My LIPIDS over the past year and a half on...
RWhigham 02 Aug 2020
What is the entirety of your Lipid context? What did your total cholesterol, LDL, HDL and trigs look like when receiving that measurement?
Lp(a) 6 nmol/L was only measured once on Sep 13, 2017. TC at the time was elevated from bronchitis 276 mg/dL
What is your history?
After my cholesterol climbed to 220 circa 2000-2004, I became a vegetarian which dropped my TC to 170.
My CAC score 15 years ago and again 10 years ago stayed at 8 from one tiny spec of calcium reinforcing a sharp bend in one coronary artery. So appearing to be free of atherosclerosis, in 2008 I adopted a hi-fat low-carb diet to raise my cholesterol to around 240, which is reported give minimum mortality in men free of CHD.
- All measurements in mg/dL
- Sep 30, 2014 TC 277 LDL-C 189 HDL-C 72 Trigs 81 Lipids elevated by low T4 thyroid level
- Feb 3, 2015 TC 204 LDL-C 128 HDL-C 61 Trigs 74
- Apr 23, 2017 TC 252 LDL-C 160 HDL-C 78 Trigs 71
- Sep 13, 2017 TC 276 LDL-C 195 HDL-C 60 Trigs 103 Lipids elevated by bronchitis
- Aug 3, 2019 TC 210 LDL-C 124 HDL-C 73 Trigs 63
- Oct 11, 2019 TC 241 LDL-C 152 HDL-C 68 Trigs 104 Trigs not fasted long enough
I consider the last results above to be ideal for minimum mortality provided one is free of heart disease. However my LDL-P count and "small-dense" LDL-P count (not shown) are high on this diet. This is common, concerning, and worrisome to everyone on this diet. No one can say how much of a problem it might be.
- I usually eat only one meal between 11 am and 1pm to allow my cells plenty of time for house-keeping
- I occasionally fast for one or two days, but meal time is a social occasion that I don't like to miss.
- My current diet is high in dairy fat from 100% grass-fed cows.
- I avoid fat from most pork and beef because it's likely unhealthy because of the animal's diet.
- The fat from "life-time" grass-fed beef is acceptable and I always buy such beef with the highest percentage fat.
- Note that just "grass-fed" says nothing about how long, could be only a few days.
- Note that "free-range" chicken just means the coop had a door leading to an open space, often tiny.
- I eat "pasture-raised" chicken, "life-time" grass-fed beef, "wild-caught" salmon & shrimp
- I eat a medley of steamed veggies, green beans, broccoli, cauliflower, peas, bok choy, brussel sprouts, carrots.
- I eat typical low-carb: no bread, potatoes, rice, cereal, alcohol, commercial salad dressings, soft drinks, fruit drinks, and only an occasional piece of fruit.
- I only buy late-harvest olive oil in the spring when its fresh out of settling tanks with minimum light exposure and the highest polyphenol content I can find
- I don't eat uncooked foods. I would eat salads if I could grow them myself, but not otherwise.
Edited by RWhigham, 02 August 2020 - 04:41 PM.
aribadabar 02 Aug 2020
... from a long list of expensive supplementation for many years...
Would you share its constituents and your personal assessment of them?
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RWhigham 02 Aug 2020
... from a long list of expensive supplementation for many years...
Would you share its constituents and your personal assessment of them?
Aug 2, 2020
Edited by RWhigham, 02 August 2020 - 06:18 PM.
pamojja 02 Aug 2020
I'm surprised you take only 1 meal, and stomach so many w/meal supplements on an empty stomach.
