what is normal cholesterol?

[brickpolly]

I went to see my doc about my blood work. She statrted with a list of leters and numbers like hdl,ldl,etc I was lost. I know there is good cholesterol and bad. What is normal range for a 33yr old.I also have asthma and bad allergies,could that also effect cholesterol.
bp

[RedRox]

It depends on who you talk to! In general these values are considered "normal" to "optimal".

HDL greater than 40 mg/dL
LDL less than 120 mg/dL
Triglycerides less than 150 mg/dL

High Density Lipoproteins (HDL) are the "good" cholesterol. It acts as the "bus" to transport LDLs out of your system. The higher the value the better.
Low Density Lipoproteins (LDL) are the "bad" cholesterol linked to heart and cardiovascular diseases. The lower the value the better. Recent revisions have suggested that LDL should really be below 100 mg/dL
Triglycerides are a sort of free floating fat in your blood. High levels of TGs and low levels of HDL are often an indicator of insulin resistance and pre-diabetes.

Total Cholesterol numbers are calculated as: HDL + LDL + (20% of TGs)

Here is an article from the American Heart Association: What Are Healthy Levels of Cholesterol

[brickpolly]

If I didn't know better I would say ur in the medical profession. I have read some of ur other articles,wow! Anyhow thanks for the info.
bp

[RedRox]

Nope. I'm a computer nerd mostly! But I got into this because my cholesterol was out of whack (mostly the high TGs and low HDLs) and many of my health indicators along with my weight, were not headed in a positive direction. And I'm just naturally curious about things. I tend to need to know they whys and the background info of what I am dealing with so I did a lot of web based research on cholesterol and how foods and diet and excerise can play an important role in managing those numbers, although an even larger portion is simply genetics. Truly if improving cholesterol numbers are a prime motivator, this is a great way of eating to improve and manage those numbers. BTW, I have no idea if asthma and allergies (or the meds to mitigate the effects) would affect cholesterol. Doesn't seem likely to me, but I'd check with you Doc on those questions.

[descartesmum]

Jumping in here, if you are diagnosed with high cholesterol, before you are prescribed statins,ask your dr if you can try flaxseed oil for a month or 2. I was dx with high cholesterol and thankfully my gp is anti-statins.

She recommended fish oil despite the fact she know that I am a vegetarian. I did some research and discovered that taking flaxseed oil capsules can also lower the cholesterol level.

I now take twice a day, 2 flaxseed oil caps, 1000mg. And all my numbers except for the tris are within normal range. Also being on P1 of the sbd has helped immensely too.

Carol

[RedRox]

Part of the reason I never went to a Doc with my test results! I too use flax in the form of flaxmeal in my cold cereal and ww pancakes when we have those on the weekends occasionally. I do tend to think most of the improvements were due to SB eating and exercise. The flax part is just another helpful piece of the puzzle.

[blo]

Hi BrickPolly! My DH was diagnosed about 3 years ago w/high trigs. He was drinking sodas all day long & he was a skinny little guy. The doc told him that he needed to change his eating or drinking should I say. if he didn't want to be put on a statin. So he went to the nutritionist who basically gave him the same info that the SBD has. He was faithful in his eating & exercising. He eats a bowl of oatmeal almost every morning with his banana, some almonds & walnuts along with a sprinkle of cinnamon. The oatmeal, regular, or even the steel cut oats will help w/the cholesterol. (And boy, do I mean he exercises!) His trigs went from over 500 to 94 in a matter of months. He still exercises today & is going to do his 1st 1/2 marathon this coming Sunday. As for me, I have lost about 25 lbs & still losing inches since Feb 06. Trigs went from 270 to 173. BP meds were cut in half. Plus I no longer have any cravings! So be encouraged the Beach is the place to be! blo

[Smurlene]

My doc says my cholestrol levels are fantastic given that I have PCOS, which often causes high cholesterol and trigs and blood pressure and and and Anyway, I was wondering what you all thing of my numbers and what role you think pregnancy plays into them. I know that cholesterol goes up with pregnancy, that is why I had to have my gallbladder out the last after the birth of my son. What do you all think?

In 2000 my levels were:
total: 126
HDL: 44
LDL: 70

In 2001 (less than two months after pregnancy):
total: 149
HDL: 48
LDL: 88

In 2003:
total: 127
HDL: 44
LDL: 71

In 2006 (two weeks after pregnancy):
total: 146
HDL: 58
LDL: 68

I wonder if I have this test again when I am not pregnant or near pregnancy if these levels will come down? I am very pleased that my HDL is up!

[Kimboroni]

Your LDL is very low in each scenario-- is someone concerned about that? It doesn't seem like they should be.

The biggest thing affecting your last reading is your triglycerides-- they went from around 60 up to 100, which is still pretty low. They should come down again, though, especially since you're on the Beach.

[choosetolose]

The levels all depend on you. My MD is ecstatic my total dropped from 283 to 204 in 3 mos on SBD. Everything went into acceptable levels. He even stopped asking me to take a statin.

My DH went Type2 diabetic and that is when we started SBD. His MD put him on glucovance and a statin (vytorin). The statin made him so sick, he quit taking it (this is a stubborn guy and he did not tell his MD) ... nayway, in the same 3 mos, his total went from 328 to 203 and all else was lovely. In any case, his MD istotally into everyone having a 150 cholesterol and he never has ... so he said no on the statins, any kind. 3 mos later, his total was the same, but the good was up, the bad and triglycerides down. His MD said it is just his body, and didn't go after him to take another statin.

OTOH, I have family memebers with ultra fantastic cholesterol who have really awful other problems " related " to cholesterol: like heart disease.

I will stick with my "borderline" and he with his, as our hearts are very healthy and our BPs ( at their very highest are 110/70 /me & 120/80 / him)