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I wonder if many big meat-eaters have high cholesterol? Mine's low, but I rarely eat meat. Animal protein is high in saturated fat.
People who have high cholesterol levels are often advised to make lifestyle changes prior to going on medication. One of the lifestyle changes that is almost always mentioned is to reduce meat consumption--especially pork and red meat since those are particularly high in saturated fat. The one exception is certain fish (mackerel/salmon/tuna/sardines) which are high in omega 6 fatty acids and have beneficial effects on good cholesterol (HDL) levels.
High cholesterol has a familial component for certain. Both of my parents have high cholesterol and both of my siblings also have it. My sister and brother both were on cholesterol medications for a couple of years before I was. They both ate a standard American diet and I was primarily vegetarian with the periodic salmon or other fish. It still hovered right around 200 despite being UNDERWEIGHT and physically active; shot right up to 271 at menopause Oh well, the good news is that the lowest dose of statin dropped it down to 160.
I don't think that a diet based mostly on meat is particularly healthy anyhow. I eat a lot of whole grains, vegetables and fruits; I do just fine with that diet.
I would NOT let cholesterol levels get too low, our bodies and brains especially need cholesterol.
Do some research on too low a cholesterol. Again, I feel that so much of this cholesterol fear is man made by the drug companies. My thinking. Parents lived into 90's and never knew the word cholesterol and never knew their numbers. They were of that generation that the word was never known..and most in my life lived long lives.
I eat some meat, not lots, never did. I have cut our breads, pastas and a lot of the white flour type foods....aka carbs.
People who have high cholesterol levels are often advised to make lifestyle changes prior to going on medication. One of the lifestyle changes that is almost always mentioned is to reduce meat consumption--especially pork and red meat since those are particularly high in saturated fat. The one exception is certain fish (mackerel/salmon/tuna/sardines) which are high in omega 6 fatty acids and have beneficial effects on good cholesterol (HDL) levels.
The problem is that factory-farmed chicken and fish is not really much healthier either, as they are also loaded with saturated fat. Especially due to the fact that don't get the space to engage in much physical activity.
Due to my high cholesterol levels, my doctor has also wanted me to limit my poultry consumption in addition to red meats.
Lycanmaster: Do some research on the cholesterol myth. Doctors today are keeping people in so much fear of cholesterol.
jamin' I'm with you on the cholesterol myth! I'd worry more about my triglyceride level than my total cholesterol. Triglycerides are what transport LDL cholesterol around your body. High triglycerides = high LDL cholesterol levels!
jamin' I'm with you on the cholesterol myth! I'd worry more about my triglyceride level than my total cholesterol. Triglycerides are what transport LDL cholesterol around your body. High triglycerides = high LDL cholesterol levels!
It's actually the other way around. LDL transports trigs (fats) to the cells.
High LDL does not always equal high triglycerides although the opposite may be true as you stated, that high trigs = high LDL. I don't believe so. When I used to take statins, my LDL was in the normal range but my trigs remained high. Statins just don't help with trigs that much at all from my experience. The doctor would always recommend omega-3 supplements but that never did anything. What did lower my trigs (a lot) was a low carb diet.
It's actually the other way around. LDL transports trigs (fats) to the cells.
High LDL does not always equal high triglycerides although the opposite may be true as you stated, that high trigs = high LDL. I don't believe so. When I used to take statins, my LDL was in the normal range but my trigs remained high. Statins just don't help with trigs that much at all from my experience. The doctor would always recommend omega-3 supplements but that never did anything. What did lower my trigs (a lot) was a low carb diet.
Yes, you're right! It's a case of you can't have one without the other in terms of "normal" transport. But one of the great downfalls of statin treatment is that it doesn't do anything to lower triglycerides, which may be just as important a component as cholesterol, in affecting coronary artery disease. I concur that a low or lower carb diet will reduce your triglyceride number. I wish there was some drug that would lower LDL and triglycerides together, but I guess diet and exercise will have to suffice for the time being.
I hear conflicting things on the seriousness of high cholesterol, so not sure what to think at this point.
Ask your doctor. You are getting lots of opinions from people who do not have an MD after their name.
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Oh well, the good news is that the lowest dose of statin dropped it down to 160. 
