I have been coming to these boards for quite a few years always saying that I am going to finally get rid of this weight and get myself in a healthier place.

Well, the wake up call came today. Just got back from the DR's and my cholesteral results are all very high.....high risk cat. The only one that wasn't high was my HDL so not good.

I gotta get on the right track, DR gave me 3 months to try and get the levels down or then we have to consider meds.

I already take a thyroid pill to live, I don't want to live on cholesteral meds.....someone please point me in the right direction....what should I be eatting, I know to exercise more....but I don't really know what to eat to help bring these levels down....or even what not to eat.....

This is my official cry for help

Kim

What have you been doing so far?

nothing yet, just got back from the DR's.

I am going to start doing cardio, WATP, bike, walking.

It is the food that I need help with??

Thank you for responding.

Kim

Yes, the food. You've lost 15 lbs! You must be on to something!

Unfortunatley I lost that months ago. Nothing in quite some time.

I was just wondering if there are some foods to avoid, or what foods I should eat.

I am getting back on the bandwagon and this time for health not just looks.

Thank you.
Kim

Read all you can about fats and see if you can get them down to less than 30% of your caloric intake.
As for foods ... oatmeal and psyllium fiber are the only ones I can think of off the top of my head.
Let's see what the others have to say.
But keep us informed. We're rootin' for ya!

Hello and Welcome!! Good Luck with your weight loss you can do it!

HockeyChic:

Hi, I'm new here, too. I also have high cholesterol and hypothyroidism.

You will find a huge amount of information if you do an online search. I also found a ton of info at webmd.com for so many different questions regarding health.

If I'm not mistaken, shell fish has a high cholesterol count. Avacados are high in fat but I don't know if they have LDL or HDL types.

The toughest part is getting started on healthier eating habits. For some reason, I've had to talk myself into it again and again.

FYI, many people (not all) have started taking cholesterol lowering meds and were able to stop taking them after eating better and losing weight.

My husband had high cholesterol and we got it under control with diet & exercise.

Oatbran is vital to get into your diet, and Omega 3 fish oils as well. I took my favorite pancake recipe, and replaced half the flour with oatbran, and we eat that every day for breakfast. (It actually improved the recipe!) It's the bran in the oatmeal that is important for the cholesterol benefits. We also take 3 fish oil pills per day. If you do this, try and get some brand that has the contaminants removed, as this much fish oil may not be good for you unless it's been purified.

Look up "metabolic syndrome" online if you really want a scare. High cholesterol/ low hdl can be a symptom of a bigger problem.

Hullo, Kim! You can do this.

Susan B makes a good suggestion to read all you can about fats*. Healthy vs unhealthy. Saturated vs unsaturated. Monounsaturated. Polyunsaturated. All of them. Good guys and bad guys. Having good information helps you see where your weak points are. (Mine's butter, for example. I'm still working on this. A friend's is cheese and she's done very well by cutting right back.)

*Udo Erasmus has written a book called Fats that Heal, Fats that Kill. It's good, it's lengthy and it's a bit intense at times. Worth a look, at least.

My weightloss advice (for what it's worth) is to cut out junk food, eat food as close to nature as possible not processed to within an inch of its/our life/lives. Lots of fruit and veg, lean protein, wholegrain carbs, healthy fats. And lots of water.

How did you manage to lose the 15lbs? Perhaps there are some lessons for you there?

Very good luck. Keep us posted, won't you?

I'm glad this came up. I'm learning alot!

http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/fats.html

Hi! Last month, my cholesterol was 257. If I don't lower it by August, I will be on meds. I refuse to let this happen. From the research I've done, basically, FIBER IS YOUR FRIEND!! Whole GRAINS(not just whole wheat) & fruits & veggies help to lower cholesterol levels. My favorite cholesterol lowering veggie is artichokes. They are sort of expensive, but I like to look at it as they are cheaper than getting a monthly prescription

I don't take the fish oil capsules--they give me fish burps --so I eat fish 3x weekly instead.

Hope this helps

Thank you, thank you all for your information and your support.

I am reading all the information I can on the subject right now. Weightloss will be a bonus, from what I read you can be really skinny and still have high cholesteral so it isn't just losing weight that I have to do, it is move a whole lot more and eat the right stuff. I love oatmeal, have eatten it for breakfast everyday since my now 16 year old was a baby.....lol

I feel better knowing I am not in this alone, thank you all again.

Kim

We get a kind of capsule available at Sam's that has what's called an enteric coating over the gel capsule. It really works well in preventing fish burps.

Eating fish that often is too scary for me. Mercury levels in most fish are too high to be eating them that frequently. Or so I've heard, anyway

I bought psyllium fiber today. I'll put it in my shake tomorrow and let you know how it goes ... er ... tastes.