If my doc doesn’t go for these particular tests, I will get them done elsewhere, and/or out of pocket if I can afford them 
I need to get hard-copies of my past tests because when I moved, I lost 8.5 years of different tests, and records I had back with my old MD.
I keep meaning to call that clinic and ask if I can still get them, although Dr. Ivy, my new DO has them all I believe, need to make sure she does, Thanks for the info Bob!!
I feel the same, even though I’ve not been with this as long as you @PaulL. I do seem to need the reassurance whenever I get a new doctor that seems to “panic” over my numbers.
I did read yesterday that the closer to 1.0 the better, although that’s “just” google which I don’t put all my eggs in that basket
Nope, this is incorrect and makes no biochemical sense. There is only one type of cholesterol molecule, and it is carried around in these different larger molecules called lipoproteins. When they measure a lipid panel they are measuring the different types/sizes of lipoproteins, not the actual cholesterol inside them.
There was a change made to the naming convention some years ago that added the -C to LDL and HDL to try to unconfuse people, but it made it just more confusing. Cholesterol is the cargo, the lipoproteins are the boats, and they measure the boats, not the cargo. If they did measure the cargo, they would report just a single number as there is only 1 cholesterol molecule: it is all the same, regardless of where it is…. Could be in a lipoprotein or in our body somewhere.
Dr Malcolm Kendrick is a good source to listen to and read up on all this. And his writing style is very entertaining!
Ok Alec, so I think I will not try to teach my doc about this, but if Medical Schools aren’t teaching it, it’s probably just another thing Big Pharma is funding, or it’s just something they disagree on.
I’ll just “play dumb” if I have to, just to keep her as a doctor, although I will keep my eyes open for a doctor that may know about Keto, cholesterol/statin bs
I don’t even want to know why they are in denial about this, but I’m sure they don’t know it 
BTW, congratulations on your “high” “cholesterol”! One thing that the data tells us clearly is that people with higher “cholesterol” live longer!
So my question to any doctor that wants to put me on a statin is: why are you trying to kill me? We know that statins are very good at lowering low density lipoprotein (LDL), and if people live longer with higher LDL, why on earth do they want my LDL to be lowered??
Hi Denise,
I know you have followed me somewhat on this forum, so may know what I am going to suggest. I did a full panel back in December. Here are some of my results:
CHOLESTEROL, TOTAL
(mg/dL)
161
Dec 2024
TRIGLYCERIDES
(mg/dL)
198 H
Dec 2024
KETONES
1+ A
LDL/HDL RATIO 2.0
Dec 2024
Below Average Risk: <2.28
Average Risk: 2.29-4.90
You can see that although my triglycerides are listed as slightly high, I was also in slight ketosis with ketones of 1, and so was apparently carrying fats in VLDL to use as fuel. You can see my overall cholesterol is quite low really. My LDL/HDL ratio of 2 puts me in the below average risk for CVD. How do I maintain a low cholesterol? Do I avoid “evil” saturated fat? Nope. I avoid evil omega 6 seed oils in favor of grass fed butter, coconut oil and olive oil. I eat about 1/2 Lb of some kind of animal flesh per day whether that is grass fed lamb or salmon. I eat some dietary soluble fiber while doing keto. A handful of organic berries with my morning goat yogurt, and when I do a protein smoothie, some with an avocado and the protein mix, and then usually asparagus or some cruciferous vegetable with my dinner. What does that do? It carries cholesterol being dumped by the liver into your bile through your intestines and prevents much reabsorption, which translates into lower cholesterol and lower oxLDL.
Anyway, I believe if you were to try eating at least some soluble fiber with every meal, you will begin to see lower cholesterol. I don’t know that number is terribly relevant anyway. My concern is that your body is reabsorbing oxLDL the liver is trying to dump through your bile, and that is causing your numbers to rise.
Hi SD, yes, I remember you, but glad you went over your cholesterol, and how you keep it down.
