/20 at 8:48 pm to
You are basically me 15 years ago but I was 6 foot 185-190, also my cholesterol was ok but damn triglycerides were that high. I lost weight with diet etc and after 3 years monitoring still high. It’s just genetics, welcome to Statins etc.
Posted by aldawg2323
Lafayette
Member since Jan 2010
494 posts
Posted on 7/8/20 at 5:21 am to
How old are you and what do you weigh now? Interesting comment about the triglycerides score. My doc says the reference range is 30 - 200; preferred <150. i felt my score of 73 was better than average. What was your score when this was a concern for you? I hate the idea of being on a drug for the rest of my life so will do whatever i can to avoid that.

thanks for the comments
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