Topic: Relationship between Lyme and high cholesterol?
David95928
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Member # 3521
posted
That's the question. Someone I know about whom we both suspect Lyme, has had his total cholesterol shoot up to over 250. He's only 32 and works out regularly and is avery close to ideal body weight. He works out regularly but does like to snack a bit. Thanks in advance for any insights. David
-------------------- Dave Posts: 2034 | From CA | Registered: Jan 2003
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David95928 Ditto for me, Have Lyme eat low cholesterol foods and work out regularly, but my cholesterol is above 220. Doctors say it is genetic, but I suspect it is due to Lyme.
Most Lyme folks a have poor thyroid function, so we are not converting cholesterol like we should be. See below:
The first direction is indicated in Ray Peat's newsletter, where he says, "Since the 1930's, it has been clearly established that suppression of the thyroid raises serum cholesterol (while increasing mortality from infections, cancer, and heart disease), while restoring (thyroid function) brings cholesterol down to normal."[Peat, 6] Since the thyroid converts cholesterol into hormones, the signals that trigger the need for hormones undoubtedly trigger the production of cholesterol, as well. When the thyroid system isn't functioning optimally, cholesterol levels naturally rise.
It is particularly salient, in that regard, that corn oil and soybean oil suppresses thyroid function.[Fife, 34] That fact is important to know, because soybean oil now predominates in the foods that Americans eat, in the form of partially hydrogenated oils, shortening, and margarine. Not only do those oils provide the oxidized fats that cause heart disease, they're raising cholesterol levels in the process.
The second direction is indicated in the same newsletter, when Peat states that fructose raises cholesterol.[Peat, 6] Since high fructose corn syrup is the number one sweetener in the American food supply, Americans are being deluged with cholesterol-raising fructose and soybean oil.
Marnie
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Member # 773
posted
Bb follows the cholesterol pathway...ours.
It locks onto the HS receptor (heparin sulfate) of the cells...seems to prefer the endothelial cells which are "next-door neighbors" to the connective tissue...one of which are fat cells...where it can get all the nutrients it so desires.
Mg is capable of INactivating HMG CoA reductase an enzyme that stops cholesterol formation at the liver. Bb is after our choline = fatty liver happens.
With Mg low, Ca rises. Harmful to the thyroid (high levels of Ca).
Downward spiral. Lots of things are going on at the same time. When ONE nutrient goes off...it most definitely impacts others...and then others...and others.
Bb is not the only pathogen that follows the cholesterol pathway.
Posts: 9424 | From Sunshine State | Registered: Mar 2001
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David95928
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Thanks folks. My friend has mild, intermittent symptoms suggestive of Lyme such as paraesthesias, word substitutions, muscle spasms, flutters on the skin, facial flushing, and fatigue. He tested negative by Quest western blot and hasn't invested in Igenex testing. We will see. David
-------------------- Dave Posts: 2034 | From CA | Registered: Jan 2003
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I had never had cholesterol problems, but when I was getting sicker and sicker with undiagnosed Lyme, it was up around 265 and a concerned Duck put me on a Statin. I couldn't hack the Statins, but managed to get it down into the low 200's with Niacin for a year or so.
Guess what... Once the Lyme was diagnosed and I was being treated, the cholesterol returned to a very normal 180 with no cholesterol medicines at all.
Lyme appears to mess with your cholesterol, and TREATING Lyme appears to treat the high cholesterol. At least it did for me.
Posts: 714 | From San Antonio TX | Registered: Oct 2004
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-------------------- --Lymetutu-- Opinions, not medical advice! Posts: 96222 | From Texas | Registered: Feb 2001
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klutzo
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Member # 5701
posted
I read in one of Dr. Klinghardt's articles on Lyme that it generally causes a moderate increase in total cholesterol, and a dramatic increase in LDL. I also read somewhere (can't remember where) that LDL actually has one good function, ie. it binds to endotoxins and removes them from circulation, in which case the high LDL would be our bodies attempting to help us. In my case, when I got sick, my total cholesterol went from 163 to 270, and my LDL went from 122 to 207! Klutzo
Posts: 1269 | From Clearwater, Florida, USA | Registered: May 2004
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lyme affects the thyroid,which in turn affects the values on the lipid panel,including cholesterol.
consider also, how other factors influence the values of lipid levels.
