Health Issues Low cholesterol

[Fyvel]

Has anyone ever had any issues relating to "low cholesterol"? It isn't something I can find a lot of information about, people are usually concerned with high cholesterol.

I have been reading about how anxiety, depression, and other problems may be linked with low cholesterol levels. Has anyone had this problem and how did you go about correcting it (especially if on a vegan diet)? Any insight would be appreciated.

 

[Digger]

I've done some research on this and I do believe that there is some credibility to your concerns. People tend to think that lower is always better yet cholesterol is a vital component in our bodies and especially with regard to the brain. I don't have the 'too low cholesterol' issue myself but from what I understand it is mostly of concern to those who artificially lower their cholesterol and not those whose cholesterol is naturally low due to diet or lifestyle. At any rate I will be interested in reading the responses to this thread. I'm glad that you brought this issue up for discussion.

 

[Ansciess]

Fyvel,

have you had your cholesterol checked? If so, what are your numbers?

I know someone on a long-term vegan diet who had very high cholesterol (and then did some natural supplementation to correct it). Given her family it seems to be hereditary. It does tell me that cholesterol issues may not be related to diet.

 

[shyvas]

It is the LDL that should be low and the HDL (which is the good cholesterol) that should be high. The liver produces cholesterol and if the numbers are low it usually is a symptom not an illness.

Firstly it is a good idea to have some blood tests to check the ration of LDL/HDL.

http://cholesterol.about.com/lw/Hea...diseases/Can-Your-Cholesterol-Be-Too-Low-.htm

 

[Fyvel]

I've done some research on this and I do believe that there is some credibility to your concerns. People tend to think that lower is always better yet cholesterol is a vital component in our bodies and especially with regard to the brain. I don't have the 'too low cholesterol' issue myself but from what I understand it is mostly of concern to those who artificially lower their cholesterol and not those whose cholesterol is naturally low due to diet or lifestyle. At any rate I will be interested in reading the responses to this thread. I'm glad that you brought this issue up for discussion.

(emphasis mine) - just curious what this statement is based on - is there some research that backs this up? It just seems a bit strange to me that our body could know the difference between a naturally low level and one caused by drugs, seeing as cholesterol is used in certain body functions?

Fyvel,

have you had your cholesterol checked? If so, what are your numbers?

I know someone on a long-term vegan diet who had very high cholesterol (and then did some natural supplementation to correct it). Given her family it seems to be hereditary. It does tell me that cholesterol issues may not be related to diet.

My total cholesterol, as of about 4 months ago was 116. I didn't think much of it at the time because there were other numbers I was more concerned about, and it is just recently I have been hearing a bit about issues that low cholesterol may cause (or be linked to in some way). Previously my level was always around 150 or so which seems to be close to the cutoff point where these problems seem occur. I have been been nursing my 19 month old since birth, and I know there is cholesterol in breast milk so I can't help but wonder if I am losing cholesterol that way and my liver can't keep up?

Our liver produces cholesterol, which is why even vegans can make cholesterol. Some also comes from diet - so we can control our levels somewhat through diet/lifestyle. Some people just have livers that like to make a lot of cholesterol and their levels are high regardless of diet, which would be what was likely happening with your friend.

It is the LDL that should be low and the HDL (which is the good cholesterol) that should be high. The liver produces cholesterol and if the numbers are low it usually is a symptom not an illness.

Firstly it is a good idea to have some blood tests to check the ration of LDL/HDL.

http://cholesterol.about.com/lw/Hea...diseases/Can-Your-Cholesterol-Be-Too-Low-.htm

I didn't get my ratio (as I said above, at the time I was more concerned about other numbers), but currently my main concern is that my total cholesterol is low (of course if I found out that I had too much LDL in proportion to HDL I would be concerned, but I am going to stick with what I know for now!)

From your link: "Any serious disease of the gastrointestinal tract or malnutrition can also reduce cholesterol level"

I had been thinking that my colitis may be playing a role here, but it has been under control for some time now - and my cholesterol levels were higher even when I was flaring quite badly. A bit of a mystery, for sure. I'm still not sure what to do about it, if anything. (And I just had an appointment with my doctor and I am not due back in his office for a few more months and I don't want to make an appointment just for this issue, which doesn't seem to be all that urgent) :/

 

[Ansciess]

My total cholesterol, as of about 4 months ago was 116. I didn't think much of it at the time because there were other numbers I was more concerned about, and it is just recently I have been hearing a bit about issues that low cholesterol may cause (or be linked to in some way). Previously my level was always around 150 or so which seems to be close to the cutoff point where these problems seem occur. I have been been nursing my 19 month old since birth, and I know there is cholesterol in breast milk so I can't help but wonder if I am losing cholesterol that way and my liver can't keep up?

