Michelle RifferFamily
September 25, 2017
One fad does not fit all with high cholesterol.
No one argues the importance of heart health, and you’ve probably heard nutrition advice ranging from “no more than 1 egg per year if it’s a special occasion” to “eat a minimum of 1 pound of grass-fed butter per day.” How are such contradictory recommendations possible? They’re based on science, right? Well, not exactly. The “science” of low-fat is based on a flawed study from the 1950’s; newer findings show a much more complex picture of what contributes to heart disease. Cholesterol = BAD has been drilled into our heads for almost 70 years and shifting the paradigm of such a strong-held belief isn’t going to happen overnight. In Time magazine’s article “Ending the War on Fat”, Brian Walsh affirms, “Consumer habits are deeply formed, and entire industries are based on demonizing fat.” Also, don’t discount the impact of BILLIONS of dollars spent marketing “Low Fat” foods.
I’ve had T1 diabetes for 29 of my 35 years. In college I was advised to start statins after my cholesterol labs were high, even though my diet was much better than most of my peers (low-fat, moderate carbohydrate – as advocated by the ADA guidelines); I wasn’t thrilled about adding another medication so I declined. This scenario played out annually, as I experimented with different dietary approaches. Along the way, I also learned that my thyroid issues could affect my cholesterol levels as well, adding another piece to the puzzle. Then, in 2014 I became pregnant with my 4th child and was determined to do whatever necessary to avoid a premature birth as I’d experienced with my older three. The biggest change was immediately removing carbohydrates from my diet for better blood sugar control. Each day, I ate between 20-30 carbs from fibrous veggies and didn’t limit my fat or calories, just made good food choices. Shockingly, my cholesterol was perfect for the first time in my life (along with my HbA1c, a 3 month snapshot of blood sugar control). My endocrinologist was shocked when I shared I’d simply removed carbs from my diet, and it led to an interesting conversation about the complexity of heart disease. I am now 3 years into this way of eating with great results, and feel confident with my doctors’ blessing and supportive studies such as this one from Harvard School of Public Health:
“Our findings suggest that diets lower in carbohydrate and higher in protein and fat are not associated with increased risk of coronary heart disease in women. When vegetable sources of fat and protein are chosen, these diets may moderately reduce the risk of coronary heart disease.”
With conflicting information, it’s important to partner with your healthcare team to assess your risk factors and determine the best approach to diet, lifestyle and if necessary, medication choices to best support your heart health.