aribadabar 02 Aug 2020
Aug 2, 2020
7 am T3 1 tab 5ug T4 equivalence = 15ug x 2.875 + 67.86 ug = 111 ug (for thyroidectomy)T4 75ug 1.5 tab qd less 1 tab on Wed, 67.86 ug per day averageProgest TD 20mg 1/4tsp to back of hands +rejuv handsHekla Lava 1tsp & 4 pellets SL Calc Fluor 30c +rejuv spinePu-erh tea, 1/8 htsp TMG -homocysteine -IL-6/TNF-a/CRP -21/23/26% +immunity -cancer9 am M1 (morning) w 1/2 tsp hyaluronic ac in water +skin/jointsAfter lunch L1 (lunch) w 1/2 tsp Creatine, HMB, & Hyaluronic Ac in water +skin/joints/muscles3 pm T3 1 tab 5ug5 pm E1 (evening) w 1/2 tsp hyaluronic ac in water +skin/jointsPu-erh_Tea, 1 tsp inositol -IL-6/TNF-a/CRP -21/23/26% +immunity -cancer6 pm Hekla Lava 1tsp (1pellet 30c in 6oz water) +rejuv spine8 pm N1 (night) 1/2 tsp Reishi 100:1 extract +mouse_lifespan 20% +telomerase 200% w candesartan11 pm T3 1 tab 5ugM1 - morningVit-A 10,000 iu (3mg) 1gel syn w vit-D3 1:1 by iu UL = 3mg RDA = 0.7 mgAlpha Keto Glutaric Ac 2cap 600mg & Vit-A 10,000iu +HDL -TC/LDL rejuv DNA_melthlationL_Reuteri_6475 1cap 3 billion CFU +Oxytocin3x +Thymus2x -Neutrophils/Stress-hormones- Methyl-B12 2.5mg SL (1/2 tab) Jarrow -homocysteine- B-multi 1cap Swanson "Active-B"- Methy-Folate 5mg 1cap LEF -homocysteine UL 15mg (unlike folic acid where > 200ug is bad)Tadalafil 5mg (1/2tab) -BPH +lifespan in Blagosklonny_protocol[MWF] Deprenyl (Seglegiline) 1.25mg (1/4 tab) +MAO-B to youthful levelE1 - eveningIP6 2g 4cap halflife 1hr -cancer/mTOR/iron +autophagy +NK_cells_synergistic_inositolM1 E1 - bidDIM_Plus 50mg 1cap -aromatase/p_C/BCL/mTOR +Autoph/DNA_repair w suforaphane, NAC, lipoic acWobenzyme (1tab) Pancreatic_enzymes & Rutin_75mg -Hasini_effect/Metastasis/TGF-b1/Inflam/CRPComfortMax -TGF-b1/Inflam/aging PPARa-stim -pain* DHA/EPA 1g/100mg 1gel Dr's_Best +Mem/Neurogen/telomerase/autophagyALCAR 500mg 1cap -Lipofusin/NF-kB/glycation +UPS/Mito/Mem/ACh chromatin-expand syn CentrophCentrophenoxine 250mg (1cap) -lipofucin_w_ALCAR +memory/mRNA/Murine_life +27%Pycnogenol 95mg 1cap -IL-6/TGF-b/Inflam/Athero +sox2 +Nrf2 syn w Gotu Kola/noCVDGotu Kola 950mg (2cap) -ROCK/Tgf_b/Smad2,3/BP/P_cancer +Klf4/PPARg/Smad7/telomerase/neurogenLycopene 1gel 15mg LYC-O-Mato -DHT/P_cancer/BPH/NF-kB_35% +Nrf2Glutathione 500mg (2cap) DNA-protect cytosol_antioxidant +telomerase* CoQ10 100mg 1gel -Ather -CHD 54% w Se syn ALCAR NOAEL=1200mgd-Tocotrienol (E) 125mg 1gel delta-gold -TC_15%/VCAM1 +AMPK/lifespanMK7 90ug 1gel Jarrow (100ug MK7 per 5,000 D3 is mandatory) +Ca_regulaion- P5P (B6) 50mg 1cap (P5P should not have neurotoxicity) -homocysteine -glycationMagtein M1 E2 (Mg 150mg & theonate 186mg in 3caps) -DKK-1 +Wnt_sig/hippocamp_neurogen[1-3 Monthly] Quercetin EMIQ 50mg 1cap -nucCD38 ++nucNAD+ syn apigenin (caution: topo-poison)[1-7 & 15-21 Monthly] NK-Cell-Act LEF 1cap +Immune_boostM1 L1 E1 - tidMg-bicarb 1/8tsp 300mg, Ribose 3mg, AscorbicAc 1/8tsp 150mg in 20cc warm H2O -cancerHyaluronic acid 1/2 tsp (float then pour water on top) +joints/dermis/youthfulnessL-Carnosine 500mg 1cap -glycation/TGF-b1/mTOR/Inflamaging DNA_protect +skin/brain2- Benfotiamine (B1) 150mg 1cap -glycation -AGEs (advanced glycation end-products)- Riboflavin (B2) 100mg 1cap syn w vit-D3 -homocysteineMg-Malate (Mg 425mg in 3caps) syn CoQ10 & Selenium RDA 420mg 50% are deficientAstaxanthin 4mg 1gel ++DNA_protect +FOXO3A -Athero/oxLDL/DNA_damage -40% [w Zeaxanthin,Lutein]Rhodiola 350mg 1cap ++DNA_repair -stress/MAO/BG very hi dose can be toxicHorny GW icariin 100mg 1cap -BPH/PAH/PDE5/TOR1/osteoporosis +T/BMD/stemcells/DNA-repair/mRNAMilk Thistle w tumeric (2cap tid) Natural