Bill,
Been reading about this stuff, and one of my student says it lowered his bad cholesterol substantially.
What's your take on it?
Promise Activ
Moderator: Available
Promise Activ
Bill,
Been reading about this stuff, and one of my student says it lowered his bad cholesterol substantially.
What's your take on it?
Van
-
Bill Glasheen
- Posts: 17299
- Joined: Thu Mar 11, 1999 6:01 am
- Location: Richmond, VA --- Louisville, KY
According to published literature, "Plant sterols (PSs) reduce plasma total and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels by reducing cholesterol absorption."
It's safe. It's works - to some degree. You could probably do just as well by eating a good diet in the first place.
If they like it and it is keeping the cholesterol in an optimal range, I say go for it. But also consider substituting olive oil, nuts and/or nut oil, and unfried/unbuttered fish and/or fish oil for all the other saturated fats and trans fats in the diet.
And don't forget the exercise.
This "therapy" is optimally achieved by consuming with meals twice a day. The stuff needs to be in play when your body is trying to absorb dietary cholesterol.
For what it's worth, the classic statins (older brand cholesterol drugs like Zocor) are the only therapy which actually have been proven to "reduce the risk of heart attack, stroke, and death due to coronary heart disease." That's a big leap forward from claiming that you can lower cholesterol. Some of the new therapies being advertised heavily on TV today (e.g. Vitorin) have so far failed in clinical trial attempts to demonstrate that next, vital step. That's a big "Oops!"
- Bill
It's safe. It's works - to some degree. You could probably do just as well by eating a good diet in the first place.
If they like it and it is keeping the cholesterol in an optimal range, I say go for it. But also consider substituting olive oil, nuts and/or nut oil, and unfried/unbuttered fish and/or fish oil for all the other saturated fats and trans fats in the diet.
And don't forget the exercise.
This "therapy" is optimally achieved by consuming with meals twice a day. The stuff needs to be in play when your body is trying to absorb dietary cholesterol.
For what it's worth, the classic statins (older brand cholesterol drugs like Zocor) are the only therapy which actually have been proven to "reduce the risk of heart attack, stroke, and death due to coronary heart disease." That's a big leap forward from claiming that you can lower cholesterol. Some of the new therapies being advertised heavily on TV today (e.g. Vitorin) have so far failed in clinical trial attempts to demonstrate that next, vital step. That's a big "Oops!"
- Bill
-
Bill Glasheen
- Posts: 17299
- Joined: Thu Mar 11, 1999 6:01 am
- Location: Richmond, VA --- Louisville, KY
Of course all should consult with their health care providers on such matters.
That being said...
TriCor is in a class of medications called fibrates which are effective at targeting triglycerides.
Fibrates help lower triglyceride levels by reducing the amount of VLDL (the triglyceride-carrying particle that circulates in the blood), which speeds up the removal of triglycerides.
VLDL = Very Low Density Lipoproteins. You want to keep these levels down just like you want to keep your LDL down. These lipoproteins carry triglycerides and cholesterol to the cells.
You want higher HDL (High Density Lipoproteins) because these are the scavenger molecules.
Interesting side effect, Mike. I've never heard that one. But we each bring our unique chemistries to the pharmacy counter.
I'm not as familiar with the fibrates, Mike. I know more about the statins. They're getting all the publicity because they actually have been shown not just to affect your lipid chemistry. They have been shown to prevent heart attacks and strokes in randomized, controlled trial studies. That's what you call a "distal" outcome. It gets to the bottom line.
All these meds have side effects. You'll have to work with your doctor, dietician, and personal trainer to get just the right balance of diet, exercise, and supplemental medication to manage your personal chemistry. You're lucky in that you're not obese. Good for you, and keep it up. But you should pay attention to your lipid chemistry.
- Bill
That being said...
TriCor is in a class of medications called fibrates which are effective at targeting triglycerides.
Fibrates help lower triglyceride levels by reducing the amount of VLDL (the triglyceride-carrying particle that circulates in the blood), which speeds up the removal of triglycerides.
VLDL = Very Low Density Lipoproteins. You want to keep these levels down just like you want to keep your LDL down. These lipoproteins carry triglycerides and cholesterol to the cells.
You want higher HDL (High Density Lipoproteins) because these are the scavenger molecules.
Interesting side effect, Mike. I've never heard that one. But we each bring our unique chemistries to the pharmacy counter.
I'm not as familiar with the fibrates, Mike. I know more about the statins. They're getting all the publicity because they actually have been shown not just to affect your lipid chemistry. They have been shown to prevent heart attacks and strokes in randomized, controlled trial studies. That's what you call a "distal" outcome. It gets to the bottom line.
All these meds have side effects. You'll have to work with your doctor, dietician, and personal trainer to get just the right balance of diet, exercise, and supplemental medication to manage your personal chemistry. You're lucky in that you're not obese. Good for you, and keep it up. But you should pay attention to your lipid chemistry.
- Bill
-
Bill Glasheen
- Posts: 17299
- Joined: Thu Mar 11, 1999 6:01 am
- Location: Richmond, VA --- Louisville, KY
Regular blood tests with your doctor to look at your total cholesterol (should be < 200 mg/dL) as well as the ratio of the Total to HDL cholesterol (should be less than 5 to 1). It's a pretty simple blood test. Sometimes you can get them free at various pharmacies which do screenings.Van Canna wrote:Bill Glasheen wrote:
But you should pay attention to your lipid chemistry.
Bill,
How do you exactly pay attention to this?
Knowing these numbers is just as important as knowing your blood pressure, your BMI, and your hip to waist ratio. They are all good hard numbers that you can work to manage and even improve over time with diet, exercise, and occasionally an Rx from the family doc.
Bill
So you've heard of the vivid dream side effect too? When I first went on the med I purposely avoided the WebMD type of sites where people talk of their experiences as I didn't want to have my experience influenced. I kept careful track of any changes that I noticed that lasted more than a week and then relayed them to my Doc at my next visit. The vivid dream thing was the last I presented as it sounded foolish, but he had heard of it.mhosea wrote:<This page intentionally left blank.>MikeK wrote:I won't mention the vivid dreams which was a weird side effect that he had heard people mention besides me.
If you miss them, try taking B6 before bed.
The best side effect I heard mentioned in an ad was one that causes you to gamble and have sex. I figured Vegas could get a promotional tie in with that by including an airline ticket to Vegas, comps at a casino and a coupon for 25% at the Bunny Ranch.
I was dreaming of the past...
-
Gene DeMambro
- Posts: 1684
- Joined: Sat Dec 12, 1998 6:01 am
- Location: Weymouth, MA US of A
