Help with Low Fat Diet

My husband has high Trig also. His doctor told him to cut down on sugar. He lowered it drastically just doing that. I would suggest a basically healthy diet and cut down sugars and simple carbs. Try to stick with real foods...it looks like you guys are already pretty good at that. Avoid hidden sugars like ketchup and peanut butter.

Good Luck

A.

a great program to be on is herbalife. it is certified heart healthy. visit herbalife.com and I can help you out with info if you choose to explore it more. I have lost 20lbs after having my son (he's 6 mo old)it is also a great home based business.

Hi E.

Triglycerides are a type of "bad" fat found in your bloodstream. Triglycerides are part of your total cholesterol reading. They are released between meals when you need energy. Triglycerides are fatty acids that act as the basic building blocks of fats. Your body converts excess ingested calories into triglycerides, which are stored in fat cells. As needed, hormones regulate the release of triglycerides from fat tissue to meet your body’s energy needs.

It sounds like you are eating well. Sometimes High Triglycerides may be caused by a diet high in refined sugar, or processed foods.

There are 2 nutrition supplements I recommend to help with high triglycerides (see below) - fish oil and Garlic. You need to be careful about the fish oil you buy. I heard one doctor say that she has seen a lot of kidney and liver problems from people who buy their fish oil from Costco or sam’s club. Those products are not pure - could have mercury in them.

You can find out more info and order them at http://www.choices4betterhealth.com

Omega Guard ( Essential Fatty Acids) Reduces 3 risk factors for heart disease: reduces clots in blood vessels; lowers triglycerides and raises HDL (good cholesterol) . Omega-3 fatty acids like those in cold water fish and Shaklee EPA, play a role in the formation of prostaglandins, which are hormone like substances which regulate blood clotting, inflammation and normalize blood pressure. EPA is nature’s Teflon because it makes arterial walls more slippery and red blood cells more flexible, thus improves blood flow. Easier blood flow means the heart doesn’t have to pump as hard to move blood. That translates to lower blood pressure

Premium Garlic item # 20084 In addition to lowering cholesterol, garlic has also been shown to lower elevated blood pressure, triglycerides and blood glucose in diabetics. It acts as a natural antibiotic, protects the liver from toxins, kills intestinal parasites.

If you have any questions, let me know.
L. L
Certified Nutrition Consultant

Read Anne-Marie's post again; she knows what she's talking about! I agree with her 100% about all the healthy fats. In fact, it really does sound like you're doing everything right. Ok, well maybe you could cut out soda (pop) completely. See this article: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2001/0...

It sounds like the main thing you (or rather, he)should be concerned about omitting from your diet is high fructose corn syrup. (Yeah, and don't believe those commercials that the corn growers assoc. is putting out saying that it's "natural". We all should know by now that the word natural means nothing and that HFCS is anything but.)

"We are already on what DOCTORS CONSIDER to be a healthy diet." That's the thing..... Someone correct me if I'm wrong (since I've never been through medical school myself), but don't doctors get about one half hour of nutrition classes during medical school? They're trained in pathology, aren't they? They're really good at diagnosing problems (they're correct either 33% or 66% of the time at Mayo clinic in Rochester, which is why it's considered such a great place), but I'm not sure their areas of strength are diet and nutrition. I could be wrong, but a dietician or nutritionist would probably be worth consulting.

I have to congratulate you on eating the free range, grass fed beef. I happened to read in Michael Pollan's book, The Omnivore's Dilemma, that there are more Omega-3 fatty acids in grass-fed beef than in farm-raised salmon! (Amazing!)

I'm thinking of seeing a natural doctor myself just because they can and do look for things that most medical doctors don't. The training is completely different. Hopefully I don't come across as having too many screws loose because I don't trust doctors as much as most people do, but I really do think there are alternatives out there that are worth looking into if you're wanting a truly healthy life for you and your loved ones.

Best of health to you!

Hi E.,

It sounds like you take great care of your family's health! Genetics may be the culprit. I've been studying this, and it is really interesting to me how genetics play a role, and how you can offset your genetic predispositions with nutrition.

I agree with Linda L that a garlic supplement and a very high quality Omega-3 fish oil is a great choice. As she said, over-the-counter fish oil products may not have been filtered for heavy metals and PCBs, which are very toxic. I also learned something recently at a nutrition training I attended, which is that most of the over-the-counter fish oils are harvested from farm-raised fish. And it is the food that the fish get from their native habitat that is converted into Omega-3 oils! So in other words, people know they need the Omega-3's for heart health, but most are unfortunately not getting it from the fish oil they are taking.

