Lowering cholesterol with ITP

I'm wondering if any of you have a handle on the kinds of foods are good for lowering cholesterol, But don't interfere significantly with platelet function.

I just had an annual (but let's be honest, for me, it's more like a more like tri-annual) physical with my primary care doc. As part of that, we checked my cholesterol, and my ldl (the "bad" kind) has shot up to 168, significantly higher than when I got it checked 5 years ago. My doctor wants me to work on getting that lower, understandably, and so do I.

I think part of the problem is that while I've been on the high Dex pulses treatment for my itp, my exercise routine has been thrown off, as for about 10 days every month I feel lousy and pretty much have to just "lay low" to survive, going to work, then coming home and vegging on the couch or in bed. Additionally, when I'm on the steroids, all I want to eat is carbs, carbs, carbs. I'm aware of that, and I to strive to keep that in control, but my resistance is low when I feel so poorly and I don't do as well as I'd like. (I've put on 15 pounds since all this started).

Anyway, I'm on my last pulse treatment now, so in about a week or two, I should be feeling better and ideally won't have any more treatments for awhile. So, I'll be able to exercise every day, and I won't feel like grazing so much. I'd also like to change my diet to be more heart healthy, but as I've started researching this, I've found that some of the foods that are best for cholesterol aren't good for platelet functioning, omega 3s, for example. So, I was just wondering if any of you have had the same conundrum and how you've dealt with it.

I appreciate any help any of you can give me.

For most, I think the single biggest factor in lowering cholesterol is to merely lower your weight. Especially if your BMI is 25 or more.
Another good benefit to less weight - it lowers glucose level. Pre-diabetic is not good either.

Ditto what Hal wrote.

My best advice is "do as I say, not as I do!"

The biggest culprit is sugar, then come carbs. Fats are not the problem, even milkfat, surprisingly, except as part of total caloric consumption. And lowering cholesterol INTAKE has little to do with lowering blood cholesterol levels.

An interesting read:
www.theguardian.com/society/2016/apr/07/the-sugar-conspiracy-robert-lustig-john-yudkin

And then there is always hereditary which diet probably won't help. Sometimes diet just doesn't do it.

Your last check was 5 years ago?

Ask to see a dietician - yellow cheese is one of the bad foods. Watch all foods for Sat Fat, should only have a certain amount of sat fat a day [dietician can help w/#] - no foods whatsoever with trans fat!

Melinda... why white cheese? Is there a difference between white cheddar and yellow cheddar?

Ellen is a registered dietitian. She would agree (privately) that The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics is woefully entrenched in outdated and debunked dogma regarding the dangers of saturated fat.

Polyunsaturated fat (e.g., olive oil) is good for you. Saturated fat is neutral. Carbs are bad. Sugar is the worst.

journals.plos.org/plosmedicine/article?id=10.1371/journal.pmed.1002087
Effects of Saturated Fat, Polyunsaturated Fat, Monounsaturated Fat, and Carbohydrate on Glucose-Insulin Homeostasis: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomised Controlled Feeding Trials
We aimed to assess how saturated fat (SFA), monounsaturated fat (MUFA), polyunsaturated fat (PUFA), and carbohydrate affect key metrics of glucose-insulin homeostasis. This meta-analysis of randomised controlled feeding trials provides evidence that dietary macronutrients have diverse effects on glucose-insulin homeostasis. In comparison to carbohydrate, SFA, or MUFA, most consistent favourable effects were seen with PUFA, which was linked to improved glycaemia, insulin resistance, and insulin secretion capacity.

www.nytimes.com/2016/09/13/well/eat/how-the-sugar-industry-shifted-blame-to-fat.html?_r=0
How the Sugar Industry Shifted Blame to Fat The New York Times September 12, 2016
The sugar industry paid scientists in the 1960s to play down the link between sugar and heart disease and promote saturated fat as the culprit instead, newly released historical documents show...

time.com/4386248/fat-butter-nutrition-health/
The Case for Eating Butter Just Got Stronger Time June 29, 2016
A new study found no link between eating butter and heart disease
[Butter is] better than sugar, worse than olive oil — according to a new report, which adds to a growing body of research showing that the low-fat-diet trend was misguided. The new study analyzed nine papers that included more than 600,000 people and concluded that consuming butter is not linked to a higher risk for heart disease and might be slightly protective against type 2 diabetes. This goes against the longstanding advice to avoid butter because it contains saturated fat.

healthimpactnews.com/2013/sweden-becomes-first-western-nation-to-reject-low-fat-diet-dogma-in-favor-of-low-carb-high-fat-nutrition/
Sweden Becomes First Western Nation to Reject Low-fat Diet Dogma in Favor of Low-carb High-fat Nutrition
Sweden has become the first Western nation to develop national dietary guidelines that reject the popular low-fat diet dogma in favor of low-carb high-fat nutrition advice.
The switch in dietary advice followed the publication of a two-year study by the independent Swedish Council on Health Technology Assessment. The committee reviewed 16,000 studies published through May 31, 2013.

What you're not going to argue that I said trans fat is bad for you? You eat a lot of it?

Usually anyone who is watching their cholesterol knows there is good and bad fat (re: polyunsaturated fat - and actually my understanding is grapeseed oil is better for you than olive oil)

Thank you but I'll go along with what the American Heart Association has to say about sat fat.

Good information Rob- thanks! And I agree Hal, lower weight is good all around! Plus steroids are hard on blood glucose- makes glucose and blood pressure go up.

In 2014 I had high LDL- 136 I think. I quit sugar in Feb 2015 and now my LDL is 85 (target <100) so I'm a believer. I eat 2 eggs nearly every morning with toast and grass-fed butter. I don't know whats right, most people wouldn't consider that healthy. But I'm kind of a vegetarian (haha not 100%) and I like eggs for protein. Oatmeal for breakfast makes me sleepy.

I gained a whopping 30 lbs on prednisone! I hear you Charlotte- omg steroids wreaked havoc on my system. My blood pressure was through the roof. I lost some of the 30 after I got off pred, then the rest of it when I quit sugar. My BMI is 34 so still have more I could lose, for sure.

Question- did the DEX work? Did you go into remission? How are your counts? Hope you got some good out of all that!

As I've posted before- I took Omega 3 for about 5 days with a count of 15K- not a great idea. My arms were covered in bruises. I rarely bruise even at very low counts so whatever keeps me from bruising, Omega 3 knocked it out. I quit the Omega 3, bruises went away in 48 hours. I avoid flax oil and fish oil- but eat salmon approx once a week without a problem.

I am now considering tumeric 500mg for inflammation. It also is known to inhibit platelet function. My hemo said wait until counts are stable- I'm on Nplate, then watch for bruises.

Great that you'll be off Dexy soon! You'll be so happy and feel so much better. I always get a nice sense of well-being when I go off steroids and my adrenals come back into functioning normally. I lose the food craziness, its all so peaceful after that wild ride. good luck

Melinda, I have been on the anti-trans-fat train for a very long time, back when only quacks were anti-trans-fat, decades before the American Heart Association stopped promoting trans-fat-rich oleomargarine as being safer than butter, or partially hydrogenated vegetable oil (e.g., Crisco) as being superior to saturated fat.

One thing I have not made up my mind up on is fully hydrogenated (saturated) vegetable oils. To avoid selling partially hydrogenated vegetable oil, shortening companies are mixing fully hydrogenated with unsaturated oils to get the original consistency. Peanut butter is now being thickened with fully hydrogenated oils (except for natural PB). I am very suspicious of this. Does anyone have an opinion, or know any studies?