Lowering LDL

Slims

Well-known member
My most recent blood test flagged up high LDL (HDL is in range).
Which doesn't make any sense...
I lift five days per week, do at least 45 minutes of cardio six days per week, have a physically active job, take 2g of Omega 3 each day and get an average of 20g fiber per day.

So am now looking for supplement recommendations to help lower LDL.

I know genetics probably has a part in this, as heart conditions run throughout my dad's entire side of the family.
 
Slims said:
My most recent blood test flagged up high LDL (HDL is in range).
Which doesn't make any sense...
I lift five days per week, do at least 45 minutes of cardio six days per week, have a physically active job, take 2g of Omega 3 each day and get an average of 20g fiber per day.

So am now looking for supplement recommendations to help lower LDL.

I know genetics probably has a part in this, as heart conditions run throughout my dad's entire side of the family.
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Do you eat a lot of fatty foods and red meat? I noticed when I eat fatty foods and red meat my LDL goes pretty high.
 
dillface02241 said:
Do you eat a lot of fatty foods and red meat? I noticed when I eat fatty foods and red meat my LDL goes pretty high.
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Not particularly, most of my protein comes from chicken and low fat dairy, like non-fat greek yogurt mixed with whey.
 
Does anybody have experience with niacin? I know that used to be recommended for people running gear, which raises LDL, but haven't heard or seen it mentioned for a while.
 
Slims said:
Does anybody have experience with niacin? I know that used to be recommended for people running gear, which raises LDL, but haven't heard or seen it mentioned for a while.
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There are a lot of better options than Niacin. The dosage you need to take to make a lasting impact with Niacin is high enough to cause some potential side effects on it's on when used for a long period of time.
 
Slims said:
My most recent blood test flagged up high LDL (HDL is in range).
Which doesn't make any sense...
I lift five days per week, do at least 45 minutes of cardio six days per week, have a physically active job, take 2g of Omega 3 each day and get an average of 20g fiber per day.

So am now looking for supplement recommendations to help lower LDL.

I know genetics probably has a part in this, as heart conditions run throughout my dad's entire side of the family.
Click to expand...

Do you get bloodwork done frequently?

The reason I ask is that some people's may go up temporarily so the time to start worrying is if you see it elevated over a period of time.

For the Omega 3 part, are you taking 2 grams of EPA & DHA or 2 grams total fish oil? The reason I'm asking is that most people would mean they're taking 2 grams of fish oil, but the active constituents that may fish oil helpful are the EPA and DHA content and 2 grams of fish oil could yield very different amounts of EPA & DHA depending on the brand and product used.

Cardiovascular problems run in my family so I can relate to that. I think the first step in targeting cholesterol is an overall comprehensive heart health supplement like Cardiovascular Support XT. A lot of people on here use it and have given feedback on it.

Here's a link to the discussion thread: https://anabolicminds.com/community...ed-heart-health-support-now-available.332439/
Here's a link to the product write up: https://seriousnutritionsolutions.com/product/cardiovascular-support-xt/

We are going to be releasing a cholesterol support supplement within the next 8 weeks. It will be named Cholesterol Support XT. I still would suggest starting with Cardiovascular Support XT though bc it addresses many different heart health avenues.
 
sns8778 said:
Do you get bloodwork done frequently?

The reason I ask is that some people's may go up temporarily so the time to start worrying is if you see it elevated over a period of time.

For the Omega 3 part, are you taking 2 grams of EPA & DHA or 2 grams total fish oil? The reason I'm asking is that most people would mean they're taking 2 grams of fish oil, but the active constituents that may fish oil helpful are the EPA and DHA content and 2 grams of fish oil could yield very different amounts of EPA & DHA depending on the brand and product used.

Cardiovascular problems run in my family so I can relate to that. I think the first step in targeting cholesterol is an overall comprehensive heart health supplement like Cardiovascular Support XT. A lot of people on here use it and have given feedback on it.

Here's a link to the discussion thread: https://anabolicminds.com/community...ed-heart-health-support-now-available.332439/
Here's a link to the product write up: https://seriousnutritionsolutions.com/product/cardiovascular-support-xt/

We are going to be releasing a cholesterol support supplement within the next 8 weeks. It will be named Cholesterol Support XT. I still would suggest starting with Cardiovascular Support XT though bc it addresses many different heart health avenues.
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I get bloodwork every 12-16 weeks. My LDL has been creeping up and I've done all that I know to do to stop it getting higher and reducing it, but even with implimenting everyting I listed in my first post, it doesn't seem to be helping. Oddly though, my blood pressure is within normal range.

I take just over 2g of EPA & DHA combined.

Someone I know suggested a greens powder/supplement, but don't really see how that would help other than providing additional fiber?
As the most knowledgable guy I know, do you see this as a worthwhile addition?