You can find a complete heart health system at www.newvitalitywellness.com > Health & Nutrition > Heart Health. It includes a filtered high-grade fish oil, a supplement that helps improve homocysteine levels and cholesterol levels, and a natural alternative to Lipitor that supports normal triglyceride levels.

Here's a short testimony on this heart health system:

"I can give you a personal testimony on the Omega III Heart Health. I lowered my Triglycerides from 181 (12/12/06) to 87 (3/31/07) in a little more then 90 days.
Jo-Ann"

Another very cool supplement you might like to learn about is called OPC-3. It is an antioxidant that promotes cardiovascular health. You can find it at www.newvitalitywellness.com > Antioxidants > Isotonix OPC-3. I have some great testimonials on this product too. Here's a short one:

"My friend's husband had a triple bypass and his cholesterol was quite high.
They gave him the pills to lower the cholesterol and changed his diet, but 3 years later the best his cholesterol got was 280-320 range. He started taking OPC-3 and claimed he felt no different but he remained on it. After 2 months he was scheduled for a routine checkup again. The results of the blood test showed his cholesterol figure was 180. Hilda"

Sorry this is kind of long, but I am so excited to see the results people can get with supplementation.

Keep doing what you are doing with your great diet. I would not go with a low-fat diet. Just keep making sure you're using the best oils, like olive oil. In the era when our society was focused on low-fat diets, people got fatter. It has to do with carbs, cravings, and how carbohydrates affect our body's ability to manage fat. But that's a topic for another time. I recommend learning about the glycemic index.

I hope this helps!

J. Locke
Certified Nutraceutical Consultant

Nutritionists will tell you that your health is: 80% diet, 10% exercise, 10% genetics. Have you read the new book, "In Defense of Food," by Pollan? I'm reading it right now, and I really think you'd benefit from reading it. I just saw it at Target, if you can pick it up while you're there. It's really changed my thinking about food, and helped me to not obsess so much about it all. Pollan says, simply, that you need to eat more fruits and vegetables. Simple enough, but definitely hard to do. It's good to be reminded of it.
Good luck, E.

He may want to have it retested. If he had eaten something high in fat/sugar right before the test it could have really affected the results.
Well you sound like your giving your family the best and I hope that you will figure out how to help him out!

E.,
Don't worry too much about it as long as you are being healthy. Some of this is heriditary and you cannot change it. Also, be sure to watch labels and make sure you are not buying anything with hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils in it, these are bad fats.

I think Weight Watchers is the way to go for any diet. It is the easiest to understand and apply to real life. You can do it online as well so you don't have to go to meetings and it's not prohibatively expensive. Once you learn how to do it, it's easy.

My husband had some tests done through work and they saved his life. I would suggest do a follow up with your doctor. Some insurances also have the ability to go see a dietician, it might be 4 times a year but, this could put you on the right track. Health is one thing I don't take lightly since I would be a widow now if it wasn't for the tests and our doctor follow up.
Best of luck,
Barbara

HI E.
I don't have any advice on eating, but if you are looking for ways to afford to workout, check out the YMCA. They have a program called P3 pricing. If you qualify, you will get discounted membership which you can use for your whole family. They have wonderful programs for whatever you like and family activities too.

I know what you mean. I started doing the whole wheat and multi grain breads, cut way down on carbs and eating more salad and vegitables then ever. I am over weight and have been for 20 years but never had high cholestrol or trigs until this past time I was tested and was confused on why. I had stopped waitressing and so I went from a very active job to homemaker who loves to embroider and work on the computer. The doctor said I should add more exersize to my schedule and perhaps that is all I need. My suggestion would be to get a wii fit and work on that. I keep thinking I will do that myself soon, my daughter in law loves hers. Wii fit give a good workout and you don't have to keep paying for memberships. It would also be fun to do together.
Good luck.

