Some of my labs - high LDL page

[Ice]

I went to a new doctor last week and she agreed to run a few tests tho not all that I wanted. I had hoped to get the VAP but she opted for the lipid profile. She also ran my free T3 and free T4 as well as the reverse T3 tho the result for the reverse T3 test says it’s still pending. I don’t have a thyroid and have only been prescribed T4 for 28 yrs and never “felt” well. She also did a CMP (comp metabolic panel), CBC, D3 and B12.

My D3 is low as I expected and my LDL doesn’t look too good but I was told many years ago if my thyroid meds weren’t right then it can cause high LDL. Until I get my reverse T3 results I won’t know if I have a rT3 issue or not.


Vit D 25 Hydroxy – 20.5 range <31 - 100>

Cholesterol:
Total = 322 (<200)
Trig = 97 (<150)
HDL = 49 (40 – 60)
LDL = 254 (<100)

On the CMP:
GFR Caucasian >60

Fasting Glucose was 91 but thought I read somewhere where is should be below 80?

All the other items look well within range so for that I’m thankful. I’m going to ask again for a VAP to see what size the particle of LDL is before I have a melt down. I was also thinking I should have the ferritin checked, maybe HS-CRP, was also curious about leptin. I guess I'll just pay for those out of pocket.

I’ve not been able to get the weight to move much since April but at least the gaining has stopped. I still have a saliva cortisol to do this weekend and they’re going to check the saliva for estradiol, progesterone and testosterone.

Could low D cause me not to lose weight?

I'm still wondering if I should do the leptin reset. Per the mirror test I should be LR.

So, how do I get my LDL down? I eat only beef and fish and a bit of chicken, no dairy, no grain, no beans, fruit maybe twice a month and that's around 6 ozs of strawberries and blueberries. My carbs are 20 to 25 a day, calories are around 1000 to 1300 a day. I'm also cooking with CO or EVOO.

Thanks for any help.

[Timothy]

Ice, I am not a doctor, but I love to kibbitz on blood tests...

I agree that you should get a VAP before jumping to conclusions about the LDL. But even that might be unnecessary. Your HDL number is decent and your trigs aren't high, so there's probably not much cause for concern. Any bad LDL is likely to be from damaged fats. Bear in mind that EVOO oxidizes very easily when cooking, even just sitting in the bottle from light exposure. Another way to protect against bad LDL is to get your HDL up, which you can do with plenty of healthy fats and cholesterol, such as from eggs.

Fasting glucose is within normal range.

D is definitely low, though. D is essential for hundreds of different biological processes including DNA expression and calcium utilization. It's not a stretch to think that low D would hold back your fitness and weight loss goals. Sardines and pastured eggs are a good alternative to supplements.

Good luck, and I hope the hormonal profile comes back to your liking!

[marcadav]

Could you share your thyroid (free T4, free T4) results? What does "never felt well" actually mean in terms of symptoms?

[prodistat]

What is your height, weight and gender?

I think low HDL and low Vitamin D is indicative of dysbosis and/or leaky gut. So you might just need to keep at it longer, increase the vitamin d and heal your gut.

In terms of cholesterol, you can drop your sat fat intake and your LDL will drop. IDK if you actually need to do that or worry about it, but it's something you can do to make your results "better." But you might just want to eat until satiety at each meal and stop snacking.

Are you purposefully restricting calories? I would be starving if I only at ~1150 calories a day.

[Ice]

The free T3 is 2.7 [2.2 - 4.0]
The free T4 is 1.1 [.8 - 1.5]
I'll need the reverse T3 before I can calculate the ratio.

I have low body temp, low blood pressure, muscle fatigue, leg cramps, cold intolerance, have struggled with weight control for 27 yrs keeping my gain to 10 pounds, but then last year gained 70 lbs in 11 months which led me to the paleo diet. I've lost my hair on my legs and under arms many years ago and the past few years notice my eyebrows on the outer areas are lacking hair. With paleo, I've managed to lose 12 lbs but can not seem to move the scale down any further. It's been nearly 7 mos.

[Ice]

Prodistat,

I'm 5'5", 205, female

I've never been a big eater nor am I a snacker. It's hard for me to consume 4 ozs of protein in a meal. I've been logging my food at sparkpeople to see how my meals play out and I'm always full so I don't feel like I'm starving. The only things I sacrifice are my fruits as I thought maybe that may be why I wasn't losing but after two months of nearly no fruit it doesn't seem to matter.

