What can one do to reduce LDL's

[Michael P Gabriel]

Hi, My lipid profile is not too bad...C=204 and CH / HDL ratio =
3.4. All others within range except LDL's-129. Also, I want to
concentrate on LDL. Would natural seed pastes such as sesame paste
made from sesame seeds and known as Tahini, be responsible? I use one
teaspoon per day and that would be 2/3 of a gram of satfat! But
natural satfat! Not even processing involved.

Thanks! I'm convinced that most doctors are really not into nutrition
and instinctively reach for tht dreaded prescription pad..

Mike
mppg1@att.net
Help please?

[Dr. Andrew B. Chung, MD/PhD]

Michael P Gabriel wrote:

> Hi, My lipid profile is not too bad...C=204 and CH / HDL ratio =
> 3.4. All others within range except LDL's-129. Also, I want to
> concentrate on LDL. Would natural seed pastes such as sesame paste
> made from sesame seeds and known as Tahini, be responsible?

Could be.

> I use one
> teaspoon per day and that would be 2/3 of a gram of satfat! But
> natural satfat! Not even processing involved.

Doesn't matter. Saturated is saturated.

>
>
> Thanks! I'm convinced that most doctors are really not into nutrition
> and instinctively reach for tht dreaded prescription pad..
>

What about the rest of your medical history? Are you overweight? Do you
have hypertension, diabetes, coronary disease, et cetera?

>
> Mike
> mppg1@att.net
> Help please?

Certainly.

Humbly,

Andrew

--
Dr. Andrew B. Chung, MD/PhD
Board-Certified Cardiologist
http://www.heartmdphd.com/

[Matti Narkia]

6 Dec 2003 04:39:54 -0800 in article
<a20043.0312060439.8fcdeef@posting.google.com> axipolti@yahoo.com (Michael
P Gabriel) wrote:

>Hi, My lipid profile is not too bad...C=204 and CH / HDL ratio =
>3.4. All others within range except LDL's-129. Also, I want to
>concentrate on LDL. Would natural seed pastes such as sesame paste
>made from sesame seeds and known as Tahini, be responsible? I use one
>teaspoon per day and that would be 2/3 of a gram of satfat! But
>natural satfat! Not even processing involved.
>
Actually you get less than 2/3 of gram of saturated fatty acids from a
teaspoonful of tahini, about 0.34 g. That's negligible, IMHO, especially
considering that you also get 0.91 g monounsaturated and 1.06 g
polyunsaturated fatty acids from the same teaspoonful of tahini. These
figures are based on

Search the USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference
<http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/cgi-bin/nut_search.pl>

Note that you also get 0.9 g, 0.6 g and 0.65 g saturated fatty acids from
a teaspoonful of fish oil, olive oil and soy oil, respectively, each of
which is more than you get from a teaspoonful of tahini.

There are tiny amounts of saturated fatty acids in practically all oils
and fats. You cannot avoid getting some saturated fatty acids, if you're
going to eat fat. And you are, because fat free diet is besides unhealthy,
also impossible to implement in practice.

What you can avoid is to eat foods whose fat content consists
_predominantly_ of saturated fatty acids, such as meats and animal fat,
(excluding fat from fish, marine mammals and other seafood).

[Matti Narkia]

Sat, 06 Dec 2003 16:09:59 -0500 in article
<3FD245A7.2A7B6ADB@heartmdphd.com> "Dr. Andrew B. Chung, MD/PhD"
<andrew@heartmdphd.com> wrote:

>Michael P Gabriel wrote:
>
>> Hi, My lipid profile is not too bad...C=204 and CH / HDL ratio =
>> 3.4. All others within range except LDL's-129. Also, I want to
>> concentrate on LDL. Would natural seed pastes such as sesame paste
>> made from sesame seeds and known as Tahini, be responsible?
>
>Could be.
>
>> I use one
>> teaspoon per day and that would be 2/3 of a gram of satfat! But
>> natural satfat! Not even processing involved.
>
>Doesn't matter. Saturated is saturated.
>
One cannot eliminate saturated fatty acids from the diet. Teaspoon of
tahini contains only about 0.34 g of them (not 2/3 of a gram), which is
far less than in a teaspoon of fish, olive or soy oil, just to mention a
few. It also contains considerably larger amount of monounsaturated and
polyunsaturated fatty acids.

