Does anyone use a self-test at-home cholesterol meter?

[GeorgeParker]

Does anyone use one of those self-test at-home electronic cholesterol meters? They work like the prick-your-finger glucose meters and the good ones seem to cost $100-$300.

I seriously need to start self testing every month or so because my cholesterol is sometimes ok and sometimes a bit high. Every time it's a bit high my doctor wants me to start taking Atorvastatin (generic Lipitor) and stay on it the rest of my life, even though I know I can bring it back down with diet and exercise. Now that I'm on high blood pressure Rx he's going to be even more insistent.

And besides that, If those meters work I really ought to self monitor anyway so I can keep my cholesterol numbers in the good zone in between my yearly physicals.

[Teacher Terry]

I didn’t even know they made those. I don’t worry about cholesterol because it’s only a concern for people in a very select small group and most of the studies were done on men. I also have HBP.

[JaneV2.0]

I didn’t even know they made those. I don’t worry about cholesterol because it’s only a concern for people in a very select small group and most of the studies were done on men. I also have HBP.

The last time i was tested for it--it might have been 25 years ago, but maybe longer--mine was 175, which I would say is a bit too low. Cholesterol numbers are a non-starter for me, and apparently, old people with "high" cholesterol live longer anyway.

[frugal-one]

Cholesterol naturally goes up as you age. A previous doctors (at my request) had a pharmacy student relate to me the benefit of taking a statin based on their research. I was told (in some cases) 10% of people were helped, whereas, the harm ... cancer, loss of muscles in legs, glaucoma, diabetes ++++ And, the tests have only been done on men. I refuse to take them.

[Rogar]

GP, my cholesterol levels have been similar to yours. I suspect that if my BP were high my doc would perceive me as higher risk and I'd be looking at a recommendation for Atorvastatin also. It's something that has been discussed. I don't eat meat, eggs, or dairy, exercise with some regularity, and am at the upper end in my recommended weight range. I'd not know such kits exist and might also be interested. I'd like to avoid medications, but when and if the time comes I'll review the recommendations of reputed sources like the Mayo Clinic or Harvard Medical. From my experience, diet and exercise only goes so far, and age and genetics are as or more significant factors

[GeorgeParker]

Cholesterol naturally goes up as you age. A previous doctors (at my request) had a pharmacy student relate to me the benefit of taking a statin based on their research. I was told (in some cases) 10% of people were helped, whereas, the harm ... cancer, loss of muscles in legs, glaucoma, diabetes ++++ And, the tests have only been done on men. I refuse to take them.

You left out mental confusion and memory loss, both of which are listed on the official Atorvastatin information sheet and both of which can in rare cases be severe and/or long lasting. That's why I refuse to take it.

However, having either high LDL cholesterol or low HDL cholesterol really is bad and needs to be corrected, preferably by diet and exercise.

My LDL is legitimately high right now and my HDL is low. My habit of sometimes getting a 15-piece box of fried chicken and eating it all within 48 hours, often accompanied by a quart of ice cream, may have something to do with that. But the main reason imo is that I retired from working in a warehouse two years ago and haven't been getting anywhere near as much exercise since then.

I thought as long as my weight stayed the same I'd be ok, but apparently not. (I'm 5'10 and 145 lb) So I'm returning to my usual high cholesterol remedy: Better eating habits, walking more, and very-moderate weight lifting. But I'd like to be able to monitor my cholesterol numbers too so I can tell if what I'm doing is working and not get a negative surprise at my annual physical.

[nswef]

I didn't know about the monitor, either. My cholesterol is higher than it should be but the balance between the good and bad is in the normal range. My GP suggested- cutting back on cheese, adding lecticin granules to my milk, eat walnuts and apples. Keep up with exercise, especially the weights ( all from my broken hip therapy- only done once a week and only 4 pound weights on my ankles while doing them per the therapist) I could add arm weights...but haven't yet. She wants me to get tested in 6 months. I'll probably do all this and wait a year until the next visit. I'm 72 and round- 5'2" and 200 lb.

[catherine]

Last time my cholesterol was checked, I had borderline high LDL, but high HDL as well. I do eat relatively well, but I'm far from dogmatic about it. I'm not a dessert-eater, and I lean towards plant-based meals, and I do have a few glasses of wine per week (which they say helps HDL), although I have cut back on that quite severely.

I also resist taking statins, but the balance between risk:reward is a moving target as you get older. If there is an at-home tool that's accurate, I'd be interested in it as well.