Posts: 2708 | Registered: Feb 2005
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GiGi
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Member # 259
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There are some precursors that the adrenals need and the ovaries need to make hormones. One of these is cholesterol. People need to have a decent cholesterol level. Per Dr. K., it should be between 180-220. That's his normal. At a level below 180, the cancer risk goes dramatically up. Over 220, it usually has to do with active heavy metal toxicity. Anything over 220, he starts looking for metals - putting people on a new program so the metals are moving through the system again.
The rest is too complicated to get into here.
The Lipidor industry has apparently now new set of standards. I recently heard or a lab report with a cholesterol level of 178 that they declared "high". Do your own thinking.
Take care.
P.S. Learn about fats and oils! The best ones for us! Learn about hydrogenated oils. Learn about butter. Learn about trans fatty acids.
Posts: 9834 | From Washington State | Registered: Oct 2000
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David95928
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Prior to being treated for Lyme, I watched what I ate to try to keep it below 200. Now, I pay it no mind and am running below 150. There must be something to this.
-------------------- Dave Posts: 2034 | From CA | Registered: Jan 2003
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GiGi
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 259
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If the subject of cholesterol is on your mind, do a search on www.mercola.com. You will find some great articles. Here is one:
The Dangers of Statin Drugs: What You Haven't Been Told About Cholesterol-Lowering Medication, Part I
[ Part I, Part II, Part III ] Next >>
By Sally Fallon and Mary G. Enig, PhD Originally printed at Weston A. Price
Hypercholesterolemia is the health issue of the 21st century. It is actually an invented disease, a "problem" that emerged when health professionals learned how to measure cholesterol levels in the blood. High cholesterol exhibits no outward signs--unlike other conditions of the blood, such as diabetes or anemia, diseases that manifest telltale symptoms like thirst or weakness--hypercholesterolemia requires the services of a physician to detect its presence. Many people who feel perfectly healthy suffer from high cholesterol--in fact, feeling good is actually a symptom of high cholesterol!
Doctors who treat this new disease must first convince their patients that they are sick and need to take one or more expensive drugs for the rest of their lives, drugs that require regular checkups and blood tests. But such doctors do not work in a vacuum--their efforts to convert healthy people into patients are bolstered by the full weight of the U.S. government, the media and the medical establishment, agencies that have worked in concert to disseminate the cholesterol dogma and convince the population that high cholesterol is the forerunner of heart disease and possibly other diseases as well.
Who suffers from hypercholesterolemia? Peruse the medical literature of 25 or 30 years ago and you'll get the following answer: any middle-aged man whose cholesterol is over 240 with other risk factors, such as smoking or overweight.
After the Cholesterol Consensus Conference in 1984, the parameters changed; anyone (male or female) with cholesterol over 200 could receive the dreaded diagnosis and a prescription for pills. Recently that number has been moved down to 180. If you have had a heart attack, you get to take cholesterol-lowering medicines even if your cholesterol is already very low--after all, you have committed the sin of having a heart attack so your cholesterol must therefore be too high. The penance is a lifetime of cholesterol-lowering medications along with a boring low-fat diet. But why wait until you have a heart attack? Since we all labor under the stigma of original sin, we are all candidates for treatment. Current edicts stipulate cholesterol testing and treatment for young adults and even children.
The drugs that doctors use to treat the new disease are called statins--sold under a variety of names including:
Lipitor (atorvastatin) Zocor (simvastatin) Mevacor (lovastatin) Pravachol (pravastatin) How Statins Work
This diagram illustrates the pathways involved in cholesterol production.
The process begins with acetyl-CoA, a two-carbon molecule sometimes referred to as the "building block of life." Three acetyl-CoA molecules combine to form six-carbon hydroxymethyl glutaric acid (HMG). The step from HMG to mevalonate requires an enzyme, HMG-CoA reductase. Statin drugs work by inhibiting this enzyme--hence the formal name of HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors. Herein lies the potential for numerous side effects, because statin drugs inhibit not just the production of cholesterol, but a whole family of intermediary substances, many if not all of which have important biochemical functions in their own right.