Grocers ++liver-protect +AMPK/lfespan* Fo-Ti-Prep 16:1 500mg (2cap tid) +hair/youth/AMPK -amyloid/inflam/cancer liver_tox_w/o_PrepL1 - lunchDHEA 25mg 1cap +telomerase TOR-stim Autoph-inh -old_age goal 300 ug/dLPregnenolone 50mg 1cap +telomerase TOR-stim Autoph-inh -old_age goal 166 ng/dLStinging Nettle root 750mg 1cap -BPH/estradiol/aromataseHeliocare Polypodium L. 240mg 1cap +p53/tgf-b/lungs/skin -IL-6/CRP/C/HasiniMetastasis halfife 4-6hrLutein 4 mg in 1gel LEF_MacuGuard -NF-kB +Nrf2 -DNA_damage_40% w AstaxanthinZeaxanthin 1.34mg in 1gel LEF_MacuGuardSaffron ext 20mg in 1gel LEF_MacuGuard telomerase_inhOleuropein 100mg 1cap Swanson OLE ++UPS +HDL/Nrf2/PPARa//AMPK -LDL/oxLDL/LPS/NF_kb/cell_debrisGinkgo 1cap 120mg +DNA_repair/NO/m_life+8%/estrogenic -inflam/CRP/cortisol/NF-kB/MPO/cancer/oxLDLAlpha Lipoic Acid TR 300mg 1tab -LPS/lipofucin/abdomial_fat Releases_Hg needs_NAC to remove HgNAC TR 600mg 1cap -Hg/lung_mucus/NF-kB/IGF-1 +glutathione/Murine_life +40% needs 2g vit-C TR* White Willow Bark 75mg salicin 1cap DNA_protect TOR-inh +AMPK/lifespan +Sirt1 -tumors_10-fold* DHA/EPA_250/350 1gel LEF_Super_Omega3 -LPS/TNF-a/NF-kB/CRP/C/mTOR/BclVit-C TR 1g 1tab -Athero Anti-ox Autoph-inh -Lp chromatin-expand to enable telomeraseVit-D3 5,000 iu 1gel (100ug MK7 per 5k D3 reqd for Ca_reg) 10k/day D3 ruined my nailsVit-K K1-5mg MK4-25mg MK7-500ug Astaxanthin 2mg (1cap Koncentrrated-K)Zinc-L-carnosine 16mg (2cap) RDA 11mg -CRP/LPS/BG/reflux/gut_leakage -Cu +Nrf2Selenium 100ug 1cap -Ather Anti-ox Typ Food100ug Optimum 200ug UL400ugBoron 3mg 1cap CRP -50% IL-6 -44% TNFa -30% freeT+28% +estradiol_if_too_muchIodine 225ug 1tab potassium_iodine Now Foods[MWF] Molybdenum 150ug 1 tab[MWF] Manganese 2.5mg (1/4 tab) hi-in-US-food AI 2.3mg excess-is-highly-toxic[1-3 & 15-17 Monthly] Cistanche 210mg 1cap LEF +DNA_repair/Immune_boost* blood thinnerN1 - nightMelatonin 200mg (Bulk supplements powder) -LH/fasting_insulin +thymus CR_mimeticDHEA 50mg (2cap) +telomerase TOR-stim Autoph-inh -old_age goal 300 ug/dLPregnenolone 50mg 1cap +telomerase TOR-stim Autoph-inh -old_age goal 166 ng/dLProbiotic w phages 1cap PreForPro -LPS +lifespanChromium picolinate 200ug 1cap Now Foods -Fasting Glucose +insulin if deficient (rare)OPC_GSE 150mg (2tab) +nucNAD+/Sirt1/Nampt/FOXO3/PINK1/PARKIN/lifespan -estradiol/BPH/tau/mTORLithium 5mg 1tab +nucNAD+ (oppsite am) +Nampt/neural-protect/AMPK/lifespan -Alz/inflamRhodiola 350mg 1cap -stress/MAO/BG +DNArepairSchizandra 500mg 9% 1 cap -stress, balance para & sympa w/eleutheroSiberian Eleuthero 500mg (5:1) 1cap -stress, +T-cells +cognitionPycnogenol 95mg 1cap -IL-6/TGF-b/Inflam/Athero +sox2 +Nrf2 syn w Gotu Kola/noCVDTRU Niagen 300mg 1cap NR needs_TMG +DNA_repair/NAD+/mitogenesis -IL-2/IL-5/IL-6Methylene_blue 1g (1/4 tsp of diution) +Mitos/complex_IV -C -alt_splicing_error/senescenceLDN 2.5mg (3 squirts) +endorphins/immune_function/libedo -C/inflam/pain[Wed] Ashwagandha KSM66 2.1g (7cap) rap_mimetic -cancer/NF-kb +Nrf2/telomeres[1st day of Month] Apigenin 250mg (5caps) -nucCD38 ++nucNAD+ syn quercetin (caution: topo-poison)[15th day of Month] Fisetin 1.2g 12 cap -senescent cells +osteoblasts (caution: topo-poison)[15th day of Month] Quercetin 1g 2cap (caution: topo-poison) synergistic FisetinHyaluronic acid for joints may also help maintain the glycocalyx lining of arteries and help prevent it from being dissapated by elevated postprandial blood sugar. To take hyaluronic acid, I put a half tsp on top of a cup of water, then pour more water on top of it to wet it, then spoon out the glutinous mass with a tablespoon.