I’ll look a bit more into this, but I can tell you I do use Olive oil in all my cooking. I also have a 1/4 cup of Pistachios for an afternoon snack. I don’t eat the yogurt any longer, just stopped having lunch altogether as I don’t eat my first meal until about 11 or it was noon before I got to it today. Then my last meal I eat by 4 or 4:30. I just got used to that, and don’t get hungry in between.
I’ll look into this tomorrow, I started getting tired and go to bed by 7 to read a bit, then I am almost alway up by 5 a.m. I drink one couple of decaf with collagen, turmeric, dash of ginger, and dash of cinnamon, then my creamer, heavy whipping cream. Then I don’t snack or eat until my sort of brunch. 3 eggs, with the spinach, mozarella cheese, nutritional yeast flakes, chia seeds and flaxseed.
I only eat red meat, salmon, chicken thighs, and sometimes pork tenderloin (rarely eat the latter). Oh, forgot I have ground sausage in my omelette I make every day. I drink at least 3 of my 16 oz water, with 1/4 tsp salt in each.
So again, I will look into this a bit further when I am not so tired. Thanks so much for the info, as I really would like an option if I should start worrying again 
You sound a lot like me. I use uncured bacon with my morning eggs. In addition to those meats I eat wild shrimp, crab, occasional turkey, occasional sardines, etc I don’t do a lot of nuts when I do keto, but do have them about once per week in the low carb phase of my year, although this last year it became every day. I do really feel the secret to my lower cholesterol is the soluble fiber I eat. I try to get a little with every meal - just my suggestion to try if you are concerned - as I try to keep my oxLDL below 60. I didn’t post that, but it was 49. My vitamin D level was 56, which helps use up cholesterol to make hormones, etc. I supplement 10,000 IUs of Vitamin D most days in the winter.
To the degree that Red Yeast Rice works, it’s because the “yeast” growing in it contains lovastatin. If I wanted that, I’d just take lovastatin tablets since then the dosage and purity are (in principle, anyway) better quantified.
I believe lovastatin was originally discovered in fungi, but I’m pretty sure the stuff in tablets is made by industrial chemical synthesis, not purified from cells. Unless you believe in vitalism (or the fungus happens to contain an unrecognized co-factor), it should be equivalent since it’s supposed to be the same molecule.
it’s interesting to find out it’s considered to have no carbs. I can’t eat regular rice as it’s high in carbs, and not only for ketosis, but for my T2 Diabetes. The T2 is why I came upon Keto in the first place.
The RYR looks horrible to eat though 
Have you eaten it? Says it’s fermented??
I’m going to try and track the fiber I already eat, and see if it should be enough SD. Do you know how many grams I would need to match what you eat?
EDIT: I just see now in myfitnesspal, I’m only getting 7 grams a day of fiber. So, I’ll try and up that a bit, but google says 5-10 grams a day to lower cholesterol. I don’t put much faith in what google says, but it 's a place to start anyway
I see there are quite a few things I could add to my daily food, that are soluble fiber, plus low in carbs
I think you will notice a difference Denise. Remember there is a difference between soluble fiber and insoluble fiber. I am not sure, but I feel the soluble fiber is much more important to lower cholesterol reabsorption. This year during keto, I had an avocado every day in a protein smoothie. Focus on watery plant foods. They generally have more soluble fiber. So also things like my organic berries in the morning. Asparagus and cruciferous vegetables. I eat a lot of brocolli, cabbage and kale, but also some brussel sprouts. I don’t eat a lot of cauliflower, but if you like it… Occasionally green beans. These generally are steamed or lightly boiled, and then finished with grass-fed butter and Herbamayer salt. The kale I get in a salad with raw cabbage and raddichio. It comes in a pack with pumpkin seeds and cranberries. I throw out the poppy seed dressing which uses a seed oil and has sugar, and use my own herb, balsamic vinegar, and MCT oil dressing which also goes on top of added hemp hearts… This salad will substitute for my usual vegetable about 2 X wk. When not doing keto, I will also usually add some of my nut mix. I really enjoy this salad. I was not really much of a salad eater until I found this combo.