Consider the findings of pediatricians at the University of California, San Diego who published a description of a child with a hereditary defect of mevalonic kinase, the enzyme that facilitates the next step beyond HMG-CoA reductase.1 The child was mentally retarded, microcephalic (very small head), small for his age, profoundly anemic, acidotic and febrile. He also had cataracts. Predictably, his cholesterol was consistently low--70-79 mg/dl. He died at the age of 24 months. The child represents an extreme example of cholesterol inhibition, but his case illuminates the possible consequences of taking statins in strong doses or for a lengthy period of time:
Depression of mental acuity Anemia Acidosis Frequent fevers Cataracts Cholesterol is one of three end products in the mevalonate chain. The two others are ubiquinone and dilochol. Ubiquinone or Co-Enzyme Q10 is a critical cellular nutrient biosynthesized in the mitochondria. It plays a role in ATP production in the cells and functions as an electron carrier to cytochrome oxidase, our main respiratory enzyme. The heart requires high levels of Co-Q10. A form of Co-Q10 called ubiquinone is found in all cell membranes where it plays a role in maintaining membrane integrity so critical to nerve conduction and muscle integrity. Co-Q10 is also vital to the formation of elastin and collagen. Side effects of Co-Q10 deficiency include muscle wasting leading to weakness and severe back pain, heart failure (the heart is a muscle!), neuropathy and inflammation of the tendons and ligaments, often leading to rupture.
Dolichols also play a role of immense importance. In the cells they direct various proteins manufactured in response to DNA directives to their proper targets, ensuring that the cells respond correctly to genetically programmed instruction. Thus statin drugs can lead to unpredictable chaos on the cellular level, much like a computer virus that wipes out certain pathways or files.
Squalene, the immediate precursor to cholesterol, has anti-cancer effects, according to research.
The fact that some studies have shown that statins can prevent heart disease, at least in the short term, is most likely explained not by the inhibition of cholesterol production but because they block the creation of mevalonate. Reduced amounts of mevalonate seem to make smooth muscle cells less active, and platelets less able to produce thromboxane. Atherosclerosis begins with the growth of smooth muscle cells in side artery walls and thromboxane is necessary for blood clotting.
Cholesterol
Of course, statins inhibit the production of cholesterol--they do this very well. Nowhere is the failing of our medical system more evident than in the wholesale acceptance of cholesterol reduction as a way to prevent disease--have all these doctors forgotten what they learned in biochemistry 101 about the many roles of cholesterol in the human biochemistry?
Every cell membrane in our body contains cholesterol because cholesterol is what makes our cells waterproof--without cholesterol we could not have a different biochemistry on the inside and the outside of the cell. When cholesterol levels are not adequate, the cell membrane becomes leaky or porous, a situation the body interprets as an emergency, releasing a flood of corticoid hormones that work by sequestering cholesterol from one part of the body and transporting it to areas where it is lacking. Cholesterol is the body's repair substance: scar tissue contains high levels of cholesterol, including scar tissue in the arteries.
Cholesterol is the precursor to vitamin D, necessary for numerous biochemical processes including mineral metabolism. The bile salts, required for the digestion of fat, are made of cholesterol. Those who suffer from low cholesterol often have trouble digesting fats. Cholesterol also functions as a powerful antioxidant, thus protecting us against cancer and aging.
Cholesterol is vital to proper neurological function. It plays a key role in the formation of memory and the uptake of hormones in the brain, including serotonin, the body's feel-good chemical. When cholesterol levels drop too low, the serotonin receptors cannot work. Cholesterol is the main organic molecule in the brain, constituting over half the dry weight of the cerebral cortex.