Thank you so much for the detailed response!
I have a few questions on certain items:
L_Reuteri_6475 1cap 3 billion CFU +Oxytocin3x +Thymus2x
I know only of 100M CFU L.reuteri 6475 caps commercially available - would you point me to the 3B CFU per cap product?
What is the form of Oxytocin used?
Thymus=?? Thymus glandular extract?
Wobenzyme (1tab)
The recommended daily dosage is at least 3 caps ( up to 12) . What is your rationale for taking only 1/3 of the minimum?
ALCAR 500mg 1cap -Lipofusin/NF-kB/glycation +UPS
What does UPS stand for?
NK-Cell-Act LEF
Isn't LEF's "proprietary blend of modified rice bran" in this product the BetaRight glucans extract?
CoQ10 100mg
Isn't this a bit too low of a dose? Especially if it is the regular ubiquinone form for someone 50+.
Methylene_blue 1g
1g? Isn't that a toxic high dose? I see doses in the 100mg range as the upper level.
- Methyl-B12 2.5mg SL (1/2 tab)
- B-multi 1cap Swanson "Active-B" - containing R5P 25 mg , P5P 25 mg ,Folate 400 mcg , Benfotiamine 36 mg
- Methy-Folate 5mg
- P5P (B6) 50mg 1cap
- Benfotiamine (B1) 150mg
- Riboflavin (B2) 100mg
What is the rationale for such high level intakes of B1, B2, B6? Commensurate doses serving as cofactors of the high doses of B9 and B12 for lowering homocysteine?
Milk Thistle w tumeric (2cap tid) Natural Grocers ++liver-protect +AMPK/lfespan
FWIW you may consider TUDCA as liver tonic.
Vit-C TR 1g
What TR form of vit C is this? PureWay-C?
Thanks for your insight!
RWhigham 02 Aug 2020
Responding to Aribadabar's queries in the preceeding post:
- L_reuteri 6475 with 10 billion CFU is BioGaia Ostofortis
- The "+oxytocin3x" after the L-reuteri means the L-reuteri raises oxytocin levels three fold. While not listed, I also use an OxyPure nasal spray two squirts in each side 1st thing in the morning, but its unlikely to be effective.
- I take a Wobenzyme tab (M1 and E1 meaning in the morning and evening) 1/3 the recommended dose because the recommended dose gives me heartburn.
- ALCAR "+UPS" is a Ubiquitin Proteasome System stimulant, the only one I know of. The UPS eliminates junk proteins from a cell.
- LEF NK-Cell Activator is a "Proprietary Enzymatically Modified Rise Bran". I don't know if its related to beta glucans.
- CoQ10 100mg is in the "M1 E1 bid" group taken in the morning and evening. 200 mg/d reduces CHD 54% provided selenium is in the proper range.
- Methylene blue 1g/d is not a toxic dose. See discussion at the end of this list
- B1 150mg tid in the form of benfotiamine may reduce glycation damage like L-carnosine. L-carnosine appears to reduce the rate of aging by reducing glycation. Benfotiamine may have a similar effect.
- B2 (riboflavin) 100mg tid. I don't recall why I added this. The - sign in front of all the B vitamins in my list is a flag to reconsider & possibly eliminated them. The * is a flag indicating anti-coagulant effects. It's easy to combine too many anticoagulants so I keep track.
- B6 in the form of P5P 50mg bid. This gives me the UL = 100mg/d I take the UL dose of P5P for anti-glycation effect. The pyridoxine common in multi-vitamins is dangerous, but P5P should be very safe.
