Lowering LDL and raising HDL

glpfun

glpfun

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What are some tried and true strategies for raising HDL and lowering LDL cholesterol? What are your go to snacks or meals for low cholesterol?

I’ve read that whey protein and extra fiber like psyllium husk can move the needle for people. What else?
 
glpfun said:
What are some tried and true strategies for raising HDL and lowering LDL cholesterol? What are your go to snacks or meals for low cholesterol?

I’ve read that whey protein and extra fiber like psyllium husk can move the needle for people. What else?
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Glad you asked this question ⁉️
 
Tirz+statin decimated my cholesterol (which wasn't super high to begin with)... to the point where i am concerned it'll be too low.. stopped taking the statin since.. (as it appears to be unnecessary at this point)
 
I got my blood drawn today after three months on Tirz, down 30+ pounds with a MUCH healthier diet I am hoping I can ditch the statin I'm on.
 
I got some blood work done yesterday and the results are what prompted me to make this post lol. I’ve been on tirz for 3 months and lost 30 pounds and my diet is healthier as well, but I think my diet is still bad, just comparatively better. I find myself leaning too hard on the appetite suppression instead of making healthy meals. My LDL is in the borderline high range. Unfortunately I don’t have a recent baseline to compare against to see if things improved so using this most recent test as the baseline
 
glpfun said:
I got some blood work done yesterday and the results are what prompted me to make this post lol. I’ve been on tirz for 3 months and lost 30 pounds and my diet is healthier as well, but I think my diet is still bad, just comparatively better. I find myself leaning too hard on the appetite suppression instead of making healthy meals. My LDL is in the borderline high range. Unfortunately I don’t have a recent baseline to compare against to see if things improved so using this most recent test as the baseline
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On my end I'm thinking laying back off the sweets🤷🏽‍♀️
 
Aerobic exercise minimum 120 min per week (40 min x 3 days per week).
Omega 3 supplements (EPA and DHA).
Vitamin B complex supplements.
More fiber through whole grains, beans, legumes, oat meal, psyllium husk supplements.
Avoid polyunsaturated fats.
This is not an exhaustive list, but a good start.
 
Mine blood was last test in June during my annual physical so I will have some recent comps. Did you have ask to get your thyroid levels tested? I thought on GLP-1's it is important to monitor but if I didn't ask my doc wouldn't have added it.
 
Weight loss can raise your cholesterol temporarily. Mine improved a lot after my weight stabilized post-loss, but I also take red yeast rice and that's helped. Note that it shares a same main active ingredient as statins, so if you're trying to avoid statin side effects you may need to pay attention with these, too. Otherwise, exercise, less alcohol, more sleep (less cortisol). Peri/menopause also often raises cholesterol, so if that's a factor for you and you also have other symptoms then hormone replacement might be a thing to think about.
 
Minimum 25g fiber if you’re a woman 35g men, scientifically proven to lower ldl and more is beneficial. Each 5g lowers by 5.5mg/dl. That alone will help adopt improved nutritional quality for yourself and also aid weight loss.
 
Superchicken1 said:
Minimum 25g fiber if you’re a woman 35g men, scientifically proven to lower ldl and more is beneficial. Each 5g lowers by 5.5mg/dl. That alone will help adopt improved nutritional quality for yourself and also aid weight loss.
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Studies please 🧐
 
Dee X said:
Studies please 🧐
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pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Soluble Fiber Supplementation and Serum Lipid Profile: A Systematic Review and Dose-Response Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials - PubMed

To present a comprehensive synthesis of the effect of soluble fiber supplementation on blood lipid parameters in adults, a systematic search was undertaken in PubMed, Scopus, and ISI Web of Science of relevant articles published before November 2021. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs)...
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Meta of 181 RCT’s, full text is available
 
Red yeast rice is effectively a statin - it's the same active ingredient ( monacolin K ) as in some statins. Except now you're taking something that isn't regulated by the FDA. At that point, I'd probably just take a statin.

Nattokinase has some mixed study results on improving LDL/HDL levels. If it's beneficial, it looks like it's better at higher doses (8000 or so IU). Similarly, some interesting results in reversing atherosclerosis at these higher levels as well. Talk to your doctor if you're on blood thinners or have health risks around blood thinning.
 
So when I started tirz I did labs at the same time. I had LDL of 117, Triglycerides of 219. I immediately started a complete diet change, clean eating, low-ish carb with healthy macros, exercise, and tirz, but I also added what I think was a cheat-code.... I used this stuff "Cholestoff Complete" and took 3 pills twice a day after meals as per the instructions for 1 month. I drew labs again (only 1 month later) and my LDL was 79, Triglycerides 111. Unfortunately my HDL also dropped 42 to 35 in that time too. I haven't taken those pills since then, this post actually reminds me to order labs again, it's been about 3 months since that last check.

Anyways, if you want to take drastic measures, you may want to check out that cholestoff complete stuff. Specifically the "complete" version as it apparenly not only lowers cholesterol but also inhibits the creation of excess cholesterol in the liver. Active ingredients are Plant Stenols and Pantethine. The healthy eating and meds of course play their role but with only 1 month for that high impact I have to give some credit to the supplement.

As far as raising HDL though.... that's where I really need to focus. I've been taking omegas for years, already exercise, and already eating clean so I'm not sure what else I can do there so I'm hoping for some tips here.
 
