Getting blood tests

[amazon1]

I've been on Atkins since October 1st. I wanted to get all of my bloodwork redone because I was just at the top of normal range for c-reactive protein which is a measure of inflammation (I think) and the same for the A1C which measures diabetes. My cholesterol was also kind of high but my HDLs were very high.

Do you think 3 months is enough time to see any positive results or should I wait a little longer? I had the tests done last February and the doctor wanted me to repeat them in 6 months but I just forgot about it. I wonder if there's something significant about 6 months.

[atkinsgal08]

Re: Getting blood tests

Well, if you've been on Atkins since October, you should certainly be on OWL!

>> Do you think 3 months is enough time to see any positive results or should I wait a little longer?>>

Dr. Atkins suggests waiting 6 months.

Doesn't mean you wouldn't have positive results after 3 months though.

[amazon1]

Re: Getting blood tests

Yeah, sorry I posted here. So you think I should wait 3 more months for the blood tests?

[atkinsgal08]

Re: Getting blood tests

I won't give you medical advice!

That's between you and your doctor.

[ziggy]

Re: Getting blood tests

wait 6 months trust me


when you start low carb your large fluffy LDL the healthy kind that has no health risk will sky rocket because saturated fat creates the large healthy kind of LDL

however at the same time you will still have the small dense unhealthy LDL

most doctors just do total cholestoral tests so with the small dense LDL + the Large healthy LDL it will show your LDL has skyrocketed and then your doctor will go berserk


it takes like 6 months to get rid of the small dense LDL and just mostly have the large fluffy LDL

but even after 6 months with mostly just large fluffy healthy LDL your LDL will still be higher however it will be the large healthy kind that has no health risk at all so you will be MUCH better off


so if you want to make your doctor happy with the results wait 6 months and then get a full cholestoral test done one that tests ALL the different sizes and types of LDL

never get total cholestoral tests done they are basically useless

remember your body needs LDL cholestoral its used to create new cells and stuff you would die with out it and HDL is used to recycle your LDL

[amazon1]

Re: Getting blood tests

That's interesting. Before I went totally Atkins I was on a pretty low carb diet for about 25 years. I don't eat any grains, sugar, potatoes or dairy. My cholesterol was always about 230 with LDLs about 100 and HDLs about 80. My doctor wasn't happy about it so I read about the kind of cholesterol test you're talking about and I took it about 10 years ago and I did have mostly large particles. So you think that by eliminating other carbs - I ate honey, maple syrup, fruit smoothies, etc. before, my small particles will go down more?

I'm more concerned about the inflammation and diabetes markers. I hope they go down.

What's the name of that test again by the way?

[imagood1]

Re: Getting blood tests

The first blood work I had done my bad cholesterol and triglicerides went up -- the next blood test everything was down -- so if you have a not so great test the first time stick with the plan and have it checked again. But, I would wait the 6 months like the book suggests to give yourself more accurate readings.

[ziggy]

Re: Getting blood tests

taken from here
Reversing Heart Disease, Heart Attack, Coronary Artery Disease, Stents, LDL, and HDL Cholesterol Success Stories.

The commonly recommended blood tests to evaluate heart disease risks are almost worthless for truly determining the risks. Doctors will obtain a common cholesterol test that measures only the total cholesterol (CT), high density lipoprotein (HDL), and triglycerides (TR). These measurements are used to calculate the low-density lipoprotein (LDL) which then becomes the main focus. Medical authorities have set the limit for LDL lower and lower as cholesterol-lowering drugs have failed to have any positive effect on the rate of heart disease. The lower limit for LDL was 100, but people continued to develop heart disease at an increasing rate. Now the limit has been lowered still farther to 70. This unreasonably low limit makes everyone in the world a prime candidate for the cholesterol-lowering pharmaceutical drugs.

maybe thats why even with a ok cholestoral of 100 LDL and 80 HDL your doctor was still not happy?

also know that the eskimos who eat a diet of up to 80% fat and tons of saturated animal fats out of there enitre culture who eat there native diet they have 0% obesity, 0% heart disease, 0% type 2 diabetes

yet 1 in 2 americans will die from a heart attack... and doctors tell us not to eat saturated animal fats...