- I'll take another look a TUDCA for liver support. I take a lot of Milk Thistle for liver support because with so many supplements my liver may need help. I usually get a chemistry panel blood test twice yearly, but Covid has kept me at home this year.
- The Vit-C TR 1g tid is from Now Foods. I find I tolerate a larger dose of vit-C in the Time Release form.
Edited by RWhigham, 02 August 2020 - 11:40 PM.
aribadabar 03 Aug 2020
Responding to Aribadabar's queries in the preceeding post:
- L_reuteri 6475 with 10 billion CFU is BioGaia Ostofortis
- The "+oxytocin3x" after the L-reuteri means the L-reuteri raises oxytocin levels three fold. While not listed, I also use an OxyPure nasal spray two squirts in each side 1st thing in the morning, but its unlikely to be effective.
- I take a Wobenzyme tab (M1 and E1 meaning in the morning and evening) 1/3 the recommended dose because the recommended dose gives me heartburn.
- ALCAR "+UPS" is a Ubiquitin Proteasome System stimulant, the only one I know of. The UPS eliminates junk proteins from a cell.
- LEF NK-Cell Activator is a "Proprietary Enzymatically Modified Rise Bran". I don't know if its related to beta glucans.
- CoQ10 100mg is in the "M1 E1 bid" group taken in the morning and evening. 200 mg/d reduces CHD 54% provided selenium is in the proper range.
- Methylene blue 1g/d is not a toxic dose. See discussion at the end of this list
- B1 150mg tid in the form of benfotiamine may reduce glycation damage like L-carnosine. L-carnosine appears to reduce the rate of aging by reducing glycation. Benfotiamine may have a similar effect.
- B2 (riboflavin) 100mg tid. I don't recall why I added this. The - sign in front of all the B vitamins in my list is a flag to reconsider & possibly eliminated them. The * is a flag indicating anti-coagulant effects. It's easy to combine too many anticoagulants so I keep track.
- B6 in the form of P5P 50mg bid. This gives me the UL = 100mg/d I take the UL dose of P5P for anti-glycation effect. The pyridoxine common in multi-vitamins is dangerous, but P5P should be very safe.
- I'll take another look a TUDCA for liver support. I take a lot of Milk Thistle for liver support because with so many supplements my liver may need help. I usually get a chemistry panel blood test twice yearly, but Covid has kept me at home this year.
- The Vit-C TR 1g tid is from Now Foods. I find I tolerate a larger dose of vit-C in the Time Release form.
Methylene blue is effective at 100 nM/L. It's molar wt is 320g/M x 100nM/L = 32 ug/L. I have about 11 L of extracellular liquid (Interstitial fluids, ECM extracellular matrix fluids) and 22 L of intracellular fluid. Dose for 100 nM/L is therefore:5 L x 32 ug/L = 160 ug for just blood. 11 L x 32 ug/L = 352 ug for extracellular fluids, 22L x 32 ug/L = 704 ug for intracellular fluid, and 1,054 ug for both.
Thank you for addressing them all, much appreciated!
As to methylene blue's dosage - I think you are missing an "m" then - 1mg/d of MB - as 1000ug =1mg, not 1g. That makes sense now. 1g/d is 1000x higher and definitely fatal.
Methylene blue due to its monoamine oxidase(MAO) inhibiting property may precipitate potentially fatal serotonin toxicity at doses >5mg/kg
aribadabar 03 Aug 2020
It's surprising that a few pleiotropic compounds, that also have cardiovascular benefits, are missing from this otherwise exceptionally comprehensive stack:
- Lysine - collagen synthesis, HSV suppression, endothelial function, joints help
- Taurine - NO release regulation, endothelial function, exercise performance booster, nervous system nutrient
- Glucosamine - autophagy, CVD risk/inflammation reduction, joints help
- Glycine - collagen synthesis, anti-inflammatory, helps against sarcopenia, potential sleep improvement if taken at night
Not sure if you've considered them already and if you did it would be interesting to learn why you decided against them.
Thanks!
RWhigham 03 Aug 2020
- Lysine - collagen synthesis, HSV suppression, endothelial function, joints help
- Taurine - NO release regulation, endothelial function, exercise performance booster, nervous system nutrient
- Glucosamine - autophagy, CVD risk/inflammation reduction, joints help
- Glycine - collagen synthesis, anti-inflammatory, helps against sarcopenia, potential sleep improvement if taken at night
Not sure if you've considered them already and if you did it would be interesting to learn why you decided against them.
