Am I Correct About LDL Before I Argue with My Doc?

(Tracy) #1

My wellness visit will be here soon and my doctor doesn’t discourage Keto, but I can tell he has a lot of concern about my LDL. I already know he is going to call LDL “bad” and say it puts me at a higher risk for CVD. Am I understanding this before I present my argument?

LDL can be different sizes. The small ones are more likely to oxidize and stay in your system up to 5 days. The large fluffy ones, which I have, are not harmful and hang around for 2 days. The reason LDL is always present in clogged arteries is because it was there to patch up damage caused by inflammation. The damage can be caused by diabetes. If you get rid of the diabetes and other inflammatory causes, LDL isn’t a problem.

I want him to know I’m trying to get to the root of problems, not take a pill for the symptoms. I’m not sure how he can argue with my excellent weight, drop in A1C, no more diabetes, and low inflammation (low WBC count). Please correct me if I’ve got the crude description of LDL wrong.

(Kenny Croxdale) #2

Pissing Up A Rope :smile:

You have a good understanding of LDL and the importance of Particle Size.

However, there isn’t going to be any discussion with your physician. His mind is made up and he isn’t going to listen.

If your LDL is too high (by his standards) he’s going call the “Statin Police” on you.

He is going to try and bully you into accepting his word as gospel; after all is a God. Not the God but a God.

Your physician (the American Medical Association) is still rooted in the last century with their beliefs; which will take decades to change.

With that said, if it makes you feel good to try and have a discussion, do it. However, once you have pissed him off, stop. That because you aren’t going to change is mind.

Kenny Croxdale

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #3

You’re on the right track. I would add that the most reliable marker is the ratio of triglycerides to HDL. If this is low (under 2.0 in American units, under 0.9 elsewhere), then your LDL is virtually guaranteed to be the healthy Pattern A, which can be confirmed with an NMR analysis of your LDL.

You might not want to get into it with your doctor, but the most accurate assessment of cardiovascular risk is a CAC (coronary arterial calcium) scan.

One last note: Your doctor may feel obliged under the prevailing standard of care to prescribe a statin, but you can’t be forced to take it.

(Bob M) #4

And if you do get a CAC scan and get a score of zero, it’s easy to find studies showing statins provide no benefit for people with that score.

(Tracy) #5

Kenny, I took myself off a statin while my cholesterol was at its highest. He said it’s okay to take a break from them. He’s actually a PA, so he doesn’t bully too much, he just sends me to specialists for everything. It’s like he’s just there as someone who can refer me to someone else. He sent me to a bariatric specialist (I had gastric bypass 15 years ago) due to a serious bloating issue. The bariatric doc is the one who recommended Keto. My PA says, “He’s the expert.” when the bariatric specialist told me not to worry about my cholesterol, that it looks fine. I just feel like I’m on my own here. I hate changing doctors but I think I want to see if there’s one in my area who is on board with Keto. Side note: Turns out fiber was causing my hideous stomach issue.

(Bacon is a many-splendoured thing) #6

Not surprising for ketonians. As Dr. Fung puts it: “Carbohydrate is poison and fibre is the antidote. If you’re not taking the poison, why would you need the antidote?”

(Bob M) #7

Takes me way back to my Pritikin days, when I would go lift weights, then get my double espresso (Bay Area, California) and bran muffin, then get my massive brown rice/bean/white meat chicken burrito, then go mountain biking for hours. Good times! (Facetiousness directed at the food, not the exercise or espresso.)

(Tracy) #8

I want to tell the fiber eaters this. Everyone seems to think fiber is essential for life and for bathroom visits. Why would fiber be an antidote for carbohydrate? I think of an antidote as a cure. Does fiber reverse damage caused by carbs?

(Bob M) #9

It might be that fiber supposedly slows absorption of carbs.

It took me quite a while being on low carb/keto before I realized fiber was bad for me. Years, really. When you’ve been brainwashed for so long, it’s hard to change.

(Tracy) #10

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My NMR said I had pattern A. My TRIG:HDL is 0.9 in American units. I’ll post my NMR for fun :slight_smile: I wasn’t a bit worried because I knew what my NMR would look like. That’s saying a lot about me and my anxiety. My PA saw the high LDL and that’s all he focused on. He said he knows nothing about particle sizes, he just looks at total cholesterol and asked me if I was happy with the results.

(Marianne) #11

Yup. I don’t even go there anymore. My doctor just thinks I’m ignorant. :laughing: That’s okay; I just chuckle to myself. I tell him, “I’d like to try to correct this on my own first before considering medication,” then he leaves me alone thinking I am going to change something.

#12

If your doc is a MD, (unless they’re functional) they only know how to blindly move their fingers from symptom to drug, then prescribe it. You might as well be speaking mandarin. This is why I like DO’s. Their method is finding root causes and would work with you on that. I’d always recommend finding a DO, but aside from that… who cares what your doc thinks? I like how William Davis says it, YOU control your health, your doctor is a consultant.

My doc is cool with most of my nonsense, but when I get real weird I just order my own labs and see what I want.

(Gregory - You can teach an old dog new tricks.) #13

Your Dr will never acknowledge your arguments and say " you could be right "…
He/she is under a guidelines gun, which deviating from may cost them their job if not sanctions of some kind… Guidelines: High LDLc = Statins

At 72, and heart disease free, I just like to ask them " when do you think that heart disease might kick in? "

They just smile…

(Marianne) #14

Is that an osteopath?

#15

Yup! Only way to go!