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I got this email today.
LDL CALC 90 06/14/2011
LDL 171 11/23/2011
ESR WEST 47 11/23/2011
Your cholesterol is really up there. You should go back on the statin. I've ordered another fasting cholesterol to be done in 2 to 3 months. Also, your sed rate is up a bit, but not to a scarey level.
We knew the sed rate is up. I am very inflamed, still. What do I do? Stay off the statins? I don't think Kaiser does the NMR test.
I SO don't want to go on statins again
What was your total cholesterol? And was the 11/23 value also a calculation, or a direct measurement? If it was a calculation, it would be good also to know your triglycerides. In case you can't tell, I am winding myself up to edify my own doctor about cholesterol, and I most certainly will not go on a statin drug. (I have a slight fantasy that she insists, and I break up with her over it.)
Don't take medical advice from me, of course, and on this topic I definitely have an axe to grind, so take me with a grain of salt. BUT - this isn't some wild out-there web site with crystals suggesting women don't benefit from statins; it's mainstream enough to be in Time Magazine.
Well, your HDL is low... Your total is lower than mine (245), and hardly drastically elevated. My HDL was in the high 80s, I think (I can look it up, but not till late tonight). My LDL was 148, but that was a calculation, based on a formula - and there is more than one formula. The other formula *might* be more accurate when triglycerides are low (and mine are wondrously low, because - I'm guessing - of the grain-free diet). According to the other formula, my calculated LDL would be more like 115 (and all my ratios are 'optimal' or 'ideal' according to the calculators). So...
Sounds like this should be "on your list" - but you first need to get food/nutrients moving in and out of your body in some reliable and non-painful fashion (IMO). That might actually help your HDL, and therefore your ratios. And do consider sharing that Time article with your doc, if statins continue to be pushed. I am very hostile to that class of drugs, again, but since Crestor killed my father, *and statins just don't benefit women - if they even benefit men, which is another question* - there is zero chance I will ever take one. Older people also are more likely to be harmed by statins than helped, according to some folks (so if I keep arguing with my doctor long enough I'll age out of it, and then maybe she'll care about something that I believe is important).
I have a friend who cannot take statin drugs due to muscle pain. Her doctor put her on Red Yeast Rice. At the first follow up, her colesterol was better than when she was on the statin. He will check it again in a few months. I don't know anything about Red Yeast Rice, but someone else on this site may.
Red Yeast Rice is actually a naturally occurring statin. My neighbor was taking it, but eventually wound up having muscle pain with it (I think she thought it was 'natural' and had considerably upped her dose ).
It does work in a somewhat less sledge-hammer-like manner to lower cholesterol. (Whether lower = better is a topic for another thread...)
In that study, to convert the international units to conventional units, 4.0 mmol/l is equivalent to 154 mg/dL, 7.0 mmol/l is equal to 270 mg/dL, and 8.8 mmol/l is equal to 340 mg/dL. IOW, in that study, lowest mortality occurred at a total cholesterol level of 270 mg/dL, and the highest mortality, (5.2 times higher), occurred at a total cholesterol level of 154mg/dL. If you analyze the numbers, you can see that the mortality risk was almost 3 times as high, (2.9, actually), at a total cholesterol level of 154 mg/dL, as it was at a total cholesterol level of 340 mg/dL. So once we reach a certain age category, the only reason why we might want to lower our cholesterol level would be because we were tired of living.
The following quote is from the article at the link below:
We found little or no association in women between all-cause mortality and any of the lipid measures studied.
Virtually all doctors try to overlook those studies, because they're too busy pushing statins, to bother to learn anything new about them, and they consider statins to be a one-size-fits-all remedy for everything that ails ya, (whether anything actually ails ya or not).
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
Nancy, I am sensitive to RICE, so that is not an option for me.
When I get my diet under control and can absorb nutrients so I feel better I will try to eat a little less meat and more fish. I love fish so it won't be a problem. I need it to digest properly though.
Sara - in 3 months I will do a fasting test, and go from there. I think I will ask to see a cardiologist, and see if there is another way to figure this out. I need to know how much risk there is to my heart. So far there hasn't been any problem, but who knows?
Lesley wrote:I did an edit for spelling and it posted AGAIN! I don't know why.
You probably overlooked my post while you were doing all that.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
My cholesterol is also high (227), and like you, I began to worry. My Dr. did put me on a very low dose of statin (he Rx'd 10 mg, I take 5 mg), but I plan to quit in another few months after my next Lipid Profile. There is simply too much information proving that statins are horrible drugs, but the drug mfg. have absolutely convinced doctors, I believe, that it is a must, now, even for children, if you can imagine.
Sara and Tex (thank you both) have posted very good information on why we shouldn't ever take them. I can tell you, even with my low dose of taking it only a few months, I have muscle pain, particularly, in my hands and legs. I have printed out some of the articles they posted to take to my next cardio appointment, so I am armed, and it doesn't matter if I convince Dr. DingDong or not, I will be off any statin. It feels right for me. I don't need any more aches or pains.
I certainly did miss it, and many thanks for drawing my attention to it. I think it will be among the articles I show to the new GE when I get to see him. Appointments are SO far ahead.
I am not taking statins, and I am not taking PPIs. Thanks for giving me the tools and support I need to "fight" the doctors.
I have a list of tests that might actually tell us something useful about our real risk, and I'm sure Tex has resources, too - I'm having a crazy week, so will just list them without helpful commentary - but promise to post the details well before your next doctor appointment.
Coronary calcium scan
ultrasound of carotid artery
NMR lipid particle test (aka NMR lipoprofile)
I'm guessing some of these are more generally accepted than others, and some are more likely to be covered by insurance, but - to me, asking better questions seems cleverer than slapping a one-size-fits-all medication on the entire population.
Signs & Symptoms of Magnesium Deficiency:
Poor immune function
Bone Loss
Muscle pain and muscle twitching
Depression
High Blood Pressure
Increase cholesterol
Hypoglycemia or other blood sugar problems
Fatigue
Thyroid Disease
DISCLAIMER: I am not a doctor and don't play one on TV.
Visit the Microscopic Colitis Foundation Website
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