- Lysine - I take several grams of lysine & theronine, and 1g of leucine & methionine several times a day for 2 days with Turnbuckle's Stem Cell Protocol which I have been doing every 4th day (starting with a muffin containing 4g stearic acid and 6g palmitic acid = 10g of commercial "stearic" acid)
- Taurine - Taurine is a PARP inhibitor. I avoid PARP inhibitors. PARP is essential to DNA-repair
- Glucosamine - I tried this for years and saw no benefit. I now take Paradise Herbs Fo-Ti 6 caps/d after Jeff T. Bowles reported that he restored the hips of his old dog with a year or more of several capsules/day of Paradise Herbs Fo-Ti.
- Glysine - I took 10g/d for several years. I stopped because of neurotoxicity concerns. NMDA receptors which regulate Ca+ inflow into neurons have two enablers which both have to be present, one is glutamate, the other is normally D-serine provided by glial cells. Glycine substitutes for D-serine on the NDMA receptor and prevents any control by D-serine. D-serine must be there for a reason. Glycine may allow too much Ca+ influx which could damage the neuron. I have mild early onset (late 30's) essential tremors and that makes me more cautious.
Edited by RWhigham, 03 August 2020 - 02:39 PM.
pamojja 05 Aug 2020
5th August 2020
This article was first published on RT.com on the 4th of August, and it can be seen here
In the midst of the COVID-19 epidemic almost every other medical condition has been shoved onto the side-lines. However, in the UK last year, heart attacks and strokes (CVD) killed well over one hundred thousand people – at least twice as many as have died from COVID-19.
CVD will kill just as many this year. Which makes it significantly more important than COVID-19, even if no-one is paying much attention to it right now. So, it is good to see that research goes on, and papers are still being published.
One of the most significant, and of great interest to me personally, was a critical examination of the benefits of lowering cholesterol. This was published on the fourth of August. The paper was called ‘Hit or miss: the new cholesterol targets,’ and it came out in Evidence Based Medicine, one of the key titles that sits under the umbrella of British Medical Journal publishing
It was carefully worded, as all clinical papers are, but a key section of the press release was as follows: “Setting targets for ‘bad’ (LDL) cholesterol levels to ward off heart disease and death in those at risk might seem intuitive, but decades of research have failed to show any consistent benefit for this approach, reveals an analysis of the available data, published online in BMJ Evidence Based Medicine.”
What is being said here is the following. Everyone thinks that lowering LDL, a.k.a. ‘bad cholesterol is considered the single most important way to reduce the risk of heart disease and strokes. However, “decades of research have failed to show any consistent benefit for this approach.”
Surely this flies in the face of almost all the advice we have been bombarded with for the last fifty years, or so? Cholesterol – by which we really mean low density lipoprotein (LDL) – is a killer and must be lowered. This is the whole point of statins, the single most widely prescribed type of drug in the history of medicine. Drugs that have racked up sales of nearly one trillion dollars since their launch.
Now, newer, and far more expensive LDL lowering medications are available, riding on the success of statins. They are injectable, rather than a tablet, and the cost is far higher. In the US, you are looking at around $5,000 per year. In the UK, one of these drugs Repatha, costs the NHS just over £4,000 per year. These drugs are known as PCSK9-inhibitors.
These are eye-watering costs. It is estimated that around seven million people in the UK take statins currently. If everyone converted to a PCSK9-inhibitor, this would cost the NHS twenty-eight billion pounds a year. Not far off the entire defence budget.
But do these drugs work, does lowering LDL work? Surely it does, surely it must. The answer is, not necessarily. Yes, statins have been found to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, not by a massive amount, but the effect exists. At least in some studies, if not all.
However, many other drugs also reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease without having any
effect on LDL levels, e.g. aspirin. A number of researchers have long argued that the benefits of statins are mainly due to “off-target” effects. By which they mean that, yes, statins lower LDL, but they also have effects on many other things and it is the “other things” that provide the benefit.
For example, statins have been found to have quite strong anti-coagulant (anti blood clotting) effects. Same as aspirin, as highlighted in the 2013 paper, ‘Anticoagulant effects of statins and their clinical implications.’ It states: “There is evidence indicating that statins… may produce several cholesterol-independent antithrombotic [anti-coagulant] effects.”
So, it has always remained possible that the main benefit of statins was NOT due to their impact on lowering LDL BUT because of something else that they do.
In this recent study, the authors decided to examine this possibility. So they gathered together all the LDL lowering trials – at least those big enough, and long enough to count – and try to establish whether the amount that the LDL was lowered, matched the reduction, if any, in cardiovascular disease. The technical term for this is “dose-response”.
Or, to put this another way, if the LDL hypothesis is correct, the greater the LDL lowering, the greater the benefit on CVD should be. What did they find? Here are the key findings – from the press release:
“Their analysis showed that over three quarters of all the trials reported no positive impact on the risk of death and nearly half reported no positive impact on risk of future cardiovascular disease.
