Thank you for the input, and I have a similar story except I’m 72. I’ve been a keto low carbs for 16 months and lost 44 lbs within 4 months and all my Metabolic syndrome issues except for one are gone. My LDL and Total Cholesterol has gone up and my Triglycerides are creeping up as well, they are still in the safe zone, but?. Like you I believe that maybe its due to my saturated fat consumption. jeez, the fatty parts are like candy from heaven, I can’t get enough! Well, my next phase on low carbs is to limit my red meat consumption and see how that works for my next blood test?
Also, the medical personnel here in the Delaware valley are all about prescribing Sta-tins and are really in throwing the “Medical Expertise” around! The last PA I saw berated me, suggesting, “your not a doctor”, I responded, “well, you’re not a Doctor either”. Well, just and FYI, I’ve been a practicing nurse for over 48 years and I have been know to do the research on “occasion”. So, if you kind and knowledgeable people have any suggestion or advise and am open. I’m also open into find a new medical clinic in the Delaware valley.
My progress, saturated fat, cholesterol, and the long term
Your PA should know that the best indicator of cardiovascular risk is a CAC scan, and that the next best is the ratio of triglycerides to HDL (under 2.0 or 0.9, depending on where in the world you are). The absolute values of triglycerides and HDL are not nearly so important.
My late mother, also a nurse, always used to say that the difference between God and a doctor is that God doesn’t wake up in the morning thinking he’s a doctor!
Let me ask you some questions.
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If you eat a ribeye steak (the fattiest steak), do you get more monounsaturated fat (MUFAs) or saturated fat?
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Does olive oil have saturated fat in it?
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Olive oil’s main MUFA is oleic acid. What other fat has more of this fatty acid than any other fatty acid in that fat?
You might be surprised to find out:
- MUFAs
- Yes, about 14-17% or so saturated fat. You can do fun things with this, like compare certain cuts of beef and olive oil at 100 grams each, and get less saturated fat from the beef.
- Lard (rendered pork fat) is over 50% oleic acid. That miracle fat found in olive oil.
So, I’m hesitant to say that “saturated fat causes LDL to increase”. See this, for instance:
If anything, I think plants (partially unsaturated fatty acids, PUFAs) might decrease LDL, not saturated fats raise LDL.
I also wonder about this logic: I’ve lost X weight, feel the best I’ve felt in years, boundless energy…but my LDL went up and that’s trying to kill me. Huh?
Thank you for your response and the information. I will look into the data you’ve suggested. I am still a “baby Keto” enthusiast and I still have much to learn. I just wish I could find a medical “expert” that can work and understand at least a little bit on what I’m doing! 16 months ago I had 6 conditions anyone of them would have killed me. Today I only have the one condition to worry about and eventually I’ll figure out what to do about my LDL and triglycerides.
I suggest not worrying about them as a possible course of action. Just so you know, there is a group of internationally-respected researchers who call themselves “The International Network of Cholesterol Sceptics” (THINCS).
The more we learn about cholesterol and its role in the body, the less I am inclined to want a low cholesterol reading of any kind.
I have been eating a ketogenic diet since 2014, I didn’t have any blood work done before I started and haven’t since, I feel the best I’ve ever felt my entire life, almost like class A drug like.
I once got paranoid about how much red meat/fat I was eating and decided to try eat a ‘normal diet’ and soon realised that eating same diet as my wife all I was doing was adding bread /pasta /potatoes etc to each meal. I still ate red meat I still ate fat. I soon started to feel sluggish and tired and the weight slowly started to creep up
Now I’m back eating my one meal a day of meat and vegetables and feel great, I have no idea about any lab work I don’t care to be honest, I’m sure my wife doesn’t care about her lab work the same as nearly everyone else who is a healthy weight the only thing different in her diet is she eats breads pasta rice and potatoes in her meals I don’t.