I'll add Cardiovascular Support XT to my next order and look forward to upgrading or adding Cholesterol Support XT when it's released.
 
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baldwanus said:
NOW Cholesterol Pro would be another thing worth looking into until Cholesterol Support XT is out.
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I appreciate the recommendation, thank you.
Is this something you've taken yourself? If so, did you see any improvements?
 
Slims said:
I get bloodwork every 12-16 weeks. My LDL has been creeping up and I've done all that I know to do to stop it getting higher and reducing it, but even with implimenting everyting I listed in my first post, it doesn't seem to be helping. Oddly though, my blood pressure is within normal range.

I take just over 2g of EPA & DHA combined.

Someone I know suggested a greens powder/supplement, but don't really see how that would help other than providing additional fiber?
As the most knowledgable guy I know, do you see this as a worthwhile addition?

I'll add Cardiovascular Support XT to my next order and look forward to upgrading or adding Cholesterol Support XT when it's released.
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It doesn't surprise me at all for blood pressure to be within normal range but LDL to be high. It can be that way for a lot of people.

That's good on the EPA/DHA - a lot of people misunderstand and take 2 grams fish oil and wind up with a trivial amount of actual EPA/DHA.

Greens supplements, don't get me wrong, we're going to be doing one and they have their uses - but they are overhyped as heck for a lot of things. I wouldn't expect any improvement on LDL from one. (Thank you for the kind words and compliment). I think they can be a good addition depending on how in depth one wants to go with their supplement regimen, but I don't use one personally bc there's just a lot of things I'd prioritize before one.

Cardiovascular Support XT is a great product and it covers a lot of bases for heart health. You could definitely add Cholesterol Support XT when it comes out, but it wouldn't take the place of it. It will help in that its more specialized, but I wouldn't stop taking my Cardiovascular Support XT.

I could walk you through adding the ingredients as singles that are going to be in Cholesterol Support XT, but it would honestly be like 5 different products just to give you all the ingredients that are in it. It got delayed a few times, but its actually in the production process now, so it shouldn't be more than 6 to 8 weeks max and it may be sooner. But if you did want to get something to start off, you could do NOW Foods Pantethine and their Cholesterol Pro - but those two alone will be a lot more expensive than Cholesterol Support XT and it will have a lot more in it.
 
baldwanus said:
NOW Cholesterol Pro would be another thing worth looking into until Cholesterol Support XT is out.
Click to expand...

Slims said:
I appreciate the recommendation, thank you.
Is this something you've taken yourself? If so, did you see any improvements?
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I've used it as part of a cholesterol stack experiment that I did last year when I was having issues with mine. I was using quite a bit of different things though, so I can't say how much of my results were just from it - I was using a lot of the things that are going to be in Cholesterol Support XT together to see how it worked.
 
Slims said:
I appreciate the recommendation, thank you.
Is this something you've taken yourself? If so, did you see any improvements?
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Not personally, but know a few family members that have used the branded 'Bergamonte' citrus bergamot extract before with positive results. Thats what NOW uses. Pretty sure theres a couple other people on here who use it too.
 
Niacin in the form of nicotinic cid raised hdl from 17 to 25. Raised ast quite higher, maybe alt, as well.
Was stuck at 17 hdl a long time when competed in classic . Furthermore, trt was 150 mgs six months out of the year, abouts , from 2016-2021 were the years I competed in classic, the other six months was was 400-900 mgs .

As stated high epa , dha help, alng with other supplements. Never tried Citrus B, hve heard some guys say it depends on the brand, as some brands of it didnt budge cholestrol

Of course cardio, being lean helps, keeping blood sugar ,insulin levels low

Ldl was fine untill 2021 when started expirementing with insulin. After a year of using 5-10 ius slin most resistance exercise days, total and ldl went far and above out of range than six years competing in Classic. I think anabolic doses went up as well during this time, as was now competing in bodybuilding and six months trt got lowered to four, months, three months. Therefore, it could be many factors. I still stand by insulin raises cholestrol signifcally going by labs year by year, and when started slin, cholestrol went up that year big time. Best thing that lowered mine was crestor, a statin
 
Honestly sounds like you are going things already about as good as you can and you’ve gotten lots of good recommendations in here.

You could also bump fiber up a little. I know that’s a bit of a personal thing for how people tolerate it and you shouldn’t make big jumps, but 20g is about the minimum I’d recommend. Generally other than at extreme ends of intake 14g of fiber per 1000 calories consumed is a good ballpark for most (which ends up being closer to 35-40g for most men).

Good luck with this, seems you’ve got a lot of good things to work with.
 
