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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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My Total Cholesterol Is 249, Triglycerides Is 104 Mg/dl, HDL 90, Do I Need To Be Concerned ?

My total cholesterol is 249, triglycerides is 104 mg/dl, HDL 90, LDL 134, VLDL21. Do I need to be concerned ? I am 100lbs, 5 feet tall and 53 years old. Don t exercise and have reseanably decent food habits. Never smoked, don t drink. My confusion arises from the conflict between (a) the bad high LDL score and (b( the really good HDL score, the really good total to HDL ratio, the really good LDL to HDL ratio. A related question I have is whether I can deduct say, 40 points, off the total cholesterol score on the basis that if I have normal rather than extra good HDL scores it would be about 40 points less. That would leave my total score closer to 200. Doctor left message along with scores saying everything is fine. Always had low blood pressure, no diabetes, family history of anything, any other risk factors, 67 heart rate. Does eat oatmeal now and then but usually omit breakfast. I do eat double digit helpings of fruit and vege very very often. Have good knowledge about cholesterol and have researched internet extensively. Could not find anything specific answering my question.
Thu, 17 Dec 2009
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The HDL of 90 is fantastic. Wow! Are you sure you heard him right? The LDL would be better under 120, but its still ok where it is. I wouldn't be happy with Triglycerides that high myself even though they are normal. Mine run under 50 because I don't eat sugar. I agree with the poster who said don't worry about total cholesterol. That is simply a really cheap test that is often performed. You have had a full blood workup and have a much better idea of what is going on. Your HDL is so high (wonderful!) that the results of the total cholesterol are skewed and look high when they really aren't. Just ignore them. The total cholesterol test is not a good predictor of anything, it is just a cheap test that is over-performed. If you cut down on carbs (sugars) such as grains, sugar and high sugar fruits and increase protein your triglycerides will go down even further. Choose fruits lower in sugar like berries and melons rather than high sugar fruits like bananas and papayas. If you choose to eat grains just limit them and never eat refined only whole grains. Eat the fruit don't drink the juice (fruit juice is just sugar water). Things like that along with taking sugar out of your diet will make your numbers look even better.
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My Total Cholesterol Is 249, Triglycerides Is 104 Mg/dl, HDL 90, Do I Need To Be Concerned ?

The HDL of 90 is fantastic. Wow! Are you sure you heard him right? The LDL would be better under 120, but its still ok where it is. I wouldn t be happy with Triglycerides that high myself even though they are normal. Mine run under 50 because I don t eat sugar. I agree with the poster who said don t worry about total cholesterol. That is simply a really cheap test that is often performed. You have had a full blood workup and have a much better idea of what is going on. Your HDL is so high (wonderful!) that the results of the total cholesterol are skewed and look high when they really aren t. Just ignore them. The total cholesterol test is not a good predictor of anything, it is just a cheap test that is over-performed. If you cut down on carbs (sugars) such as grains, sugar and high sugar fruits and increase protein your triglycerides will go down even further. Choose fruits lower in sugar like berries and melons rather than high sugar fruits like bananas and papayas. If you choose to eat grains just limit them and never eat refined only whole grains. Eat the fruit don t drink the juice (fruit juice is just sugar water). Things like that along with taking sugar out of your diet will make your numbers look even better.