Reta will definitely help you. It is the fact that Glucagon works on inhibiting PCSK9 which in turn lowers cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL you name it.

Look at Mazdutide and Survodutide and see how much cholesterol numbers have dropped since ppl started taking it.

These both are dual agonist Glp1 and Glucagon with a much stronger affinity towards Glucagon. Try it and see for yourself. Also this is one of the reasons why they are testing it for fatty liver reduction with amazing results so far in clinical trials. It like melts the liver fat.
 
Thewitchonpeppies said:
Have you looked into adipotide or cardarine? Just started reading about them
Click to expand...

Cardarine was initially developed in 1992 by Ligand Pharmaceuticals and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) as a metabolic agent with potential anti-cancer, anti-obesity and cardiovascular applications. Phase I trials of cardarine for the treatment of hyperlipidaemia began in 2000 followed by phase I/II in 2002. Further development of cardarine was abandoned in 2007 for safety reasons when preclinical toxicology showed that it caused various cancers
 
Lullabytreehugger said:
Cardarine was initially developed in 1992 by Ligand Pharmaceuticals and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) as a metabolic agent with potential anti-cancer, anti-obesity and cardiovascular applications. Phase I trials of cardarine for the treatment of hyperlipidaemia began in 2000 followed by phase I/II in 2002. Further development of cardarine was abandoned in 2007 for safety reasons when preclinical toxicology showed that it caused various cancers
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I think the cancer claims were in mice tho
 
Anecdotally, someone's dad would eat a big bowl of oatmeal daily for a couple weeks before his blood tests and it meaningfully lowered his cholesterol so his doctor wouldn't bitch at him. And there is some proof that oatmeal lowers cholesterol, as any box of Cheerios will boast.

For me, my total cholesterol was at 245, then statins lowered it to 217. Tirz lowered it to 149.
LDL started at 159, statins 136, after tirz it was 64. I thought surely they must have gotten my sample mixed up with someone else's.

My HDL had a modest increase: started at 63, after statins 65, after tirz 67.
 
hotdog! said:
Anecdotally, someone's dad would eat a big bowl of oatmeal daily for a couple weeks before his blood tests and it meaningfully lowered his cholesterol so his doctor wouldn't bitch at him. And there is some proof that oatmeal lowers cholesterol, as any box of Cheerios will boast.

For me, my total cholesterol was at 245, then statins lowered it to 217. Tirz lowered it to 149.
LDL started at 159, statins 136, after tirz it was 64. I thought surely they must have gotten my sample mixed up with someone else's.

My HDL had a modest increase: started at 63, after statins 65, after tirz 67.
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Not bad for a hot dog.
 
I did some research a few years back and made this plan for a partner, which did lower his LDL after a few months. It’s not a clinically-tested comprehensive regimen, but all parts are based loosely on academic studies.

Habits for Cholesterol Health:

A. Supplements

1. Omega 3 (2g total)
• 1/2 T cod liver oil = 1.5g
• 2 Krill oil caps = 0.25g
• 2 Fish oil caps = 0.6g
• Total = 2.35g
*I prefer more krill and less fish oil caps, but he had Costco fish oil at home
2. Flushing Niacin (2g)
3. Psyllium grounds (2T/10g)

B. Nutrition

1. 6 servings of fish per week (ideally salmon/ sardine/ mackerel)
2. 5 salads with 3+ avocados per week
*salads aren’t essential but he preferred the ease of throwing the fish, eggs, avo, into a big salad for OMAD
3. 12-18 eggs per week

C. Workouts (Weekly)

1. 150-300bmin Zone 2 cardio
2. Bonus: 3-5hr strength training

**Update 1: steel cut oatmeal may help, and you can easily throw the psyllium husk powder into this.

***Update 2: Berberine may help to supplement, but I’m not sure the impact if you’re established on GLP-1s and living insulin controlled?
 
I had a conversation with Chat GPT and a lot of these questions can be asked, but you should make it more personal...

Give the Chatbot some context about you...
- what types of foods you like and lifestyle you live
- and then give it a scenario if the chat bot was a highly trained and respected dietician, cardiologist, and men's health expert that is also an excellent trained chef
the ask the question... what types of meals would you recommend or advice would you have for me to lower LDL and increase HDL and improve my lifestyle, heatlh, and energy.
 
195michael said:
I had a conversation with Chat GPT and a lot of these questions can be asked, but you should make it more personal...

Give the Chatbot some context about you...
- what types of foods you like and lifestyle you live
- and then give it a scenario if the chat bot was a highly trained and respected dietician, cardiologist, and men's health expert that is also an excellent trained chef
the ask the question... what types of meals would you recommend or advice would you have for me to lower LDL and increase HDL and improve my lifestyle, heatlh, and energy.
Click to expand...
Don't ask AI important questions. It just flat makes things up.
 
195michael said:
- AI thinks that you just flat makes things up.

Also, gathering information from multiple sources is usually a good strategy.
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AI isn't a source. If you actually check all its sources you'll find some of them don't even exist as it tends to hallucinate them.
 
zpped said:
AI isn't a source. If you actually check all its sources you'll find some of them don't even exist as it tends to hallucinate them.
Click to expand...
Yep. Or misinterpret them.

It's not necessarily a bad first pass, but you need to make it cite it's sources and verify that they agree with what it is claiming to say.
 
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