That is out of the "normal" range...but if your number was usually around 150, and then dropped like this, I would think that you should get a re-check. There could be something off with the test (maybe you didn't prepare for it properly or maybe they didn't do it correctly), or whatever was going on at that time has gone back to normal.

Fyvel, I have corrected for what I understand to be a congenital iron problem for many years. I have wondered if I should be doing it to the extent recommended by my doctor. Sometimes our bodies measure outside of the norm, but that doesn't mean your body's not doing what it's supposed to do. Unless you're having symptoms or something's really wrong, it's not always a problem. I think you should get re-checked, and see if there are any underlying issues, but be careful with any treatments for something nonsymptomatic - as soon as there's an intervention, especially if it's medical, there is the potential for worse problems than the one you're fixing.

 

[Fyvel]

That is out of the "normal" range...but if your number was usually around 150, and then dropped like this, I would think that you should get a re-check. There could be something off with the test (maybe you didn't prepare for it properly or maybe they didn't do it correctly), or whatever was going on at that time has gone back to normal.

Fyvel, I have corrected for what I understand to be a congenital iron problem for many years. I have wondered if I should be doing it to the extent recommended by my doctor. Sometimes our bodies measure outside of the norm, but that doesn't mean your body's not doing what it's supposed to do. Unless you're having symptoms or something's really wrong, it's not always a problem. I think you should get re-checked, and see if there are any underlying issues, but be careful with any treatments for something nonsymptomatic - as soon as there's an intervention, especially if it's medical, there is the potential for worse problems than the one you're fixing.

I agree that a recheck is a good idea. I am concerned because I *am* having symptoms that could be related to low cholesterol, which is what brought it back to my attention. In fact, these symptoms may actually improve with medication (I already have a prescription but haven't filled it yet) and I was hoping to avoid that if I could (thinking maybe low cholesterol was the root of the problem).

I eat a fair bit of fat since I have high calorie needs, so I am unsure of what else I could be doing (short of eating egg yolks..blech).

 

[Digger]

It just seems a bit strange to me that our body could know the difference between a naturally low level and one caused by drugs, seeing as cholesterol is used in certain body functions?

What I meant to say is that drugs are more likely to cause your cholesterol to go too low compared to the level your body would naturally maintain. For instance, my LDL is naturally low (usually in the 90's) just by eating well, but I know people on statin drugs whose LDL has dropped into the 40's. Sorry if my wording was poor.

 

[Digger]

The following article might be of interest to you if you have not already read it, and it has a good list of peer-reviewed research on the second page. I hope this doesn't create additional anxiety for you, that's certainly not my intention. You had asked about what studies I have read on the subject and this article references most of them. I initially researched this issue when my mom was put on a statin drug (even though she didn't really need it) and began suffering from depression. When we took her off it her mood greatly improved. I assumed at the time that it was the drug itself causing the depression, but it may in fact have been the result of having her cholesterol lowered too much.

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog...low-cholesterol-and-its-psychological-effects

 

[led.boots]

Older adults are often symptomatic with low cholesterol. Some oldsters with dementia improve markedly when statin drugs are stopped.

If it were me, I'd get it rechecked, with the breakdown of hdl, ldl, vldl, etc. In fact, a whole lipid panel. I would also get a checkup, as this can be a sign of an underlying problem, such as fatty liver or certain diseases.

I just looked up some stuff, this one ten-year study was done on healthy men under 50 with low cholesterol. (Hypobetalipoproteinemia is fancy talk for low LDL.) I like this part.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/9186296/?i=5&from=/20626336/related

"Unless persistent hypobetalipoproteinemia reflects an underlying disease, alcoholism, etc., it is often heritable, and may be associated with a reduced likelihood of coronary heart disease (CHD) and with increased longevity."

