Hi...my daughter's regular blood work showed her LDL's were 112. They should not be over 110. All other components such as HDL and triglycerides 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,
Hi Marnie,
Many (adult) diabetics do have high cholesterol and even kids which is why they are checking your daughters cholesterol. It seems to go hand in and (as well as thyroid issues). My dad, brother and I are all Type 1 diabetics (my son as well…he is ten dx at 8). We all have thyroid and cholesterol issues but non mynonly sibling who is not diabetic.
I do not eat meat or fried foods or anything with high cholesterol and stll have cholesterol issues.
Good luck.
Jodi
My daughters Endo explained to us that the more uncontrolled he blood sugar is the higher chance a diabetic has of having cholesterol issues.
With that said, my daughters cholesterol was checked recently and yep, her levels are higher than normal. She is 14 and going through all the hormone changes, a little forgetful at times and a bit rebellious at times too. So her blood sugars aren’t in in the optimal range very often. So we are going to have her stop eating as much cheese and have her check her blood sugar more often.
She’s had high cholesterol once before and these steps helped to bring her levels back to normal then. Hopefully it will help this time too.
Thanks Ursela and good luck. My daughter's A1C is 6.1 which I really can't see how to improve it anymore. She does of course eat cookies and icecream once in a while (I do buy the "healthier" versions.)I don't want to cut back too much because she is very thin, and those are the things that help her gain weight..I switched her to peanut butter with the least saturated fat and am giving her almonds as an in between meal snack which is supposed to help lower LDLs.
Peanut butter is not going to contribute to your daughter's lipid levels. It has zero cholesterol. You're only going to get cholesterol from animal fats — meat, eggs, or dairy. So you might consider switching her ice cream choices to coconut milk or almond milk brands (no cholesterol), and maybe using coconut/almond milk in place of cow's milk if she drinks that. My own cholesterol dropped from 204 to 165 within 6 months of my making that switch. I'm not diabetic (my son is) but I have Hashimoto's, so I have to watch the cholesterol too. Keep the focus on plant foods and limit the animal fats, and that should help. Also! Soluble fiber helps reduce cholesterol. Oranges, oats/oatmeal, beans/lentils, pistachios, are all good. Olive oil helps too. If you can't get her to eat high-fiber foods, mix some psyllium husks into OJ or even water and have her drink it — great source of fiber, and you can find it in many pharmacies or health food stores, or the health food aisle of some grocery stores. Don't use metamucil, it's not as good — go for the psyllium husks.
I love what you said. I believe our body makes some cholesterol, and that is sufficient - and we don't need any additional cholesterol in our diets. I wonder if diabetics have a risk of "high cholesterol" because of their diet. Its so EASY to eat foods that don't require insulin: meat, eggs and dairy (for the most part) - I wonder if a lot of people eat them because they don't have to bolus and then end up with higher cholesterol as a result. Something to think about.
Well... the thing is, with insulin out of whack, it tends to throw a lot of other hormones off, and cholesterol is one of the building blocks of a number of hormones (and hormone precursors). I tend to think that the elevation of cholesterol in diabetes is a reflection of the overall endocrine dysfunction that happens when insulin either isn't present or isn't being used by the cells properly. But I don't claim to expertise, that's just my gut feeling. I DO think there's no one-size-fits-all need for cholesterol in the diet – some people need more than others, so where a vegan diet might be great for one person, it may actually do harm to someone else. And, I also feel as though it matters where you get your animal fats. I raise my own... for a reason.