Finally, cholesterol is the precursor to all the hormones produced in the adrenal cortex including glucocorticoids, which regulate blood sugar levels, and mineralocorticoids, which regulate mineral balance. Corticoids are the cholesterol-based adrenal hormones that the body uses in response to stress of various types; it promotes healing and balances the tendency to inflammation. The adrenal cortex also produces sex hormones, including testosterone, estrogen and progesterone, out of cholesterol. Thus, low cholesterol--whether due to an innate error of metabolism or induced by cholesterol-lowering diets and drugs--can be expected to disrupt the production of adrenal hormones and lead to:
Blood sugar problems Edema Mineral deficiencies Chronic inflammation Difficulty in healing Allergies Asthma Reduced libido Infertility Various reproductive problems
Enter the Statins
Statin drugs entered the market with great promise. They replaced a class of pharmaceuticals that lowered cholesterol by preventing its absorption from the gut. These drugs often had immediate and unpleasant side effects, including nausea, indigestion and constipation, and in the typical patient they lowered cholesterol levels only slightly. Patient compliance was low: the benefit did not seem worth the side effects and the potential for use very limited. By contrast, statin drugs had no immediate side effects: they did not cause nausea or indigestion and they were consistently effective, often lowering cholesterol levels by 50 points or more.
During the last 20 years, the industry has mounted an incredible promotional campaign--enlisting scientists, advertising agencies, the media and the medical profession in a blitz that turned the statins into one of the bestselling pharmaceuticals of all time. Sixteen million Americans now take Lipitor, the most popular statin, and drug company officials claim that 36 million Americans are candidates for statin drug therapy.
What bedevils the industry is growing reports of side effects that manifest many months after the commencement of therapy; the November 2003 issue of Smart Money magazine reports on a 1999 study at St. Thomas' Hospital in London (apparently unpublished), which found that 36 percent of patients on Lipitor's highest dose reported side effects; even at the lowest dose, 10 percent reported side effects.2
Muscle Pain and Weakness
The most common side effect is muscle pain and weakness, a condition called rhabdomyolysis, most likely due to the depletion of Co-Q10, a nutrient that supports muscle function. Dr. Beatrice Golomb of San Diego, California is currently conducting a series of studies on statin side effects. The industry insists that only 2-3 percent of patients get muscle aches and cramps but in one study, Golomb found that 98 percent of patients taking Lipitor and one-third of the patients taking Mevachor (a lower-dose statin) suffered from muscle problems.3 A message board devoted to Lipitor at forum.ditonline.com contains more than 800 posts, many detailing severe side effects. The Lipitor board at www.rxlist.com contains more than 2,600 posts.
The test for muscle wasting or rhabdomyolysis is elevated levels of a chemical called creatine kinase (CK). But many people experience pain and fatigue even though they have normal CK levels.4
Tahoe City resident Doug Peterson developed slurred speech, balance problems and severe fatigue after three years on Lipitor--for two and a half years, he had no side effects at all.5 It began with restless sleep patterns--twitching and flailing his arms. Loss of balance followed and the beginning of what Doug calls the "statin shuffle"--a slow, wobbly walk across the room. Fine motor skills suffered next. It took him five minutes to write four words, much of which was illegible. Cognitive function also declined. It was hard to convince his doctors that Lipitor could be the culprit, but when he finally stopped taking it, his coordination and memory improved.
John Altrocchi took Mevacor for three years without side effects; then he developed calf pain so severe he could hardly walk. He also experienced episodes of temporary memory loss.
For some, however, muscle problems show up shortly after treatment begins. Ed Ontiveros began having muscle problems within 30 days of taking Lipitor. He fell in the bathroom and had trouble getting up. The weakness subsided when he went off Lipitor. In another case, reported in the medical journal Heart, a patient developed rhabdomyolysis after a single dose of a statin.6 Heel pain from plantar fascitis (heel spurs) is another common complaint among those taking statin drugs. One correspondent reported the onset of pain in the feet shortly after beginning statin treatment. She had visited an evangelist, requesting that he pray for her sore feet. He enquired whether she was taking Lipitor. When she said yes, he told her that his feet had also hurt when he took Lipitor.7
Active people are much more likely to develop problems from statin use than those who are sedentary. In a study carried out in Austria, only six out of 22 athletes with familial hypercholesterolemia were able to endure statin treatment.8 The others discontinued treatment because of muscle pain.