Insoluble fiber is basically cellulose, and generally just passes though us without being utilized by us or our microbiome. Too much of this can cause constipation. Those other items in that chart are generally going to have too much carbs to allow you to easily stay in ketosis, if that is your goal, although some are going to have appreciable amounts of soluble fiber like squash. I avoid spinach - oxalates, etc.
I actually do use a small amount of chia seeds, but they get soaked at least 1-2 hrs, and then I add Good & Gather(Target) cacao powder, PB powder, coconut oil, erythritol/monk fruit sweetener and some GABA to make a fudgy fat bomb. Chia seeds are nutricious but are also quite high in oxalates, and I mostly avoid high oxalate foods. Herbamayer salt can be had at Vitacost or Amazon. Flaxseed is acceptable in moderate amounts, but I prefer hemp hearts for their better protein profile. I don’t eat a lot of mushrooms, but they are fine.
Hope you don’t mind me printing this off?? I want to try some of your ideas, and yes, I want low carb, I do under 20 now, but I can go up to 40-50 as that’s what I ate in the beginning and brought down my weight, and hba1c’s
The only reason I got so low in carbs was I loved having only 2 meals a day, with a few pistachios midday. I wasn’t hungry, I just wanted a snack. I love avocados if I can get good ones. I moved were there are lots of farm-fresh markets, a bit more money but will be worth it.
I also ignored the facts about oscillates and kept eating my spinach, but I want to ditch that for something else like zuccine, I like that as well.
Can’t thank you enough for sharing your foods with me, and I’ll be back to let you know how I do, and adding some groceries to my list, Denise 
PS I do fat-bomb as well, and I got the recipe from DeLaure and I use cacao, chia seeds, coconut oil, Sunflower Butter, stevia, and I add walnuts as well, and monk-fruit, but still need the stevia because the Monk Fruit takes way more but I love the texture of it
Not as long as you send me my $5! I am glad you like…some of my ideas
I actually do the same in my low carb period 2/3 of the year… cept I use my nut mix for lunch… if I have it, pistachios are expensive…and the mix saves money.
Last year I added a protein smoothie at lunch in my keto winter time routine in an effort to gain more muscle, but it doesn’t seem to be working as well this year. Before that it was basically OMAD MWF and 2 meals on my other days.
Check is in the mail 
So I see you only do Keto Winter months? Probably you are getting out a lot during Summer and need to eat more. I do when I am going to the gym, which I just joined Planet Fitness.
I like to go to winco, although I’m not sure how good their bulk is, so I can buy a variety of nuts, but I haven’t done that lately. I spend most of my grocery money on meats, eggs, pistachios since our prices are off the chart right now.
Anyway, I wrote down a new list for shopping, and I will see how I do. What sort of herbs do you put in you dressing? No hurry getting back to me, just whenever thank you again SD 
Yes, and while I thank you for this, it drives the mathematical part of my brain wacky to think it’s not the same in both units. I know we discussed why, but still…it’s a ratio!
I promise I will take you out to dinner when I get it.
I get my nuts at Costco and a local herb store bulk. Pistachios occasionally at Smith’s when on sale with a coupon. Lamb is from Costco or Sam’s Club. Grass-fed ground beef from Sam’s Club or Smith’s in a pinch. Eggs are pasture raised from Trader Joe’s or a new Target. Wild shrimp from Smith’s or Costco/SC. Crab and uncured bacon usually from Smith’s. Chicken thighs from Smith’s, Costco or Target. Rabbit from Winco
Costco’s no salt organic herb seasoning - it goes in the bottle, and it seems the flavor gets better as it ages.
His 50+ posts on heart disease are worth reading. He has so many observations, such as why people who live in polluted areas have more heart disease. To me, he has the most unified theory of heart disease I’ve seen, and amount of LDL is a very small to no player in it.
He has “downgraded” stress as a cause of heart disease, but I still think stress is way up there. Have a colleague who is one of the most stressed people I think I’ve ever met, and he had to have a quadruple bypass.