[Brad Sheppard]

Hi,

With your ratio at 3.4 you're in good shape. It's as important to
increase HDL as it is to reduce LDL. Try oatmeal - one cup daily may
reduce LDL by 10%. Also, avoid saturated fat - stick unsaturated -
olive oil, for example. To reduce CHD risk be sure to eat 2x fatty
fish (salmon, etc) weekly. No, sesame seeds wouldn't increase LDL.
Eating a higher % of fats in your diet can improve your lipid profile
if they are "good" fats. See
http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/fats.html

axipolti@yahoo.com (Michael P Gabriel) wrote in message news:<a20043.0312060439.8fcdeef@posting.google.com>...
> Hi, My lipid profile is not too bad...C=204 and CH / HDL ratio =
> 3.4. All others within range except LDL's-129. Also, I want to
> concentrate on LDL. Would natural seed pastes such as sesame paste
> made from sesame seeds and known as Tahini, be responsible? I use one
> teaspoon per day and that would be 2/3 of a gram of satfat! But
> natural satfat! Not even processing involved.
>
> Thanks! I'm convinced that most doctors are really not into nutrition
> and instinctively reach for tht dreaded prescription pad..
>
> Mike
> mppg1@att.net
> Help please?

[Matti Narkia]

Sun, 07 Dec 2003 00:16:24 +0200 in article
<49j4tvs73si5v7mcrv23eb8ni6u56ejbof@4ax.com> Matti Narkia
<mnng@despammed.com> wrote:

>6 Dec 2003 04:39:54 -0800 in article
><a20043.0312060439.8fcdeef@posting.google.com> axipolti@yahoo.com (Michael
>P Gabriel) wrote:
>
>>Hi, My lipid profile is not too bad...C=204 and CH / HDL ratio =
>>3.4. All others within range except LDL's-129. Also, I want to
>>concentrate on LDL. Would natural seed pastes such as sesame paste
>>made from sesame seeds and known as Tahini, be responsible? I use one
>>teaspoon per day and that would be 2/3 of a gram of satfat! But
>>natural satfat! Not even processing involved.
>>
>Actually you get less than 2/3 of gram of saturated fatty acids from a
>teaspoonful of tahini, about 0.34 g. That's negligible, IMHO, especially
>considering that you also get 0.91 g monounsaturated and 1.06 g
>polyunsaturated fatty acids from the same teaspoonful of tahini. These
>figures are based on
>
> Search the USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference
> <http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/cgi-bin/nut_search.pl>
>
So the amount of saturated fatty acids in tahini gives no reason for
concern. However, it has a rather high amount of omega-6 polyunsaturated
fatty acids, which we tend to get too much in comparison with omega-3
fatty acids. One teaspoonful of tahini a day will not harm you and will
probably be good for you, but if you start consuming larger amounts of
tahini, say several tablespoons a day or more, you may be getting too much
omega-6 fatty acids.

Omega-3 fatty acids are very important for the general health and for the
prevention of fatal cardiac incidents. Best sources are fatty fish and
fish oil, which contain omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA. Best plant
sources are ground flaxseed and flaxseed oil, but they contain
alpha-linolenic acid, which body has to convert to EPA and DHA, and this
conversion is slow and inefficient.

[Matti Narkia]

7 Dec 2003 12:53:52 -0800 in article
<a20043.0312071253.7ffd6774@posting.google.com> axipolti@yahoo.com
(Michael P Gabriel) wrote:

>.....to all the beautiful people who answered succinctly and so
>clearly my question about lowering LDL's and using Tahini! My folks
>were from Greece and I was weaned from mother's milk on Tahini, I'm
>positive! I am thrilled with the answers, and ready to start 2004 on
>the right note...to better halth, as naturally as I can. May your 2004
>be happy, healthy and holy!!!
>
Mike, if your roots are in Greece, find out (if you don't already know)
about traditional Greek diets, especially about the diet of Crete. The
Mediterranean diet is very heart-friendly and the traditional Cretan diet
is the best of all the variations of Mediterranean diet. In the famous
_Seven Countries Study_ Crete had the lowest incidence of coronary heart
disease of all the countries included. Cancer incidence was quite low,
too. A lot of past and current nutritional research has been inspired by
the _Seven Countries Study_ and the diet of Crete. So go back to your
roots diet wise and stay healthy :-).