I have struggled with high cholesterol for the last few years. I thought for sure I was going to have to get on a statin especially since I have high Lipoprotein (A) and Apolipoprotein B (hereditary for me). These numbers are actually more important than your actual cholesterol and highly contribute to atherosclerosis. I finally got my numbers under control this summer. I started incorporating a plant based protein powder, lowered my carb intake, lowered saturated fats, and increased unsaturated fats. I still eat 2-4 eggs a day :) I also got a calcium score, and it was zero. So my doctor recommended no statin for now. Here's an older thread I started a while ago that has some good info.

rodefeeh

Thread 'High Cholesterol / Statin feedback'

First off, I'm natty, about to turn 40, 5'11'', 181 lbs, 9-10% bodyfat. I just came off a pretty intense cut for two months and had my bloodwork done right after it ended. My bad cholesterol LDL was through the roof - 233. It was at 176 a couple years ago. My HDL and Triglycerides are both in a great range. My mom has slightly cholesterol and is on a low dose statin. Towards the end of my cut, I dialed back my egg intake trying to get at that 176 lower. Well that back fired. Doc wanted to put me on a statin right away. I'm going to wait another 3 months and test again. I'm going...

After writing that thread, I got a new doctor last year and love him. He is very knowledgeable about the latest cholesterol research. If you are unfamiliar with Lipoprotein (A) and Apolipoprotein B, I highly recommend educating yourself on them. I learned a lot listening to different Peter Attia youtube videos. I used to take Niacin but at the recommended dose, the flushing was just unbearable. Plus I have read Niacin doesn't necessarily help with atherosclerosis prevention.

Take your numbers seriously especially with your family history. It's not the end of the world if you have to get on a statin. Good luck!
 
Thank you for all of the replies.

I've ordered SNS' Cardio Vascular Support XT and some Beta Glucan caps
I'll also be taking @Resolve10's advice and, slowly, increase my fiber intake...
Let's see where this gets me in 12 weeks time🤞
 
Slims said:
My most recent blood test flagged up high LDL (HDL is in range).
Which doesn't make any sense...
I lift five days per week, do at least 45 minutes of cardio six days per week, have a physically active job, take 2g of Omega 3 each day and get an average of 20g fiber per day.

So am now looking for supplement recommendations to help lower LDL.

I know genetics probably has a part in this, as heart conditions run throughout my dad's entire side of the family.
Click to expand...
Niacinamide (if you can't tolerate regular Niacin), Red Yeast Rice but especially Cardarine (the 'SARM' - which it is not) will bring your cholesterol levels exactly where they should be.
 
My wife uses plant sterols and red yeast rice and she’s one the produces excessive cholesterol.
 
Slims said:
Has she seen a noticable improvement/decrease in her LDL numbers since she's been supplementing with them?
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Yes these two together have helped her maintain lower cholesterol numbers
 
Higher LDL isn't necessarily bad, because not all LDL is equal. The smaller and denser the LDL particle, the worse it is.

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

The benefits of measuring the size and number of lipoprotein particles for cardiovascular risk prediction: A systematic review and meta-analysis - PubMed

Larger particle size provided greater protection, although this relationship was inconsistent between studies. Larger number of LDL particles and smaller LDL particle size are associated with increased CVR. Risk decreases with increasing number and size of HDL particles.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

LDL particle number and size and cardiovascular risk: anything new under the sun? - PubMed

Additional studies are required to settle the debate on which of cholesterol indices and LDL particle number is the best predictor of CVD risk, and if such measures should be integrated in clinical practice.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

It's not easy to check this though, just more of a "food for thought"
 
John Smeton said:
Niacin in the form of nicotinic cid raised hdl from 17 to 25. Raised ast quite higher, maybe alt, as well.
Was stuck at 17 hdl a long time when competed in classic . Furthermore, trt was 150 mgs six months out of the year, abouts , from 2016-2021 were the years I competed in classic, the other six months was was 400-900 mgs .
Click to expand...
Very interesting man. niacin has been a controversial med after patented statins, aka money, came out..... Different to find it raised hdl even if liver values expectedly went up while on it. Were you on niacinamide or flushing with it?
 
EpiStrong said:
Very interesting man. niacin has been a controversial med after patented statins, aka money, came out..... Different to find it raised hdl even if liver values expectedly went up while on it. Were you on niacinamide or flushing with it?
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Niacin (nicotinic acid) is what was used. Still got quite a lot of it. Yes flushed a lot and has to break it up thoughout the day , when increased dosing. Wasnt worth it
 
John Smeton said:
Niacin (nicotinic acid) is what was used. Still got quite a lot of it. Yes flushed a lot and has to break it up thoughout the day , when increased dosing. Wasnt worth it
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I have to take it with a meal or otherwise my whole face gets flushed red and start sweating. 🤪
 
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