Cholesterol before and after keto, any thoughts welcome!

(TeiShino) #1

I had a blood test in Oct, 2020 before starting keto diet in Nov.
Total: 6.3 (242mg/dL)
HDL: 2.07 (80mg/dL)
LDL: 3.6 (138mg/dL)
Triglycerides: 1.9 (168mg/dL)

Blood test two weeks ago (changed from keto to LCHF diet two months ago coz I had problems with my menses and hair loss):
Total: 6.66 (257mg/dL)
HDL: 2.2 (85mg/dL)
LDL: 4.11 (159mg/dL)
Triglycerides: 1.17 (104mg/dL)

A little background: My father has high cholesterol so he’s on medication. My total cholesterol has been bouncing between 4.9 and ~6.4. Had a check up with my cardiologist in Oct before starting Keto diet, everything was fine)
My doctor is not happy with my LDL and he strongly recommended to pay more attention to what I eat ( I didn’t tell him I have been on keto diet n LCHF). Anyone experienced similar situation got something to share? or any experienced keto practitioner can share some thoughts? Anything is appreciated.

(bulkbiker) #2

Triglycerides low HDL high… excellent

Anything under 0.87 trigs/HDL is thought as excellent and yours is 0.53

Your doctor is a moron and best ignored.

(Michael - When reality fails to meet expectations, the problem is not reality.) #3
(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #4

Your numbers look fine. In particular, your ratio of triglycerides to HDL has gone from 0.91 to 0.53, which is a sign of much lower cardiovascular risk. Anything under 0.9 is good. I suspect that if your physician had ordered an NMR analysis of your LDL, it would have shown that the particle sizes fell into the healthy Pattern A.

It wasn’t that many years ago that a choleserol level of 300 (in U.S. measure) was considered perfectly normal, and an LDL measure of 150 was fine. It has been the statin manufacturers who have slowly lowered the acceptable level, each time giving them a much larger pool of potential customers. That should stop, now that the statins are all out of patent.

You might want to check out the Web sites of the International Network of Cholesterol Sceptics (THINCS) and of David Feldman (www.cholesterolcode.com) for more information. THINCS is a group of internationally renowned researchers who consider that the notion that cholesterol levels cause cardiovascular disease is bunk. Dave is a computer science engineer who has done ground-breaking research on cholesterol as a citizen scientist.

(Bob M) #5

You increased carbs a bit? Is that the difference?

Also, your cholesterol values may change over time.

(Joey) #6

To be frank, I see nothing in your latest lipids that would cause me concern. As noted above, your Trig/HDL proportions look great.

Can you share details about your switch from “keto” to “LCHF”? What did you change?

Hair loss can be due to so many things … especially with changes in diet. Are you getting enough protein?

(Ian) #7

I agree with everyone else that your blood work looks great. I wish I had HDL that high.

If you keep on the keto WOE, you are likely to see your triglycerides drop even further.

I have been keto/low carb for about 2.5 years and have noticed that while my cholesterol went up initially it is now creeping back down, and I still have low triglycerides and very low CRP.

Your doctor needs to re-educate him/her self with the latest none-pharmaceutical driven science.

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #8

This is more likely to be from a lack of protein and of calories. Be sure you eat enough protein and eat to satiety, not to some arbitrary number of calories.

When we stint on calories, the body cuts back on non-essential processes, such as hair and nail growth, and the reproductive system. Getting enough food (calories) is therefore important. Also, hair, being made of protein, needs an adequate amount of dietary protein to grow.

(TeiShino) #9

Thanks for your reply. I’m using the carb manager app and doing 42 net carbs, 88 protein, and 99g fat. After reading some of the messages in this forum, it does seem like my protein is a bit low. I weigh about 120lb.

I started to have only lunch and dinner after starting keto/LC. I had serious headache during pms but after taking more magnesium citrate. I solved my leg cramp problem but taking electrolyte powder everyday. I also take 15ml of coconut vinegar with mother almost everyday.
Now I just need to solve my hair loss problem and my period problem then I can go happily ever after on LCHF or even back into keto :slight_smile:

(TeiShino) #10

Thanks. It’s very encouraging to read your message. I started last November and so I’m still kind of a newbie. There’s just so much to learn here!

(TeiShino) #11

Hi, I changed my net carbs intake from 20g to 42g according to the calculation of the carb manager app. I want to lose five pounds so I entered my target weight and the app will figure out the numbers.

I changed from keto to taking more carbs because my menses didn’t come for the last two months. I’m a little concerned coz it has never happened to me. I had my annual gynaecology check up and things are fine so I feel less concerned but the hair loss problem is bothering me…

Protein intake is 88g according to the calculation of the app but, after reading some posts on this forum, seems like it’s a bit low for my weight. I’m 120lb and 165cm.

(TeiShino) #12

Thanks for the details and telling me I’m doing fine. It’s all quite new and technical to me so I’m struggling with all the readings online haha. This forum is so helpful and people are willing to share. So glad I found this.

Pls feel free to let give me more advice as I want to solve my hair loss problem, the last problem on this new diet haha.

For the LDL increase, I wonder if it’s becoz I took more bacon or spam than before coz I didn’t really eat them before. However, they are easy for me to up my fat at lunch. Just wondering… processed meat is no good even though I only take one piece of bacon which weighs less than 20g every other day last month. Just wondering haha.

(TeiShino) #13

Probably not becoz of changing from keto to low carbs diet coz the result from my two blood tests was in Oct (before starting keto) and Apr (after doing keto then LC for six months).

(TeiShino) #14

Thanks for your comments. “Best ignored” :+1:t2::smile:

#15

Are you tracking your intake? Could very well be a micro nutrient deficiency. You haven’t been eating Keto/LCHF for long and it could also just be hormonal flux, but either way you want to make sure you’re not nutrient deficient. Also, unless you’re sedentary that’s not a lot of food intake!

(TeiShino) #16

Yes I am tracking everyday using the app. How do I know if I’m nutrient deficient?
My jobs doesn’t require me to go out a lot so I’m mostly sitting, in front of my laptop. I walk about an hour every other day on a treadmill coz I can’t run becoz of knee problem.

(Joey) #17

I’ve used Carb Mgr too (tracked every morsel I ate for about a year). It’s a fine app but don’t get to mesmerized by the “target” calculations as each of us as individuals is a very different animal. Even if an app has accurate “average” figures, none of us is average. No one :wink:

I’d suggest you stick closer to the 20-30g net carb range when starting out just to ensure your body is (slowly) converting from burning carbs to burning fat. That’s the state of ketosis (burning ketones) you’re aiming for. This takes the mitochondria some time to make the transition. After that, you can certainly get more adventurous and see what amount of carbs might work best for you.

Your body will settle into its own target weight - especially once you get in the habit of eating healthfully but just enough to reach satiety… not to weigh any particular figure you might decide is the “right” number.

Best wishes!

#18

Depends on your tracking program, Cronometer shows you all your micronutirents, I believe CarbManager shows a good amount but not all. Gotta check with the one you’re using. People also have good luck when it comes to the hair supplementing with extra Biotin and Copper.

(TeiShino) #19

Thanks. I did take biotin when I first started keto but it somehow causes numbness or an unpleasant feeling on my arms and thighs. I bought a supplement called DHT blocked as suggested by another member on this forum. I’ll give it a try.

(TeiShino) #20

Any suggestion on how to increase protein without increasing much on carb and fat since we need to maintain the ratio of carb protein and fat? Thanks