[Matti Narkia]

Sun, 07 Dec 2003 23:34:19 +0200 in article
<fj67tvorngejk7h5vsteia0ono576bojif@4ax.com> Matti Narkia
<mnng@despammed.com> wrote:

>7 Dec 2003 12:53:52 -0800 in article
><a20043.0312071253.7ffd6774@posting.google.com> axipolti@yahoo.com
>(Michael P Gabriel) wrote:
>
>>.....to all the beautiful people who answered succinctly and so
>>clearly my question about lowering LDL's and using Tahini! My folks
>>were from Greece and I was weaned from mother's milk on Tahini, I'm
>>positive! I am thrilled with the answers, and ready to start 2004 on
>>the right note...to better halth, as naturally as I can. May your 2004
>>be happy, healthy and holy!!!
>>
>Mike, if your roots are in Greece, find out (if you don't already know)
>about traditional Greek diets, especially about the diet of Crete. The
>Mediterranean diet is very heart-friendly and the traditional Cretan diet
>is the best of all the variations of Mediterranean diet. In the famous
>_Seven Countries Study_ Crete had the lowest incidence of coronary heart
>disease of all the countries included. Cancer incidence was quite low,
>too. A lot of past and current nutritional research has been inspired by
>the _Seven Countries Study_ and the diet of Crete. So go back to your
>roots diet wise and stay healthy :-).

A note about the traditional Cretan diet and fat: It derived about 40% of
its calories from fat, mostly from olive oil. Omega-3 fatty acids were
also well presented, but intake of saturated fatty acids was fairly low.

[Matti Narkia]

Mon, 08 Dec 2003 11:36:35 -0600 in article
<oprzvhu9gcx9pqj2@news-60.giganews.com> "Patrick Blanchard, M.D."
<blanchard@sonoscore_nospam.com> wrote:

>Archived by "Fetch"
>
>http://tinyurl.com/y9gd
>
That was quick. It would 've been polite if "Fetch" had mentioned the
source.

[Matti Narkia]

Mon, 08 Dec 2003 15:42:01 +0200 in article
<tej8tv429tp0n1s4cleqev8deqne99smkr@4ax.com> Matti Narkia
<mnng@despammed.com> wrote:

>I have considerably expanded and rearranged my bibliography of
>Mediterranean diet. It now includes 151 references. There are now also
>several studies about health effects of nuts. Enjoy.
>
It seems that I've missed an important recent study, here's the 152nd
reference:

Singh RB, Dubnov G, Niaz MA, Ghosh S, Singh R, Rastogi SS, Manor O, Pella
D, Berry EM.
Effect of an Indo-Mediterranean diet on progression of coronary artery
disease in high risk patients (Indo-Mediterranean Diet Heart Study): a
randomised single-blind trial.
Lancet. 2002 Nov 9;360(9344):1455-61
<http://www.thelancet.com/journal/vol360/iss9344/full/llan.360.9344.original_research.23027.1>

[Patrick Blanchard, M.D.]

On Mon, 08 Dec 2003 20:48:53 +0200, Matti Narkia <mnng@despammed.com>
wrote:

> Mon, 08 Dec 2003 11:36:35 -0600 in article
> <oprzvhu9gcx9pqj2@news-60.giganews.com> "Patrick Blanchard, M.D."
> <blanchard@sonoscore_nospam.com> wrote:
>
>> Archived by "Fetch"
>>
>> http://tinyurl.com/y9gd
>>
> That was quick. It would 've been polite if "Fetch" had mentioned the
> source.
>
>
>

Sorry, "Fetch" is run by members of sonscore.com and scans usenet for
material that would be useful to others wanting to address atherosclerosis.
Many of our clients do not have usenet accounts, or do not understand what
it is, even though it is free on Google. "Fetch" sorts out the good stuff
and archives it all in one place, on our site.

Do you have a preference on the source "Fetch" should put? Let me know, and
I will update it.

Thanks Matti
Patrick

--
~~~
Patrick Blanchard, M.D., A.B.F.P.
Board Certified in Family Practice
http://www.familydoctor.org/blanchard
~~~
SonoScore
Winning against heart attack and stroke
http://www.sonoscore.com

[Matti Narkia]

Mediterranean Diet's rise to the fame started from the long-running Seven
Countries Study, which has been documented on the web site

On the Trail of Heart Attacks in Seven Countries
http://www.epi.umn.edu/about/7countries/index.shtm

The part describing Greece start from the page

Seven Countries Study : Greece
http://www.epi.umn.edu/about/7countries/greece.shtm

[Matti Narkia]

Mon, 08 Dec 2003 13:59:10 -0600 in article
<oprzvogwolx9pqj2@news-60.giganews.com> "Patrick Blanchard, M.D."
<blanchard@sonoscore_nospam.com> wrote:

