Purple Grape Juice and Cholesterol

I have read that red and purple grape juice are anti aggregation of platelets.

I have high bad cholesterol and have done for quite a few years. I have tried lots of things to reduce it (low sat fat diet, exercise).

In 2006 I was told I had a mild plaque burden but that because my cholesterol is so high more plaque could build up and perhaps cause me to have a heart attack. The cardiologist was not keen to put a stent in because my platelet count is not at a level he would feel comfortable with. I am going back to see him end of this month. He did prescribe statins but these knocked my platelets completely out.


I have had ectopic beats/missed beats as well as occasional arrithmia (sp)for about 9 - 10 months on a daily basis. I think they are unrelated but as yet await more tests.
I don't appear to have Immune TP, it seems its genetic.

So I would like to try purple or red grapes and grape juice, but wondered if anyone else drinks it and if all was well. Just a chance that some people may have some experience, if not some knowledge.



All the best,


Jen

I know that PDSA has a list of foods that might thin blood, but when I asked one of the doctors at an ITP conference if there were any foods I as an ITPer should avoid, he said no. He did advise me not to take Omega 3s though. Karen R

Many thanks for your reply Karen. I'll email Dr. Proven, he may be able to advise me.

Hi Jen,

In the past I've had naturally high cholesterol, somewhere in the 260- 280 range. And like you I've tried to be a vegetarian, and I was running about 6 miles 5 or 6 days a week. I come from a family that has a gene for producing cholesterol. My grandmother and her sisters' would be as high as 330. Anyways, as an experiment I started consuming flax seed to help lower my cholesterol levels. And it seemed to have worked for me. This might have been a coincendence, but at 15 I was not ready to start taking cholesterol lowering medications. Since then if my cholesterol goes up I eat about a teaspoon of flaxseed a day for maybe a month. I'm human so some days I forget, but when I get tested again in 3 months, it's usually back to the low 200's range.

Consider taking flaxseed to see if it works for you.

Michel

Jenuk wrote:

Many thanks for your reply Karen. I'll email Dr. Proven, he may be able to advise me.

Dr Provan will tell you there's no dietary differences that will help ITP. He's my doctor.

Michel, thanks so much for your reply. I'll try that.

From what I have read it seems most products that can help high cholesterol have an anti aggregation of platelet effect. I am guessing flaxseed oil might have Vit E or Omega etc, but, sometimes you have to choose between the lesser of two evils. I will try the flaxseed and then get my cholesterol checked.

Jen,

I'd be interested to see how your cholesterol result come out, if you add flaxseed to your diet. Also, I know there are various forms of flaxseed, pills, liquid, seeds, ground. I was only consuming the flaxseed ground form, you can buy this at a supermarket.

Michel

Jen,

I'd be interested to see how your cholesterol result come out, if you add flaxseed to your diet. Also, I know there are various forms of flaxseed, pills, liquid, seeds, ground. I was only consuming the flaxseed ground form, you can buy this at a supermarket.

Michel

Michel I have managed to purchase some of the ground stuff, and thanks for the tip. I have emailed Dr.Provan and will await his reply re the Omega fatty acids which can interfere with platelet clotting. I was warned off of Vit E and A by my own haematologist many years ago, and this was confirmed when I went to Drew Proven's clinic - I run at about 40K platelets.

I probably will have a go anyway...I will let you now if it helps reduce the bad cholesterol.