Weird Blood Test - Lipoprotein(a) and CRP

(Rafe) #1

Hello Everyone,

Background information: I have been on a modified ketogenic diet for approx 7 months now. I have went from 415 down to 299 lbs and I am 6’3" and feel good in general. I recently had my blood work done for my annual physical, and all of my normal test came back better or in range compared to last year. My LDL dropped from 135 to 115, my HDL went from 36 to 39, and my blood glucose went fro 90 to 72. The weird numbers came in on my new test. I added C-Reactive Protein as an inflammation marker and lipoprotein(a) which is the small (aka bad) LDL molecules, and the results came back at 6.88 mg/dl and I was expecting the number to be much lower (0.99 is the max on the chart and I was hoping for <0.8). My lipoprotein(a) came back at 44.8 mg/dl and from what I have read the ideal number is below 30, as is the true indication of heart disease potential (not LDL).

My question is, has anyone else experienced these type of results, and is there any reason why?

I am going to increase protein intake since I have been pushing toward a more true ketogenic diet of 90% fat which may be a cause, but my daily eating has been…2 eggs with cheese and bulletproof coffee (1 TBS MCT, 1 TBS Kerrygold butter) for breakfast, Orgain Protein shake with MCT oil and chia seeds for lunch, then either a 0.5lb steak, bacon, or vegetable smothered in butter for dinner. The macros ends up with only about 105 grams of protein a day, and my body fat is approx 30%, so I have 210 lbs of lean mass, or about 0.5 grams of protein per lean pound max a day. I go to the gym 5-6 days a week, and do resistance (lifting) training at least 3 days a week. I have read lifting the day before the blood test can influence the CRP and I did lift heavily the night before. the lipoprotein bothers me, but I don’t know if it is an issue, or because of the rapid weight loss.

Any information, resources, or personal experiences would be appreciated and don’t be afraid to get to technical…I am a scientist :slight_smile:

Sorry for the lengthy post,

Bomb

(Candy Lind) #2

@DaveKeto is the person to ask about the lipoproteins; if he’s not around, maybe @richard or one of our doctor members will have a comment.

#3

Dr Wm Davis used to talk lots of lp(a) yrs ago on his Track Your Plague forum. I think it’s related to genetics if memory is right. He’s not a keto doc though.

(KCKO, KCFO 🥥) #4

CRP anything under 3 is ok, some say anything over 5 is bad, others say don’t worry about it till it hits 10 if you have recently lost a lot of weight, that you be your case. Losing weight is a stress for the body and that can impact inflammation, but all kinds of things from infection to cancer can cause those numbers to go higher than normal. Something to discuss with your dr. I was slighly over 3. and my dr. looked at all my other tests and said, have you had a sinus infection lately and I had because this was allergy season, so she said to just retest in the summer before my allergy season peaks next time.

Here is a resource for information on lipoprotein (a), it should answer your questions about your level:
http://www.lipoproteinafoundation.org/?page=UnderstandLpa

Also you might want to check with Dave Feldman as mentioned above. He is good at explaining anything chol. related. Oh and you might want to view Ivor Cummins video from the 2017 ketofest, a deep dive into true markers of risk of cardio disease. Sorry I don’t have the link handy, just search for his name and the date with ketofest added should come right up for you.

Congrats on the other numbers. And awesome weight loss already,KCKO.

(Rafe) #5

Thanks everyone, I will check on the information provided. I follow Dr. Dominic D’Aagostino (PhD who works in molecular biology, and neuroscience), Chris Kresser (Cleveland Clinic), and Dr, Mark Gordon MD for their work on ketogenic/low carb diets. I try to avoid any doctors who don’t put what type of doctors they are in their title (usually chiropractors) and try to keep all of my diet changes within founded and documented science. Based on what I have read through published PubMed documents and information provided by the individuals above, the elevated lipoprotein and CRP was unexpected. The amount of weight loss I experienced was not documented in anything I have read, and I have only found a few references to weight lifting causing inflated CRP numbers. I am more worried about the lipoprotein(a) numbers since LDL and HDL seem to be under question on conventional thought at this point. I am worried my doc will want to put me on statins which I will not go on and want to go in on point.

(Sonya T) #6

I have very high Lp(a) as well, in spite of all other markers being excellent. Lp(a) is genetically determined there is nothing you can do to change it, but niacin is helpful. According to the information I’ve seen, Lp(a) is a lipoprotein that has a little tail and acts similarly to fibrinogen. Statins are both good and bad, they are good for inflammation but may not be helpful for the Lp(a) itself. Lots of good information at the Lipoprotein(a) foundation website referenced above. One recommendation I have is if you do start niacin, work up slowly and don’t use the slow release. Niacin is tough on the liver, and the smallest time it’s exposed to it, the better. My physician told me to take 2000mg daily, and I’m still working up to it

(Rafe) #7

1 year later update. Still Keto. Down to 265 lbs now. CRP dropped slightly to 6.34 from 6.88 mg/L, and Lpa went up to 45.8 from 44.8. LDL dropped to 102, and my HDL went up to 65.

Still not happy about the high CRP and lipoprotein a. I started taking vitamin d2/k2, and probiotics but neither seem to have affected the numbers. I do have bad knees/back, carpal tunnel, and some other mildly Inconvenient small issues, but nothing crazy.