I've not heard about low HDL and low Vitamin D being indicative of dysbosis and/or leaky gut. I have felt maybe I'm very gluten sensitive or possibly celiac but at this point I don't want to consume the grains to be tested. Eating this clean has helped my migraines and i seem to have more stamina. My knees need relief and I so want this fat to be gone and find out why I've ballooned this past year.

[Timothy]

Ice, I think repairing your D levels will address most of your symptoms. Muscle fatigue and leg cramps (poor calcium utilization), cold intolerance (role of calcium in thermogenesis), weight control (insulin resistance from low vitamin D). Turn that around and you may find everything else falls into line. Good luck.

[marcadav]

The free T3 is 2.7 [2.2 - 4.0]
The free T4 is 1.1 [.8 - 1.5]
I'll need the reverse T3 before I can calculate the ratio.

I have low body temp, low blood pressure, muscle fatigue, leg cramps, cold intolerance, have struggled with weight control for 27 yrs keeping my gain to 10 pounds, but then last year gained 70 lbs in 11 months which led me to the paleo diet. I've lost my hair on my legs and under arms many years ago and the past few years notice my eyebrows on the outer areas are lacking hair. With paleo, I've managed to lose 12 lbs but can not seem to move the scale down any further. It's been nearly 7 mos.

Your free T4 is at 43 % of its range. Your free T3 is at 28% of its range. Many people feel best when their levels are 50% or higher and at similar percentages of their respective ranges. The fact that your FT3 is lower in its range than FT4 suggests a possible conversion issue.

Things that can hinder T4 to T3 conversion include:
1. Low Vitamin D
2. Not enough selenium (200mcg/day)
3. Low ferritin
4. Starvation, illness, stress
5. Too low carb (less than 50 grams/day)


If I were you I would do the following
1. Get ferritin tested
2. Supplement vitamin D as you are low.
3. Make sure I'm getting enough selenium. My multivitamin has 200mcg.
4. Eat enough (not sure 1000-1300 calories is enough)
5. Get at least 50 grams a carbs a day
6. Ask for a slight increase in T4 meds- to bring it to at least 50% of range.

Do 1-6 for eight weeks. Have FT4, FT3, Vitamin D, ferritin (if low) retested. Then if FT3 continues to lag behind FT4, in regards to where they are in their ranges, I would ask for a trial of thyroid meds containing both T4 and T3 (levothyroxine (T4) and cytomel(T3), Armour, Nature-throid, etc. )

[Ice]

Things that can hinder T4 to T3 conversion include:
1. Low Vitamin D
2. Not enough selenium (200mcg/day)
3. Low ferritin
4. Starvation, illness, stress
5. Too low carb (less than 50 grams/day)

My blood tests show the low D and I've been keeping my carbs way under 50 grams since I have so much to lose. My vit/min supp only has 70 mcg SE so I should maybe take more of that. I will test my ferritin. I did start a new job last year before this began and it also required us to move from one state to another, so yeah, I'm under lots of stress at work and still have a home in the state I left behind we're paying on.......more stress.

I've tried for 27 yrs to try something other than synthroid as once a long time ago an endo said she thought i had a T4 to T3 conversion issue. At that time T3 was in very short supply and they would not prescribe Armour or nature-throid. My med has never been increased in 27yrs so I doubt this new dr will increase it. I always here the same thing, you are "within" the ranges........that's why I strongly asked for the rT3 to see if maybe I was on too much T4 and it was creating rT3?

I think your suggestions are a very good place to start. Thank you for your help.

I

[marcadav]

I always here the same thing, you are "within" the ranges........that's why I strongly asked for the rT3 to see if maybe I was on too much T4 and it was creating rT3?

I have found you (general) have to educate yourself and be your own best advocate when it comes to health issues. I have heard the "your are within the range" spiel too many times to count. My comes backs:

1.Yes I am in the range but there is room for improvement in not only the the normal range but definitely in how I feel and the quality of my life. Since I am not out of range high, where's the harm in increasing my dose by the lowest increment (my last increase went from 125 to 137mcg. The improvement was unbelievable). We can retest in 8 weeks and I'll watch closely for signs that I'm going hyper.
2. IF I'm at an optimal dose for ME, then why does the normal range go to xxx and why don't I feel optimal.
3. What is the next step to figure out the reason for my fatigue, hair loss, loss of eyebrows, etc..