Following my last result in January 2025 I collected my first month of statins. They sat on the sideboard in the kitchen for a few days before they went in the bin. I joined a couple of support groups on Facebook and started reading. I felt like I had been kept in the dark for years and have even changed my view that there is nothing I can do about my high cholesterol based on the ‘fact’ that it’s a genetic condition and I can’t do anything about it. So I guess my blog is really a bit of an experiment and I am the guinea-pig, I am really intrigued to know whether this is true, can I do something about it without statins or do I have to accept that if I want to reduce my risk of heart attack or stroke I’ll have no other choice but to take them.
I started reading ‘A Statin Free Life’ by Dr Phil Hammond. A cardiologist for many years, he has been involved with a number of patients who have been persuaded to take statins and subsequently stopped owing to the (sometimes debilitating) side effects. The first revelation for me was his conviction that LDL is ‘NOT’ bad cholesterol (I have since learned that high triglycerides can ’cause’ some of it to become bad, but I don’t want to get into the science on my blog, from my understanding of what I’ve read the most important ratio is Triglycerides:HDL. The aim is to get this to 1:1 or less. At my last blood test my ratio was 3.5:2 which is 1.75 – too high. My HDL is good but my aim is to bring my triglycerides down to 2 or less.
The hardest task has been figuring out how to do this as each time I research or ask a question I learn something new.
But through research and a couple of great support groups these are the changes I’ve made:
Oils – no more seed/vegetable oils, I have used rapeseed oil for years but this has been replaced with olive oil, walnut oil or avocado oil (and always in a glass bottle) and I’ve changed to ‘real’ butter
Carbohydrates – I am a carbohydrate junkie, I lived off carbs, everything I’ve read suggests refined carbs are the biggest culprit, so I have practically cut out white potatoes, bread and white rice. I eat sweet potato (which can be made into chips), wholemeal bread and wholemeal rice (but not every day)
Processed foods – reduce or eliminate (I’m looking for as few ingredients as possible, especially
additives and preservatives)
Glucose and Fructose – Ideally eliminate from diet (I’m working on the sweet chilli sauce!)
Snacks are now fruit and nut mix, rollitos, carrot sticks and hummus, chicken satay skewers and fruit (not ready to give up bananas), dark chocolate with hazelnuts
The main things I’ve learned:
Overall cholesterol doesn’t mean anything in relation to heart disease/stroke, key factors are triglycerides and HDL (current research states triglycerides should be below 1.7mmol/l and HDL above 1 mmol/l). My latest result showed HDL 2 and triglycerides 3.5 so some work to do!
Statins don’t reduce triglycerides, they can only be reduced with dietary changes
Even though alcohol can be low in carbs, when the liver is working to filter alcohol it can’t remove triglycerides from high carb foods, so they remain in the blood stream
Vegetable and seed oils cause inflammation in the body which is a high risk factor for heart disease
As quoted by Phil Hammond in his book A Statin Free Life ‘On a biological level, several of the body’s stress-coping mechanisms increase the risk of a heart attach and heart disease’, and he cites stress as a higher risk factor than high cholesterol
The suggestion that heart attacks/strokes are caused by LDL comes from the fact that LDL is found in the arteries in patients who suffer from heart disease. More recent theories suggest that the body is sending out the LDL to try to repair damage caused by something else (inflammation?)
A ‘good quality’ carbohydrate – look for a ratio of Fiber – 1:Carbohydrates -10 or less
Saturated Fats – are NOT BAD!
Natural fruit juices can contribute to high triglycerides owing to high fructose/sucrose content
LDL is required for every cell in the body and makes up most of the brain