 

[Fyvel]

What I meant to say is that drugs are more likely to cause your cholesterol to go too low compared to the level your body would naturally maintain. For instance, my LDL is naturally low (usually in the 90's) just by eating well, but I know people on statin drugs whose LDL has dropped into the 40's. Sorry if my wording was poor.

That makes sense, and was what I thought you meant the first time I read it but then I confused myself

The following article might be of interest to you if you have not already read it, and it has a good list of peer-reviewed research on the second page. I hope this doesn't create additional anxiety for you, that's certainly not my intention. You had asked about what studies I have read on the subject and this article references most of them. I initially researched this issue when my mom was put on a statin drug (even though she didn't really need it) and began suffering from depression. When we took her off it her mood greatly improved. I assumed at the time that it was the drug itself causing the depression, but it may in fact have been the result of having her cholesterol lowered too much.

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog...low-cholesterol-and-its-psychological-effects

Thanks! This is the sort of thing I was looking for. Not the news I want to hear, but good info nonetheless.

Older adults are often symptomatic with low cholesterol. Some oldsters with dementia improve markedly when statin drugs are stopped.

If it were me, I'd get it rechecked, with the breakdown of hdl, ldl, vldl, etc. In fact, a whole lipid panel. I would also get a checkup, as this can be a sign of an underlying problem, such as fatty liver or certain diseases.

I just looked up some stuff, this one ten-year study was done on healthy men under 50 with low cholesterol. (Hypobetalipoproteinemia is fancy talk for low LDL.) I like this part.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/9186296/?i=5&from=/20626336/related

"Unless persistent hypobetalipoproteinemia reflects an underlying disease, alcoholism, etc., it is often heritable, and may be associated with a reduced likelihood of coronary heart disease (CHD) and with increased longevity."

I just had a checkup, including a liver function test. I take a medication for my colitis that can affect my liver, but this last test came back normal. I had considered that maybe this was a side effect of the drug but I can't find any info to back that up (just a couple of forum posts of people asking if it could *raise* their cholesterol..)

I don't believe that this is heritable (high cholesterol runs in my family anyway), and I don't think it is my body's normal process because I have been vegan for 5+ (6 or 7?) years and my cholesterol was always in the 140-150 range prior to this. If my liver was just naturally producing low levels of cholesterol it would have shown up long before now. Something has changed in the past year or so (breastfeeding? somehow related to colitis? or medication?). All I know is I am having several symptoms which could be related to this low cholesterol reading that I didn't have when my cholesterol was higher. Not a smoking gun, but certainly suspicious.

 

[led.boots]

I just searched to see if I could find a link between lactation and hypocholesteremia, but I'm on my phone and gave up. I have hereditary high cholesterol, and I remember my doctor saying that breastfeeding affects lab results of cholesterol levels. I don't know if it made it go up or down, I just remember his saying that the results would be unreliable.

The main thing I found while poking around was that different medications, including hormonal birth control and prozac, can lower cholesterol levels as a side effect in some people. So if you're taking anything, including vitamins, herbs, OTC or prescription meds, you could check on their side effects.

 

[Fyvel]

I just searched to see if I could find a link between lactation and hypocholesteremia, but I'm on my phone and gave up. I have hereditary high cholesterol, and I remember my doctor saying that breastfeeding affects lab results of cholesterol levels. I don't know if it made it go up or down, I just remember his saying that the results would be unreliable.

The main thing I found while poking around was that different medications, including hormonal birth control and prozac, can lower cholesterol levels as a side effect in some people. So if you're taking anything, including vitamins, herbs, OTC or prescription meds, you could check on their side effects.

I had looked into it before and everything I found indicated breastfeeding moms can be susceptible to high cholesterol. I just found one study showing slightly decreased cholesterol with long term nursing but it leveled out after a few months. I hate contradictory info like that . Either way there is nothing to indicate it could cause low cholesterol to the extent I am experiencing it. We know there is cholesterol in breast milk so I know it is going out via that route. Maybe that's why some people get high cholesterol, the body is trying to make up for what is leaving the body and it just goes higher than normal. Maybe my liver is being affected at some level and not making enough, and the vegan diet is just compounding the issue.

I already checked my meds that I take for colitis and they don't have any listed effects on cholesterol. No birth control pills, no Prozac (though I might need it if I don't get this figured out)! Nothing that would explain it. It could be the meds and I am just kind of a strange subgroup - lactating vegan lol