[pinkytoe]

My father-in-law had a somewhat rare side effect of taking statins over a long period. He developed dysgusia (sp?) which is taste distortions and it only got worse as time went by. Everything he ate tasted bitter. Whatever doc he was seeing felt that taking them was more important than enjoying his food.

[GeorgeParker]

I Googled "cholesterol home test" (without the quotes) and got a bunch of interesting results including a couple of "All About..." articles and a couple of "Top Rated..." lists. There are a lot of these test kits available and anyone interested should dig into the available information.

The most interesting article I've found so far was on WebMD. https://www.webmd.com/cholesterol-management/cholesterol-home-test-kits WebMD says the test kits work but some are better than others and you should buy one that has been approved by the FDA (some aren't) The most important line in the WebMD article is this:

"If you are unsure about which cholesterol home test kit to purchase, the FDA has set up the Over-The-Counter Database. You can find it on the FDA's website. This database is an excellent resource to search for FDA-cleared cholesterol home test kits. You can also use it to find other types of home test kits."


So I guess that's the next stop on my search for information. As I continue researching this subject I'll post anything significant here.

Thanks everybody for your feedback.

[rosarugosa]

My Mom is on atorvastatin, and the thought of memory loss and confusion side effects with her already having Alzheimer's is horrible to contemplate.
My total cholesterol runs on the high side, but my underlying numbers tend to be good, so I never worried too much and when I asked my Dr, he didn't seem too concerned. He ordered a cholesterol study when I had my physical in November, but I didn't do it because I'm not going to take a statin, and I'm already trying to get more exercise and eat better so what's the point?

[frugal-one]

My father-in-law had a somewhat rare side effect of taking statins over a long period. He developed dysgusia (sp?) which is taste distortions and it only got worse as time went by. Everything he ate tasted bitter. Whatever doc he was seeing felt that taking them was more important than enjoying his food.

Doc probably got a kickback????

[GeorgeParker]

Doc probably got a kickback????

Most likely the doc is just following SOP. High cholesterol is classified as a life-threatening condition medically. Bitter tasting food isn't. If doc takes a patient off statins and patient's health gets worse, doc might get sued for malpractice. So safe CYA thing for the doc to do is keep patient on statins and tell him bitter taste is just an unfortunate rare side effect.

The Hippocratic Oath says "Do no harm" but the modern legal and insurance industries say "Don't do anything that might get you sued." Doctors who want to stay in business try to do both at the same time by doing whatever they perceive as current SOP.

[Rogar]

Coincidentally I just received my test results from my annual physical and again just crawled under any possible statin recommendation by my physician. I must guess anyone in the discussion who doesn't know their cholesterol levels must not get a routine physical since blood work is standard for my annual exams? As I was thinking about it, I noticed my library has an audio book by Dr. Weil called "Mind over Medicine" where he cover most of the common OTC and prescription medications and their uses and risks. I've browsed some of Weil's recommendations for some time. My take is that he is beyond the influence of big pharma and pill pusher remedies without delving too deeply into any new age or undocumented alternative medicines.

I listened to most of the chapters as I thought it was pretty interesting. He covers NSAIDs, cold medications, antidepressants, etc., and has a chapter devoted to statins. He makes a case that some people at higher risk could benefit from statins and other cases where it is over prescribed or could be better handled with lifestyle changes. I thought it would be a good supplemental reference for statins as well as others medicines.

[sweetana3]

My doctor beat me up each year about the need for a statin. Finally she gave me the "test" of all health conditions, age, sex, etc. to figure out whether there was an increased risk of death or serious illness. Well, she should have done it before (like a lawyer needs to know the answer before the question is asked trial). I had no risk of increased death over the appropriate statistic for my age. I accept that I have made my own decision and will accept any consequences. But I will not be dictated to by a health group practice need for a certain level of acceptance by patients.

I get all necessary vaccines, exercise regularly and do not have a stress filled life. I even got a heart test at the local hospital that showed zero build up of calcium plaque in my arteries.

I truly believe that statins are overprescribed.

[Teacher Terry]

Now that I have lost 30lbs it will be interesting to see what my cholesterol is.

[SteveinMN]

As many of you know, low-carbohydrate/ketogenic diets replace the calories you're not getting from carbohydrates and from copious amounts of protein with ... fat. Oftentimes saturated fat. It sends the dietitians into a swoon.

But it's great for blood glucose levels and it can be good for lowering future cholesterol-related cardiac issues.

LDL in the typical lipid profile is not measured directly; it is estimated from the HDL and triglycerides levels. Lower triglycerides levels -- ordinarily a good thing -- mess up the calculation, yielding an estimate of LDL level that is falsely high. Add in modern medicine's penchant for protocols and you can be handed a prescription for a statin (or some other cholesterol-reducing drug) even though you don't need it.

