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I Love Olive Oil

The doctor said everything is beyond perfect, even unreal fantastic. However my HDL is too low. I need to raise my good cholesterol. I think one think that is lowering my HDL is cooking oils, like vegetable oil. I do like olive oil and might start using it, as well as coconut oils. I asked how can this be, as I eat fat, and lots of it. Butter, eggs, cheese, red meats, fried chicken etc. He suggested it could be a need for more exercise and taking some omega 3 fatty acids. He may very well be right. I also think the vegetable oil is a big culprit in my low HDL though. Because it turns into transfat when fried at hi temp. But they won't tell you that on the label, they want that money.

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Northwest · M

You really should consult a nutritionist, and consider switching doctors, if he has no problem with your eating lots of butter, eggs, cheese and red meat (that is if your post is for real). They all lower HDL and elevate LDL.

Olive oil is NOT a miracle cure, but as PART of a healthy diet, that includes more vegetables, less (to none) fried foods, whole grains, no (or much less) red meat, no butter, and no to moderate bread (and only whole grain, NOT buttered bread), will increase your HDL and lower your LDL.

Also, olive oil, as in use it in salad dressings and part of meal preparation, not dry stuff in it.

Fish oil (Omega 3) supplements also help, and so do certain nuts (best is almonds, but you can have cashews, etc) in MODERATION. Consider switching to Almond milk or Almond/Cashew milk, without any sugar added (about 30 calories per cup). These things will increase your HDL levels. Avocados are good...

Look up Mediterranean Diet, for a healthy diet.

And yes, exercise. At least 30 minutes of vigorous activity per day, and a walk to McDonalds is not vigorous activity.

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Northwest · M

@SpandauBallet Yes, you have eaten these foods for decades, but I'm sure you know your metabolism changes as you get older, so you should not be comparing today to decades ago. What do you classify as low LDL?

I had my physical earlier this month, and here are my numbers:

I want to see my HDL a bit higher

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Northwest · M

@SpandauBallet LDL contributes to the creation of aerial plaque. HDL acts like a detergent, to prevent arterial plaque, and clean up existing plaque. This is why it's important to keep that number above 40. As you get closer to 200, and even though HDL is good for cleansing, getting to that number, means that you've consumed a ton of calories, and that's going to pack on more fat, unless you're doing 1+ hour of heavy exercise per day. I used to do 2 hours of heavy exercise per day, when I was 50, in addition to near daily hikes or other activities. I can no longer do that now.

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