High Cholesterol

Hi...my daughter's regular bloodwork showed her LDL's were 112. They should not be over 110. All other components such as HDL and tryglicerides were excellent. They say LDLs are saturated fats. She does not eat red meat or cheese. However she eats peanut butter 3 times a day. She is thin and exercises everyday. They said she should cut back on the peanut butter. No one else in the family has this issue. Anyone else? wondering if it's Diabetes related. Thanks,

According to webmd those levels seem fine. If you are concerned maybe you should see a cholesterol specialist. That is what I did. They can actually tell you wether the LDL is diet based or created by the liver.

http://www.webmd.com/cholesterol-management/ldl-cholesterol-the-bad-cholesterol

Sometimes I just want to punch some of these doctors. Your daughter is like 10 years old. Your doctors are all psycho about an LDL of 112 when it should be 110. OMG!!!! Your daughter has diabetes. They should be focusing their attention on your daughters problem, not her "NON PROBLEM." You might consider consulting some other medical professionals and see if they can give you more sane advice.

Both of my boys (non-diabetic) had their cholesterol checked at about the age of your daughter. Both of them had slightly elevated numbers. The next time it was checked when they were a few years older, they both had lower numbers and have never had high numbers since. So I wouldn’t worry much about it. I would never let a child that age take cholesterol meds. Nor would I make her cut back on the p-nut butter. The only change I would make is to have her eat “natural” p-nut butter if she’s eating Jif or Skippy that have added sweeteners and hydrogenated vegetable oils.

Don't worry about this cholesterol numbers fluctuate and it is not uncommon that they can move as much as 30% up or down depending on the test, time, or the testing agency. Yes typically diabetics are more likely to have higher LDL or higher total cholesterol. But a couple of points is no big deal. Let it pass and tell the doctor that medicine is both and art and science. Sounds like he took the science what too serious and forgot the art part of the practice. Many doctors do that.

Rick Phillips

thx rick!

thx laddie..she already does eat the healthy pb for breakfast but not for lunch...i will make that switch..

thx i didn't know they could test that...if it's too high next time i will look into that.

thx brian..you're too funny!

These Doctors are on something powerful. The idea that LDL is bad, is a gross over-simplification. I wouldn't allow these Doctors to do an oil-change on my car!

LDL repairs damage. HDL returns it to the liver. You need the correct ratio. Probably 1-to-1. Show me a person with no cholesterol and I'll show you a stiff.

I had a similar experience a couple of years ago (Aug 2011 I think?) as my LDL went to 110. I started eating more veggies, omlettes w/ spinach and broccoli for breakfast and broccoli and carrots for lunch, on top of whatever I eat in the evening. My LDL was 74 last time, vs. HDL of 77. I also "cheat" by running a lot and noticed that I felt less "creaky" after some weeks of 40+ miles so I've worked to keep that in my diet. Which, of course, everyone is *supposed* to do but I had to think about it as I had a longstanding habit of looking for carbs with little regard for vitamins and other benefits of veggies.

The problem with the natural p-nut butter is that it tends to be runnier and might not work well for a school lunch. You’ve gotten a lot of good advice from other posters on this thread so I probably wouldn’t worry about her lunch p-nut butter.

LDL at 11 is not bad and a growing person needs more. The ranges your doctor gave you are for adults. Doctors seem to have the approach that all cholesterol is bad. I am surprised they didn't put her on a statin. Truth be known that LDL and HDL need to have a proper balance within total cholesterol. The total number do not matter that much. The ratio of HDL vs LDL is rather important. Cardio exercise will definitely alter the ratio. It will depress the LDL and increase the HDL naturally. But I really would not worry too much at this point. Let her grow up and let her body regulate before you go trying to change it. I mean she is barely out of target range anyway.

Thanks Tim...Her HDLs are excellent, 65 and that is an awesome ratio. Her A1C is 6,1. In the meantime, I have changed to a lower fat icecream (only has it once or twice a week) and a lower fat waffle (has those 6 times a week). I also switched almonds for peanuts (the dietician's suggestion) as they also have less saturated fat. Aside from that, there isn't much change I can make. I don't want to give up the ice cream as she is somewhat underweight. Overall, I will not do too much until I get the next test in 6 months. Thanks for your reply! marnie