It's turning out that a better predictor of coronary artery disease is the ratio between triglycerides and HDL; the lower the better. A ratio over 4 has shown to be a strong indicator of future coronary artery disease regardless of the patient's LDL level. In addition, there is more than one kind of cholesterol -- a smaller, harder particle that infiltrates cell walls easily and a larger, fluffier particle that does not. A beneficial tri/HDL ratio strongly correlates with having the larger cholesterol particles.

My care provider gave me the corporate line on statins; I was borderline with my numbers but "if you're over 50 and diabetic, you get a statin" (and you get a statin, and YOU get a statin...). I knew that, on a high-fat diet, my LDL was not going to look great. But I also had learned that LDL was not the only consideration. I told her I wanted a particle test and that the results of that test and my next lipid panel would determine if I started taking a statin or if we dropped the topic for the foreseeable future. I got the test; big fluffy cholesterol particles and a tri/HDL ratio well under 2. I don't hear any more about taking statins.

[frugal-one]

I asked doctor for a particle test too. She refused me. At the beginning of the year I started with new insurance, therefore, a new doctor. Just did a virtual meeting to have her as my primary. All will have to be done when it is safe to meet again. Hopefully, all is well?

[SteveinMN]

I asked doctor for a particle test too. She refused me.
I was prepared to pay for my own particle test. Fortunately, my primary trusts me. When I finally took my diabetes seriously and managed it my way, with great results, she took using a low-carb eating plan much more seriously. And when she brought up the idea of statins and I compared my labs to the standard-of-care guidelines for who "should" get them, pointing out that my numbers weren't over all those bars, she understood that I do my research, I know what I'm talking about, and I work my plan. So when I told her it would take a particle test "failure" before I would take a statin, I planned to get one whether or not she wrote for it. But she wrote for it. And I'm still doing just fine.

[Teacher Terry]

Steve, I used your formula and my ratio is 2.4 and that’s before losing weight.

[SteveinMN]

Steve, I used your formula and my ratio is 2.4 and that’s before losing weight.
Good!

Here's a link (https://www.thebloodcode.com/know-your-tghdl-ratio-triglyceride-hdl-cholesterol/#_edn2) to a site where they discuss the risk of various ratios of triglycerides/HDL. There are several other sites documenting this if you really want to go down that rabbit hole. :)

[Teacher Terry]

I am a fussy eater so will just keep eating what I am. I envision that the weight loss will make a difference. I will know in August.

[frugal-one]

As many of you know, low-carbohydrate/ketogenic diets replace the calories you're not getting from carbohydrates and from copious amounts of protein with ... fat. Oftentimes saturated fat. It sends the dietitians into a swoon.

But it's great for blood glucose levels and it can be good for lowering future cholesterol-related cardiac issues.

LDL in the typical lipid profile is not measured directly; it is estimated from the HDL and triglycerides levels. Lower triglycerides levels -- ordinarily a good thing -- mess up the calculation, yielding an estimate of LDL level that is falsely high. Add in modern medicine's penchant for protocols and you can be handed a prescription for a statin (or some other cholesterol-reducing drug) even though you don't need it.

It's turning out that a better predictor of coronary artery disease is the ratio between triglycerides and HDL; the lower the better. A ratio over 4 has shown to be a strong indicator of future coronary artery disease regardless of the patient's LDL level. In addition, there is more than one kind of cholesterol -- a smaller, harder particle that infiltrates cell walls easily and a larger, fluffier particle that does not. A beneficial tri/HDL ratio strongly correlates with having the larger cholesterol particles.

My care provider gave me the corporate line on statins; I was borderline with my numbers but "if you're over 50 and diabetic, you get a statin" (and you get a statin, and YOU get a statin...). I knew that, on a high-fat diet, my LDL was not going to look great. But I also had learned that LDL was not the only consideration. I told her I wanted a particle test and that the results of that test and my next lipid panel would determine if I started taking a statin or if we dropped the topic for the foreseeable future. I got the test; big fluffy cholesterol particles and a tri/HDL ratio well under 2. I don't hear any more about taking statins.

I was willing to pay for the test too. She told me they didn't do that type of testing there and was not helpful in any way. I will not miss her.

[SteveinMN]

She told me they didn't do that type of testing there and was not helpful in any way. I will not miss her.
I had to go halfway across town to the university hospital lab for the test (they didn't do it at my clinic, either).

Doesn't sound like that practitioner had much invested in you (or maybe not any of her other patients). I wouldn't miss her either.