I’ve usually had very good cholesterol levels. Initially my “good” cholesterol was two times the normal amount and the “bad” cholesterol was high, but the two numbers balanced each other out. Last year was the first time my doctor said I needed to watch my cholesterol and try to bring it down. What did she want me to do? I had dropped 45 pounds using Weight Watchers. I was riding 3-5 hours per week and I was doing belly dance classes at the time.
I do not (and will not) go on statins. I haven’t seen enough people have good reactions to them to justify it. The side effects and things my friends went through just were not worth taking something like a statin. No, thank you.
A friend of mine sent me an article today by Dwight LUndell, MD: “World Renown Heart Surgeon Speaks Out On What Really Causes Heart Disease“. Basically, general dogma of asking people to go on low or no fat diets and a cholesterol-reducing drug to reduce cholesterol levels is having the reverse effect by causing more heart disease:
The long-established dietary recommendations have created epidemics of obesity and diabetes, the consequences of which dwarf any historical plague in terms of mortality, human suffering and dire economic consequences.
Despite the fact that 25% of the population takes expensive statin medications and despite the fact we have reduced the fat content of our diets, more Americans will die this year of heart disease than ever before.
What are the biggest culprits of chronic inflammation? Quite simply, they are the overload of simple, highly processed carbohydrates (sugar, flourand all the products made from them) and the excess consumption of omega-6 vegetable oils like soybean, corn and sunflower that are found in many processed foods.
More info here:
Granted, I need to read additional information. This was just based on one article. However, it’s enough to make me glad that Weight Watchers helped me shift my diet away from processed foods and back towards more fresh fruits and veggies. If you can’t recognize the meat, don’t eat it.
