My husband's cholesterol

C

cid

Guest
I thought I could either search the web (yawn), or just ask the forum. So here I am. He's 33 with a cholesterol of 270, high LDLs and slightly low HDLs. He's 6'4" and 200-205 pounds, grandpa died at 56, dad (59 years old) has had multiple mini-strokes for the past 5-8 years along with high blood pressure. Eats fairly well, doesn't exercise...I guess if you've been tall and skinny all your life, exercise isn't a priority. At any rate, both he and I would like to know what non-medicinal options are out there. He's on a 30-day trial of Zocar (sp?), but if long-term medicinal treatment can be avoided all the better. His doc said that since it's predominantly genetic, life-style changes would not affect it much. Any input, experience, advice would be much appreciated. Thanks, CinDee
 
My husband is exactly the same! Although our doctor told him lifestyle changes wouldn't help, he gave up all dairy and red meat, food combined and his cholestrol dropped 100 points!!!!!
Cookiebaby
 
Dear CinDee
My husband was in the same situation as yours. His dad died at 60 from a heart attack and an fraternal uncle died at 45 while shoveling snow.

At the age of 32, my husband's total cholesterol levels were in the high 270's while his HDL was in the very low 20's. In an effort to combat this using non-medical methods we started an exercise regime and completely revamped our diets. For more than 8 years we tried every thing that we could. The glass of wine, grapefruits, walnuts, olive oil. But the cholesteral levels hardly budged. You know I don't think at the time his doctor believed that we were exercising as much or eating as healthy as we said we were.

When he turned 39 he made an appointment with a cardiologist. The doctor put him on 10 mg of Zocor daily. Within 2 weeks (no kidding) his total cholesterol droped to 165! His HDL's inched up slightly. We were stunned, but his doctor explained it by saying that even though my husband's diet was so healthy and his exercise routine so intense (we were totally into cathe at that time, still are!) that his liver was still producing an over abundanace of cholesterol and that the Zocor was need suppress his liver's excess output of the cholesterol.

Today, at age 46, my husband is still on Zocor, (he has added Niaspan which is a niacin product to increase his HDLs), we eat very clean and he does all of Cathe's workouts, including Rythmic Step :-wow His total cholesterol is in the 170's and his HDLs have edged into the mid 40's (not great, but way better than 22). He has passed 2 nuclear stress test with flying colors.

Cindee, I am certainly not trying to make a case for going on meds, but if your doctor feels the problem is genetic...

My husband did every thing right but nothing worked until the Zocor. So you can understand that after 8 years of banging my head against the wall how I feel now. During that time I became an expert on low-fat and no-fat cooking. I can modify almost any recipe! I also became a certified fitness instructor and a certified personal trainer.

If you have not seen a cardiologist I highly recommend it. It's worth the $$ to get an expert's advice.

Sorry to be so wordy but this is a topic that is near and dear to my "heart."

You can e-mail me at [email protected] if you would like.

good luck
debbie
 
Hi Debra. I have a question...

if you don't mind. My husband is 36 and was just recently put on medication for his cholesterol. It's genetic as well. Also, though, I'm sure we can improve eating habits. I used to eat well, but lately I am not.

My question is, could you recommend a good cookbook for someone with high cholesterol who doesn't like beans. How will I get my husband away from dairy and red meat? Is it okay to eat fat-free dairy products? Thanks!
 
RE: Hi Debra. I have a question...

Sorry to step in, I know you were asking the other Debra. Here are 2 books that I gave my stepfather when he needed to lower his cholesterol. Actually anything by these 2 authors/researchers would be useful for someone battling heart disease.

Dr. Weill's "Eating Well for Optimum Health"
Dr. Dean Ornish's "Eat More, Weigh Less"

Debra
 
Oh good!!!

No, thank you, too! I'm greatful for anyone with recommendations! I've been wanting an excuse to buy Dr. Ornish's book, anyway. ;-) Thank you!! :)

Hollie
 
Thanks everyone for your input. Fortunately I have Dr. Ornish's book, so I'll break that one out. Your encouragement and advice is wonderful, and thanks for the link. I'll tell Greg (my husband) all about it. The only catch would be his willingness to re-vamp his diet and activity in a hare-core kind of way. I've been eating that way and exercising for years, and he hasn't really joined me. If anyone else has something to offer, let me know! I'm taking it all in! CinDee
 
CinDee,

Maybe your husband doesn't know how to begin a fitness program. And if you're a fitness addict, he may be intimidated or just discouraged. One doesn't have to do much to get cardiovascular benefits. So maybe he's actually a Masters swimmer, cyclist or runner & he just doesn't know it. I'm convinced that the only way someone will keep exercise in their routine is if they discover an activity they truly enjoy. My problem is having too many activities I enjoy but that's another story.

Good luck!!
Debra
 
To fit@home

The cookbooks I reach for most often are from Cooking Light. Also, the Cooking Light magazine is my favorite.

But you know, you don't always have to create some elaborate, labor-intensive meal to eat low-fat. Little changes to your every day diet are the easiest to do. For example, if you are drinking whole milk make a gradual switch to skim by first mixing 3 parts whole with 1 part 2% (you'll never notice the difference). Gradually change the ratio until you're at 100% 2%. Then do the same with the 2% and 1%, eventually moving on to skim. You will be surprised at how good skim milk tastes and how regular milk tastes like whipping cream! Last week I wanted cereal and we only had 2% milk (which I use for coffee) so I poured that on. I ended up dumping the cereal down the drain because the 2% milk tasted so "thick."

Other changes that work would be mixing whole-fat shredded cheeses with the low-fat and no-fat types. Mix regular cream cheese with low-fat; I mix low-fat and no-fat cream cheese and I can't tell the difference between all low-fat and my mix. I however cannot stand the taste of no-fat cream cheese.

Start adding egg-beaters or just extra egg whites to scrambled eggs or omeletes. Work toward using all egg whites.

Try some of the Healthy Choice low-fat turkey sausages for breakfast. I love the Morning Star soy-products.

A lot of the problem with the "red-meat" issue is portion size. Remember the old deck of cards thing. That is the size you should be striving for - hard for most men to accept.

Don't try to jump into a total fat-free, lean-cuisine kind of life, especially if your husband is resistant. It probably took me a good 6 months to make my husband see the light. But you can make the change. The big things that have to go are the hardest but they make the most difference - Fast food, Ben & Jerry's, Dunkin Donuts, etc. I used to love Dunkin Donuts, now after not eating them for so long they taste just plain greasy.

For protein white meat chicken, turkey, fish, soy-produts (have you tried garden burgers riblets? They are amazing.), canned tuna (makes great burgers) and egg whites. When we eat a meal that is low in protein, like pasta, I have a handful of almonds prior to the meal.

Sorry to write so much, but this is a subject that I am very passionate about. Just start making the small changes. But try not to get frustrated. Don't overwhelm your husband like I did. I became the food police and it was not fun. I remember one day I walked into a restaurant and saw him having lunch with a co-worker. It didn't bother me one bit that she was beautiful (think Victoria Principal) what bothered me is that he was eating a bacon cheeseburger and fries! I felt like he was having an affair!

Now he is wonderful about making wise food choices. Remember most people have no idea about the fat and calorie content of what they are eating so education is really important.

I'll shut up now!

Debbie Russo
 
K60-Thanks for the link. I'll tell hubby about it.
Debra- You bring up a good point. But I don't hound him about it. I did tell him that perhaps medicinal treatment would be best if he wouldn't adhere to dietary/lifestyle changes. We'll see what he decides...it is up to him, but our pantry is going to be refined.
Thanks, CinDee
 
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