Anonymous wrote:I am fifty-seven and just had my blood tested in a lab, I haven’t had it tested in like five years.

I know, I know…..

Anyway my total cholesterol came back at 347 (shouldn’t exceed 200.)
Is this really high?

I have an obese friend who is on statins and she said it isn’t high enough for meds because hers is way higher.
But considering my age I am wondering if I should see my Dr. (PCP) and see what he thinks I should do.

I have read that I could be susceptible to a stroke or heart attack……
Is anyone on here above 200?

What is your LDL? You need to take meds to lower it right away to below 80. Statin alone might not be enough for you, you might need monthly injection on top to be able to lower your LDLs to acceptable level. Also you need a calcium score test to measure the calcified plaque in your arteries to assess blockage and heart attack risk. You should be under the care of a cardiologist. Your primary care physician should have sent you to one as soon as he/she saw your test result.

Anonymous wrote:Not OP but just for curiosity, has anyone had a reading higher than 350?
I didn’t know 347 was insanely high.
Because my nephew once had 546, before meds.
After meds it is now below 200.

Your nephew has a bad cholesterol gene from both parents and is lucky to still be alive. The OP probably has a bad gene from one parent and needs to be on statins yesterday.

Please explore the Portfolio Diet. It's not a calorie counting type diet, rather a "portfolio" of foods that have a proven benefit to lowering cholesterol. I made the switch to eating hulless barley, lentils, apples, sweet potatoes, and cut out the obvious high saturated fat items like butter and bacon and my LDL cholesterol dropped by 50+ points.

TBH, the question is whether one can maintain that kind of diet or if it's just easier to go on a statin.

But, this diet definitely did work for me in less than 3 months.

Get on a statin. I am on the lowest dose. No side effects. I eat healthy, no weight to lose. I have bad genes, and 57 years old.

Go make an appointment today!

Are you on prescription medication?

Because oftentimes people see their cholesterol numbers rise as side effects from certain medications.

Specifically antidepressants.

Anonymous wrote:Not OP but just for curiosity, has anyone had a reading higher than 350?
I didn’t know 347 was insanely high.
Because my nephew once had 546, before meds.
After meds it is now below 200.

PP who had a cholesterol of 405 and LDL of something like 320.

I got the alarming lab result after seeing a cardiologist following a referral from the ER that diagnosed me with heart failure. No call from the cardiologist, so I went to my PCP whom I hadn't seen for years. He, but not the cardiologist, suspected this could be a kidney, not a heart issue, and that was confirmed with a simple urinalysis.

The to a hammer everything looks like a nail thinking applies to cardiologists as well. Every high cholesterol must be caused by a heart problem. But this is not always true. With really high cholesterol, it is important to find the underlying cause.

With treatment for the kidney disease, statins, and zetia I now have cholesterol of 125 and LDL of 38.

Anonymous wrote:I have a family history of heart disease; my mother had a heart attack at 54 and her dad etc all died of widowmakers. So did she, later. I got my lipoprotein a checked and it’s 369; 99th percentile (but not everyone checks)

All to say- yes menopause has an affect of cholesterol, yes high cholesterol is a huge warning sign and get your lipoprotein checked so you know that if you have the classic signs of a heart attack get thee to a hospital if you have all the warning signs.

+100 make sure to test lipoprotein a, ApoB, and LDL particle count. These 3 biomarkers are arguably superior predictors of cardiac/vascular risk. Major Canadian and European medical organizations already recommend testing these biomarkers as a standard practice of care. You can order direct labs online to test for this in most states. LDL and total cholesterol are also very good predictors of ASCVD risk, but the three biomarkers that I mentioned help to refine the estimate of risk. APOB and LDL-P are also useful predictors of residual risk after you start taking cholesterol medication. Sometimes these biomarkers don’t decline as much as your LDL mg/dL (after medication), which can indicate that you still need more aggressive treatment to minimize risk. Dont listen to the people that are saying you don’t need cholesterol medication or that you can fix your cholesterol issues entirely with diet/lifestyle. They are just wrong. Your TC is above the 95th percentile (for your age) and it’s exceedingly unlikely that diet/lifestyle can fix this problem. Furthermore, if your cholesterol has been high for years you need more aggressive treatment to mitigate future risk of cardiac events because decades of damage have likely accumulated already. The lipid hypothesis is one of the most well-validated and researched topics in medicine. The evidence is almost unequivocal that more cholesterol = higher risk of cardiovascular disease. Don't listen to the uninformed people that say otherwise. I would recommend reading articles, books, or watching videos published by Dr. Thomas Dayspring or Dr. Paddy Barrett to learn more about this topic.

Anonymous wrote:That's insanely high.
Often there is a genetic component. Skinny fit people can thus get high cholesterol. And Widowmaker blocked arteries.
FFS you should be on a statin. I was put on one with reading of just under 200.

That is too low to be on a statin, unless other factors you didn’t disclose.

@10:04 poster- who is your doctor you love?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Eat some Cheerios asap

But only the heart~shaped ones.

No offense but at your advanced age you have only about 10 good years left ~ you can have more if you stay away from beef and opt for lentils, avocado and even certain types of fish.

You don't understand actuarial tables.

Absolutely, but do not just get statins from your PC. Please see a cardiologist, and if possible a female one (I LOVE my doc--she is super proactive).

Leading cause of death for women over 50 (assuming you are female) is heart disease. Also, you need a full slate of tests--not just basic levels, but the size of your LDL is important, as well as a calcium score, ac1, etc.

I have low trigylcerides, but my LDL, even with statins, is around 100. She wants me at 60, given family history. Unfortunately I am in the somewhat statin-resistant club and may move to a PSK9 inhibitor; I am also doing hormone replacement for cardiac benefits (studies suggest cardiac benefits) and take a lot of fish oil. Also, I have always been an exerciser and never overweight. Currently I am 120#, exercise 4-5x week and eat well, mostly mediterranean (but not perfectly, I do have some ice cream and cheese but avoid a lot of other crap), on statins and still LDL is borderline high and it needs to be low, given my family history and calcium score.