it seems to me doctors most of the time do not know what they are doing or are just following drug companies orders to make more money and not careing what happens to people satan does control all the nations of the world after all

glucose and other sugars are much worse for your heart than cholestoral

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awA2fsa94MI&feature=player_embedded

also becareful where you get your LDL tests done some labs can differ from LDL by up to 40% taken from here
The Value of Lab Values | Mark's Daily Apple


also ya i think it will help by eliminateing honey, maple syrup, fruit smoothies that be less glucose then and im not sure what causes small particles though

also i forgot what the name of the full all types Cholestoral test was xD

[atkinsgal08]

Re: Getting blood tests

>>I ate honey, maple syrup, fruit smoothies, etc.>>

And you were doing low carb at the same time?

[amazon1]

Re: Getting blood tests

Most people think I'm the original low carb person. I ate no grains - no wheat, rice, corn, etc., no dairy, no potatoes, no sugar. Yes, I did add honey to my morning beverage but how much honey and maple syrup would a person eat generally? And some times I would have up to 1 daily smoothie. Still minus pasta, bread, potatoes, etc. I'm sure I was eating much fewer carbs than most people.

[atkinsgal08]

Re: Getting blood tests

>>I'm sure I was eating much fewer carbs than most people.>>

Probably.

However, there's no real low carb plan that would "allow" honey, maple syrup, or a fruit smoothie (made with milk? sugar?) on a daily or very regular basis ...

It's certainly not Atkins.

[mizski]

Honey & maple syrup

However, there's no real low carb plan that would "allow" honey, maple syrup, or a fruit smoothie (made with milk? sugar?) on a daily or very regular basis ...

It's certainly not Atkins.

That is true. This is one of the quandaries I have about Atkins in Maintenance though. A small amount of honey or real maple syrup (we're talking 1 tsp to 1 TBS here) is IMO healthier than artificial sweeteners. I understand Dr. A's reasoning to not allow them (esp. during weight loss phases) and I guess he had to come up with an acceptable sweetener to keep people on plan. Those artificial sweeteners are not in line with the rest of the whole food approach he suggests though.

I guess that's why I have very few sweet things while on Atkins.

[atkinsgal08]

Re: Getting blood tests

>>This is one of the quandaries I have about Atkins in Maintenance though. A small amount of honey or real maple syrup (we're talking 1 tsp to 1 TBS here) is IMO healthier than artificial sweeteners.>>

Can't say I would totally disagree.

However, in the maintenance chapter of DANDR, Dr. Atkins writes, "Be wary-endlessly wary-of sugar and corn syrup,"

Honey and real maple syrup are "sugar".

And he writes:

"Look at the labels of any packaged food you are considering and avoid (like the plague) those that contain sugar, corn syrup and honey."

and "Stay away from foods containing sugar."

There are certainly some people who might be able to get away with the occasional bit, but on a daily basis, it's not really even Atkins maintenance, imho.

[LageNomAi]

Re: Honey & maple syrup

That is true. This is one of the quandaries I have about Atkins in Maintenance though. A small amount of honey or real maple syrup (we're talking 1 tsp to 1 TBS here) is IMO healthier than artificial sweeteners. I understand Dr. A's reasoning to not allow them (esp. during weight loss phases) and I guess he had to come up with an acceptable sweetener to keep people on plan. Those artificial sweeteners are not in line with the rest of the whole food approach he suggests though.

I guess that's why I have very few sweet things while on Atkins.

I've always wondered this as well, since the allowance of artificial sweetener seems like an aberration. I participate on another chat board where many of the members are "clean eaters." That WOE is very similar to Atkins with only a few exceptions, artifical sweeteners being one of the biggies.

amazon - ziggy is spot on with her description of cholesterol. I'd wait until at least the 6-month mark before getting tested again, and make sure you get a complete profile, not the typical test in which your LDL is merely calculated. Good luck!

[amazon1]

Re: Getting blood tests

I wasn't trying to lose weight. Cane sugar and those other foods just bothered me while honey and maple syrup didn't. It's hard to eat tremendous amounts of them because there aren't a lot of processed foods with them. You can probably get more sugar in one coke than I would have in a week.