And the amount of LDL cholesterol reduction achieved didn’t correspond to the size of the resulting benefits, with even very small changes in LDL cholesterol sometimes associated with larger reductions in risk of death or cardiovascular ‘events,’ and vice versa.
“Thirteen of the clinical trials met the LDL cholesterol reduction target, but only one reported a positive impact on risk of death…
“Considering that dozens of [randomised controlled trials] of LDL-cholesterol reduction have failed to demonstrate a consistent benefit, we should question the validity of this theory.”
And they conclude: “In most fields of science the existence of contradictory evidence usually leads to a paradigm shift or modification of the theory in question, but in this case the contradictory evidence has been largely ignored, simply because it doesn’t fit the prevailing paradigm.”
In short, what they found was that there was absolutely no correlation between the amount that LDL was lowered and the resulting benefit on CVD. In fact, the benefit was inverse i.e. the less the LDL was lowered, the greater the benefit.
This is a hugely important finding that really ought to be shouted from the rooftops. I admit I have a horse in the race, having long argued that LDL has nothing to do with heart disease (and being roundly condemned for doing so). So, it is nice to have my thoughts so powerfully supported in a peer-reviewed, high impact journal.
For the average person on this street, what this research means is that you should stop worrying about your LDL levels, and obsessively trying to get them down with drugs or diet. Tucked away in the paper was this significant finding:
“Moreover, consider that the Minnesota Coronary Experiment, a 4-year long RCT [randomised controlled trial] of a low-fat diet involving 9423 subjects, actually reported an increase in mortality and cardiovascular events despite a 13% reduction in total cholesterol.”
Cholesterol (LDL) went down, CVD went up. We really are wasting a colossal amount of money. And causing avoidable death?
TheFountain 08 Aug 2020
I believe the 100+ years of correlative medical meta-data and disbelieve the fringe analyses and 'reports' heck even fringe 'studies' showing a singular outlier potentiality. Anything can be proven to do anything in multiple contexts if that is what we seek to do. If we seek to see a lack of correlation with LDL, HDL, Trigs, what ever, we will see it because that is what we are looking for at that particular time and in that particular context.
If whole pictures is what we seek, look no further than the medical meta-data which does NOT artificially separate components from the greater context but simply shows correlatives as laid out in medical/hospital settings.
That's the best we have. And according to that LDL matters, trigs matter, HDL matters, all within a larger relative context, or else it wouldn't exist.
We're clutching at straws now.
TheFountain 09 Sep 2020
You believe it is ill informed to follow a diet that has
1-Lowered my total Cholesterol (145 now, 230 when on Keto)
2-Improved my LDL/HDL ratio dramatically (60-75 now, and 130-85 on Keto)
3-Lowered my A1C to 4.7 from 5.3 (which is what it was on Keto)
4-Lowered visceral fat percentage dramatically
5-Lowered total body weight
6-Gives me abs with 70% less physical effort than when I was 'Keto".
7-Makes me feel more energetic
8-Balances my hormones (I feel calm and balanced most of the time)
9-Keeps me hydrated all day (No dry mouth like when I was doing Keto)
and finally
10-Works for me better than Keto did?
Yea.
No. I will listen to myself and blood work results.
arnie 10 Sep 2020
Now I am confused after reading these 2 pages and the post by Pamojja
Edited by arnie, 10 September 2020 - 06:41 AM.
aribadabar 11 Sep 2020
No exercise for 6 months, binge eating and drinking. Got my bloods done and I now qualify for government discounts on the Repatha. Sugar, LDL, trig numbers went through the roofglucose 8.2 puts me in the diabetic rangeand 4 other pages of codes & numbers which I don’t understandI don’t have the discipline that many of you seem to have but I’ll try and have a “balanced”, Low in cards and processed foods diet and see how I goI hope the Repatha helps
If that's fasting (more than 12hrs without any food and medications) glucose, you are officially diabetic (anything over 6.5 is). Normal pancreatic response never lets blood glucose stay that elevated for that long.
Stop binge eating (junk food), focus on a plant-based diet and take up some level of exercise and hope that halts the diabetic progression.
Repatha won't fix that.
Edited by aribadabar, 12 September 2020 - 12:21 AM.
APBT 12 Sep 2020
You believe it is ill informed to follow a diet that has
1-Lowered my total Cholesterol (145 now, 230 when on Keto)
2-Improved my LDL/HDL ratio dramatically (60-75 now, and 130-85 on Keto)
3-Lowered my A1C to 4.7 from 5.3 (which is what it was on Keto)
4-Lowered visceral fat percentage dramatically
5-Lowered total body weight
6-Gives me abs with 70% less physical effort than when I was 'Keto".