>On Mon, 08 Dec 2003 20:48:53 +0200, Matti Narkia <mnng@despammed.com>
>wrote:
>
>> Mon, 08 Dec 2003 11:36:35 -0600 in article
>> <oprzvhu9gcx9pqj2@news-60.giganews.com> "Patrick Blanchard, M.D."
>> <blanchard@sonoscore_nospam.com> wrote:
>>
>>> Archived by "Fetch"
>>>
>>> http://tinyurl.com/y9gd
>>>
>> That was quick. It would 've been polite if "Fetch" had mentioned the
>> source.
>
>Sorry, "Fetch" is run by members of sonscore.com and scans usenet for
>material that would be useful to others wanting to address atherosclerosis.
>Many of our clients do not have usenet accounts, or do not understand what
>it is, even though it is free on Google. "Fetch" sorts out the good stuff
>and archives it all in one place, on our site.
>
>Do you have a preference on the source "Fetch" should put? Let me know, and
>I will update it.
>
That's ok. I thought that "Fetch" was a person. Anyway, it could possibly
be useful to add a feature to "Fetch", which would allow it to get also
the newsgroups's name and the author's and the message's details, so that
the whole thread could be tracked down, if someone so desires. Or maybe it
already can do that?

[Patrick Blanchard, M.D.]

On Tue, 09 Dec 2003 00:18:35 +0200, Matti Narkia <mnng@despammed.com>
wrote:

> Mon, 08 Dec 2003 13:59:10 -0600 in article
> <oprzvogwolx9pqj2@news-60.giganews.com> "Patrick Blanchard, M.D."
> <blanchard@sonoscore_nospam.com> wrote:
>
>> On Mon, 08 Dec 2003 20:48:53 +0200, Matti Narkia <mnng@despammed.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Mon, 08 Dec 2003 11:36:35 -0600 in article
>>> <oprzvhu9gcx9pqj2@news-60.giganews.com> "Patrick Blanchard, M.D."
>>> <blanchard@sonoscore_nospam.com> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Archived by "Fetch"
>>>>
>>>> http://tinyurl.com/y9gd
>>>>
>>> That was quick. It would 've been polite if "Fetch" had mentioned the
>>> source.
>>
>> Sorry, "Fetch" is run by members of sonscore.com and scans usenet for
>> material that would be useful to others wanting to address
>> atherosclerosis. Many of our clients do not have usenet accounts, or do
>> not understand what it is, even though it is free on Google. "Fetch"
>> sorts out the good stuff and archives it all in one place, on our site.
>>
>> Do you have a preference on the source "Fetch" should put? Let me know,
>> and I will update it.
>>
> That's ok. I thought that "Fetch" was a person. Anyway, it could possibly
> be useful to add a feature to "Fetch", which would allow it to get also
> the newsgroups's name and the author's and the message's details, so that
> the whole thread could be tracked down, if someone so desires. Or maybe
> it
> already can do that?
>
>
>
>

We use Opera, and essentially cut and paste from tne newsgroup for "Fetch".
Would another newsreader work better, to include more message details like
you are describing?

Thanks
Patrick

--
~~~
Patrick Blanchard, M.D., A.B.F.P.
Board Certified in Family Practice
http://www.familydoctor.org/blanchard
~~~
SonoScore
Winning against heart attack and stroke
http://www.sonoscore.com

[Matti Narkia]

Harvard School of Public Health Nutrition Source's page

Food Pyramids
http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/pyramids.html

favorable asses Mediterranean food pyramid:

"Other Alternatives

The Healthy Eating Pyramid summarizes the best dietary
information available today. It isn't set in stone,
though, because nutrition researchers will undoubtedly
turn up new information in the years ahead. The Healthy
Eating Pyramid will change to reflect important new
evidence.

This isn't the only alternative to the USDA's Food Guide
Pyramid. The Asian, Latin, Mediterranean, and vegetarian
pyramids promoted by Oldways Preservation and Exchange
Trust[www.oldwayspt.org] are also good, evidence-based
guides for healthy eating. The Healthy Eating Pyramid
takes advantage of even more extensive research and offers
a broader guide that is not based on a specific
culture.The Healthy Eating Pyramid is described in greater
detail in Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy: The Harvard Medical
School Guide to Healthy Eating, published by Simon and
Schuster (2001)."


The description of Mediterranean Diet Food Pyramid can be found on the we
pages

The Mediterranean Diet Pyramid
<http://www.oldwayspt.org/pyramids/med/p_med.html>

and

Mediterranean Diet Food Pyramid
<http://www.diet-i.com/mediterranean-diet-pyramid.htm>

See also

Healthy Eating Pyramids & Other Tools
<http://www.e-guana.net/organizations.php3?orgid=61&typeID=193&action=printContentItem&itemID=1521>

--
Matti Narkia