By the way, other cholesterol-lowering agents besides statin drugs can cause joint pain and muscle weakness. A report in Southern Medical Journal described muscle pains and weakness in a man who took Chinese red rice, an herbal preparation that lowers cholesterol.9 Anyone suffering from myopathy, fibromyalgia, coordination problems and fatigue needs to look at low cholesterol plus Co-Q10 deficiency as a possible cause.
Stay tuned for Part II in the next issue of the newsletter.
The Truth About Cholesterol-Lowering Drugs (Statins), Cholesterol, and Health
Crestor and Other Statins: Are They Really Worth the Risk?
Half of Population Will be Taking Statins
Statins - Is the Danger is the Dose?
Posts: 9834 | From Washington State | Registered: Oct 2000
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bpeck
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Not typical for me. I have never had high cholestrol. Usually my total is about 160, with a 70 to 90 HDL. Plus my triglycerides run around 85. Maybr I'm in the minority. Barb
Posts: 1875 | From VT | Registered: Oct 2002
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HEATHERKISS
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My cholesterol peaked once. This was pre Lyme dx while I was going from duck to duck trying to figure out my health problems.
Anyway I was told to lose 20 lbs and that worked.
My husband is on Lipitor which was given to him just before Lyme Dx. I hope Lyme treatment gets him off the medicine.
-------------------- HEATHER
Posts: 1974 | From ABERDEEN, NJ 07747 | Registered: Jan 2005
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I'm in my 20's and I'm not overweight, but have tested positive for Lyme and recently had my cholestorol tested....my total was 301 with an LDL of 248 and HDL of 30!!! Doc put me on lipitor, but I'm convinced it's the lyme!!
Posts: 9 | From Boston | Registered: Nov 2005
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ping
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Member # 6974
posted
My LDL is high in the normal range, while my HDL is low in the normal range and my triglycerides are almost always well high of normal. Can someone give me comments regarding this? This has been since I started tx for Lyme and the tests are done while fasting, so, is accuracy in question here? Anyone?
"We are more than containers for Lyme" ping
-------------------- ping "We are more than containers for Lyme" Posts: 1302 | From Back in TX again | Registered: Mar 2005
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TerryK
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Member # 8552
posted
Before I knew I had lyme, my cholesterol was very high. It normalized when I started to take cholestyramine for biotoxins.
I've been reading a book called "Detoxify or Die" by Dr. Sherry A. Rogrs. She considers high cholesterol to be a sign of increased ROS activity and thinks that doctors should figure that out rather than giving drugs to lower cholesterol.
Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) kill bacteria and neutralize toxins. Our ROS increases with infection.
Once ROS (naked, wildly destructive electrons) are on the loose, they eat holes in arteries that then attracts nature's band-aid, cholesterol. Increased cholesterol indicates increased ROS.
Lyme increases ROS so it is natural to have increased cholesterol. You can help balance ROS with anti-oxidants. I think the best way to lower cholestrol is by treating the infections and dealing with the toxins.
I agree with GIGI, learn about fats. Trans fatty acids are killers.
Terry I'm not a doctor
Posts: 6286 | From Oregon | Registered: Jan 2006
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Keebler
Honored Contributor (25K+ posts)
Member # 12673
posted
-
You said he likes to snack a bit. Actually, snacks are necessary to help keep our energy up and stable blood glucose.
We should eat every few hours. It's the content of that snack that can help or hurt, though.
Nuts, tart apples or berries, a little bit of very dark chocolate (I'm talking about at least 73% here - 85% is better) are all good choices
as are BAKED blue corn (or black bean) chips, guacamole, hummus, gluten-free crackers, etc. (see www.marysgonecrackers.com )
you might suggest your friend try these if he is chowing down on "Buffaloe Wings" or other fried artery blockers.
---
In addition to the EXCELLENT research posted by others above . . .
This book devotes seven pages to the subject of cholesterol for those with lyme and other chronic stealth infections such as Chlamydia Pneumonia (Cpn).
There is also a wealth of relevant information in the other pages of this book - even for patients of normal weight.
You can read customer reviews and look inside the book at this link to its page at Amazon.
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