7-Makes me feel more energetic
8-Balances my hormones (I feel calm and balanced most of the time)
9-Keeps me hydrated all day (No dry mouth like when I was doing Keto)
and finally
10-Works for me better than Keto did?
Yea.
No. I will listen to myself and blood work results.
Have you had a NMR and Lp(a) test? These offer far more valuable data than standard TC, LDL, HDL and TRIGS.
TheFountain 30 Sep 2020
Have you had a NMR and Lp(a) test? These offer far more valuable data than standard TC, LDL, HDL and TRIGS.
I had LP(a) tested before and after trying this diet vs KETO diet.
On Keto it was slightly elevated at 90 NMOL/l and on THIS diet it is in the normal range of -75 NMOL/l, specifically 65 NMOL/l while strict vegan. That is NO LONGER consider elevated.
NMR? Nuclear Magnetic resonance specifically for?
In the past 2 years I have experienced several brief hospitalizations, I had a lot of tragic events in my life and it led me to severe panic attacks in which I thought I was in bad health.
The doctors at various locations performed 3 Chest X-rays, 3 Triponin tests, a BNP count, about 50 EKG's and a contrast test to see if my pulmonary system had anything wrong with it.
Not a single one of these tests came up with an issue.
I also had two stress tests, both negative and within normal range.
It has been repeated to me multiple times that I have PTSD and anxiety related response, in other words, a proclivity for Panic attacks.
Additionally my A1C dropped on strict veganism from 5.3 on Keto to 4.7 now.
Not sure why you are seeking to find something negative regarding my diet and the rewards it has bestowed me? Care to explain?
EDIT: Oh my trigs on this Strict vegan diet are 55!
Edited by TheFountain, 30 September 2020 - 04:41 AM.
APBT 30 Sep 2020
APBT 30 Sep 2020
If you're interested in taking a deep dive into understanding lipids, this is a great start:
https://www.longecit...-5-part-series/
This is recent (9.21.2020)
https://peterattiamd.../tomdayspring6/
TheFountain 30 Sep 2020
If you're interested in taking a deep dive into understanding lipids, this is a great start:
https://www.longecit...-5-part-series/
This is recent (9.21.2020)
https://peterattiamd.../tomdayspring6/
Ah, no commentary on my LP(a) going down 25 points on strict veganism I see.
pamojja 30 Sep 2020
Ah, no commentary on my LP(a) going down 25 points on strict veganism I see.
2 datapoints is meaningless. I tested Lp(a) about 20 times, while it fluctuated a couple of times between 34 and 66 mg/dl - all on the exact same diet. Hb1Ac between 4.6 and 6.2.
Edited by pamojja, 30 September 2020 - 11:29 PM.
TheFountain 02 Oct 2020
2 datapoints is meaningless. I tested Lp(a) about 20 times, while it fluctuated a couple of times between 34 and 66 mg/dl - all on the exact same diet. Hb1Ac between 4.6 and 6.2.
But, in both those cited cases yours was elevated on both numbers. Mine was elevated once and below the elevation point after altering the diet to strict veganism.
I am using NMOL/l not MGs. The numbers you provided, when measured in terms of milligrams are both elevated?
Two data points? Have you caught this entire thread or are you just waking up now?
EVERYTHING improved on my strict plant based diet!
Edited by TheFountain, 02 October 2020 - 06:46 AM.
pamojja 02 Oct 2020
Two data points? Have you caught this entire thread or are you just waking up now?
EVERYTHING improved on my strict plant based diet!
I'm not arguing against the lifestyle change at all, if it really made you feel better. We all have different bio-chemical individuality. But the misunderstanding that only 2 datapoints of Lp(a) or Hb1Ac could by used to justify it. Just as with LDL, without differentiation and unterstanding its important functions. If you keep testing for 12 year like I did, you too will understand better.
Edited by pamojja, 02 October 2020 - 09:47 AM.
TheFountain 07 Oct 2020
I'm not arguing against the lifestyle change at all, if it really made you feel better. We all have different bio-chemical individuality. But the misunderstanding that only 2 datapoints of Lp(a) or Hb1Ac could by used to justify it. Just as with LDL, without differentiation and unterstanding its important functions. If you keep testing for 12 year like I did, you too will understand better.
How many times must I ask someone to re-read the thread to see that I provided more than 2 data points?
I don't get the blatant ignorance against that fact.