Cholesterol

Hi - I've just had my results from a cholesterol check.

I'm waiting for a call from the Doc next week for him to explain the results to me.

My total cholesterol = 5.5
LDL = 3.6
HDL = 1.35

This was a fasting test.

Just wondering if anyone can fill me in as to whether this is good or bad??

 

What was your triglycerides value? Did you get them measured? They're important because they'll tell you whether your LDL is mostly pattern A or pattern B. IMO it's not possible to say whether it's good or not without that value.

 

Same here, to be honest the Trig/HDL ratio is the most important result. If this is a low ratio then LDL doesn't matter much. Even total cholesterol is only a problem if it's extremelty high or low.

 

Trig level = 1.3

Serum fasting glucose 4.8.

Is it possible to tell if pattern A or B from this?
What is a good level for Trig/HDL ratio?

 

That's not too bad. You divide your trig by HDL to get a final number. If this number is below 2 then you're considered to be at low risk from heart disease. Given that yours is just below 1 then it would seem you're OK.

To clarify (my understanding of) pattern A or pattern B LDL:

LDL particles come in different sizes. They're divided up into 7 subfractions, with 1 being the largest and most bouyant and 7 being the smallest and most dense. If you have a predominance of subfractions 1-3, you're pattern A; of subfractions 4-7, you're pattern B. On occasion I've heard a fairly level mix throughout all subfractions being described as "pattern I" (for "intermediate"). As such it's not an either/or situation, but a predominance of one of the other. We all have paticles in all 7 subfractions but in different quantities. To be healthy we want most of the particles to be large.

While I'm on the subject, the reason you don't want pattern B LDL is because it has slightly different properties to pattern A. The smaller the particles, the more readily they oxidise (not good) and the more easily they lodge in the gaps in the arterial wall, starting off the whole chain reaction which results ultimately in atherosclerosis.

I know a little more than I've explained here, so if you want an area clarified, give me a shout and if I know the answer I'll try to go into more detail.




(Disclaimer - not a doctor, cannot give medical advice, take with a pinch of salt, consult a professional and always wash behind your ears, blah blah blah.)

 

Oops, sorry, also meant to say that from that you would seem to be more pattern A than pattern B. There is a direct correlation between trig and pattern B - the more of one, the more of the other.

 

Thanks CosmicFish.

I will see what the doc says in the week.

Thanks to your posts I think I understand the breakdown of values a little better now.

 

No worries, let us know what the doc says and how it compares to what we've said. For some inexplicable reason I've developed an interest in cholesterol lately. (Can you tell? )

 

Yeah, don't need to worry bout the cholesterol - just diabetes then!

Spoke to someone at the surgery, who basically said the GP was happy with all my levels.
Didn't go into much more detail than that really.

Will be interesting to take a look at it this time next year as I'm making certain (positive) changes to what I eat, preparing most meals from the most basic ingredients etc.