Hello,
Here are some things to think about. How are you preparing your food? If you are cooking with any type of oils, good or bad, you need to realize that any oil that gets to its evaporation point (the point at which you see steam) the oil will convert to a trans fat. So add oil when simmering after the food is cooked. Any fried food, margarine consists of trans fat, so avoid. Any meat that is higher in saturated fat is not good for triglyceride levels either, so eat lean meats. Another option to consider is omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3's have the unique ability to lower "bad" cholesterol and raise HDL levels ("good" cholesterol). Taking therapeutic dosage is important when trying to lower bad cholesterol so talk to a naturopathic doctor and not your conventional practitioner. The level of education from a natural perspective is not comparable. Conventional doctors know drugs, naturopaths know diet, nutrition, supplements, homeopathics, etc. Another approach is to contact a doctor who practices functional medicine. Chiropractors, M.D.s, etc who practice from the functional medicine model look at the person and not the disease or condition to solve a problem, not put a bandaid on it. When levels are at 300 you also have to look into the genetic link. There is a role that genetics play, even when we seem to be doing "everything right". Do not get caught up into the BMI hype if your husband is in good shape. In that situation it is not worth being concerned. I hope this helps.

Hi E.!
In case you haven't checked this out, you might consider looking at Mona Vie "Pulse". Mona Vie is an Acai Superfruit drink, and Pulse is the newest version that is designed to be heart healthy. It could help.

My husband and I, and our 3 year old, have been drinking Mona Vie "Active" and "Original" for a year, with truly amazing results (great sleep, aches and pains that I've dealt with for years gone, super energy,..), and we added in Pulse last fall when it was released. 4 oz/day = 13 servings of fruit, and all berries are organic/wild.

You can learn more at mymonavie.com/jesnough and monavie.com, or feel free to call me at ###-###-#### or ###-###-####, no obligation! And, enrollment is free in February! 91% of people enroll just to buy the juice at distributor pricing, there are no minimums to buy. (There is a great compensation plan for those who are looking to make extra income).

When my HUSBAND says that he won't go without his Mona Vie each day, that says a lot! :o)

Any questions, don't hesitate to call!
Jen

I am a post gastric-bypass patient who has maintained the weight loss for almost 7 years now. To make my weight loss and over-all health successful, I had to learn how to cook and eat better. Over the years, I have found that there are a LOT of things that you can do to lower your fat intake. You say you make a lot of things home-made which I think is great. These are just a few things you can do to help what you are already doing along:
-use extra virgin olive oil when pan-frying and ONLY use a small amount (a little goes a long way)
-trying switching from butter to margarine (I use country crock churn style and love it)
-if having salads, use only low fat dressing (2 tbs of ranch averages about 14gms of fat)
-trying eating ground turkey instead of ground beef (it is cheaper and tastes great), also only buy the very lean when purchasing ground beef or turkey (93/7)
-use skim or 1% milk
-drink a lot of water (don't drown yourself though)
-if you use creamer in your coffee, use low or non-fat
-avoid foods with transfat (thus the reasoning for switching to olive oil)
-avoid recipes calling for lard or shortening
-become a label reader (watch the serving size ratio to fat and calories)

I hope these small tips help you and your husband out. Feel free to email me if you have any other questions at ____@____.com.

B.

It sounds like you are doing everything right. Have you considered consulting a nutrionist?

Hi Emma
Say- email me and I'll do a profile on your husband. Need height, weight and bone structure. I am coaching an online class-- 12 weeks only $29 at challengevictor.com if you want to learn a ton about healthy eating- we go over healthy fats too. It started yesterday-the 18th. Or email me at ____@____.com I'm out of town right now-- only on my mom's dialup computer-- but can send you some info when I have more time. I have an article about triglyc. and stuff like that. I just have things to attend to right now down here with my dad's health. So- email me and if you want to join the class let me know that too.

About me 48 yo perfusionist (heart surgery) wellness coach pt and mom to 7 yo twin girls.

B. J

I would highly recommend that you both start taking fish oil supplements (omega 3 fatty acids). I know that they improve heart health, help decrease stress levels, and help lower triglyceride levels - if you take a high enough dose. I would talk to your docs about it. Its worth a shot. They are very inexpensive and you can find them at any drugstore/Walmart. They also found that over the counter fish oil supplements are as good as any of the others. Here is a website explaining the benefits of fish oil.
www.rd.com/living-healthy/fish-oil-a-vital-supplement/art...

E.,

It does sound like you are doing all the right things. I have a friend who did all the right things also, but her cholesterol became out of control. No matter that she ate well and exercised, it just keep rising, even in her 20's. She then began taking a product which has helped her to maintain healthy levels no problem. If you would like to talk with her, just e:mail me at ____@____.com and she would love to share with you what she found.

Blessings, H.