Increasing HDL levels: Protecting yourself from the dangers of Cholesterol

[BASK8KACE]

Cholesterol is heavily affected by the use of steroids and bulking diets. It also can be a silent killer if not watched and regulated carefully.

One of the best ways to combat cholesterol problems, aside from lowering total cholesterol levels, is to increase HDL. The following article is one that I have found immensely helpful:

Raising Your HDL Levels

From Richard N. Fogoros, M.D.,
Your Guide to Heart Disease / Cardiology.

Increasing the GOOD cholesterol

While it has been known for a number of years that high HDL cholesterol levels (the "good" cholesterol) seem to confer some degree of protection from heart disease, until relatively recently almost all the attention in the "cholesterol wars" has been focused on lowering total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol levels (the "bad" cholesterol.) Click here for a quick review of cholesterol and triglycerides.


It was not until the last few years that low HDL cholesterol levels have been recognized as an independent risk factor for heart disease. That is, even if their total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol levels are normal, people with reduced levels of HDL have an increased risk of early coronary artery disease. (HDL levels, to be considered "normal," should be at least 35 - 40 mg/DL.) Why is HDL cholesterol protective? It appears that it’s not the cholesterol itself that is good, it’s the "vehicle." The HDL molecule is a complex molecule consisting of protein, lipids, and cholesterol.

The HDL molecule, it appears, “scours” the walls of blood vessels, and cleans out excess cholesterol. If this is the case, the cholesterol being carried by HDL (that is, the “good” HDL cholesterol) is actually “bad” cholesterol that has just been removed from blood vessels, and is being transported back to the liver for further processing.

Even recognizing the fact that low HDL cholesterol levels are bad, doctors still tend to emphasize that their patients must reduce the bad cholesterol, and tend to neglect helping them raise the good cholesterol. This is a shame, since many people with normal or near normal total cholesterol levels have reduced HDL levels - and are therefore still at increased risk for heart disease.

Who needs to increase their HDL levels?

Anyone whose HDL level is below 40 mg/DL should consider taking steps to increase their HDL. This is the case even if total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol levels are within the normal range.


What measures can be used to increase HDL levels?

Aerobic exercise. Many people don't like to hear it, but regular aerobic exercise (any exercise, such as walking, jogging or bike riding, that raises your heart rate for 20 - 30 minutes at a time) increases the HDL levels.


Lose weight. Obesity results not only in increased LDL cholesterol, but also in reduced HDL cholesterol. If you are overweight, reducing your weight should increase your HDL levels.

Stop smoking. If you smoke, giving up tobacco will result in an increase in HDL levels. (This is the only advantage I can think of that smokers have over non-smokers - it gives them something else to do that will raise their HDL.)

Cut out the trans fatty acids. Trans fatty acids are currently present in many of your favorite prepared foods - anything in which the nutrition label reads "partially hydrogenated vegetable oils" - so eliminating them from the diet is not a trivial task. But trans fatty acids not only increase LDL cholesterol levels, they also reduce HDL cholesterol levels. Removing them from your diet will almost certainly result in a measurable increase in HDL levels. Click here for a quick and easy review of trans fatty acids and the heart.

Alcohol. With apologies to the American Heart Association, which discourages doctors from telling their patients about the advantages of alcohol: one or two drinks per day can significantly increase HDL levels. More than one or two drinks per day, one hastens to add, can lead to substantial health problems including heart failure - and there are individuals who will develop such problems even when limiting their alcohol intake to one or two drinks per day. Click here for a quick and easy review of alcohol and the heart.

Increase the monounsaturated fats in your diet. Monounsaturated fats such as canola oil, avocado oil, or olive oil and in the fats found in peanut butter can increase HDL cholesterol levels without increasing the total cholesterol.

Add soluble fiber to your diet. Soluble fibers are found in oats, fruits, vegetables, and legumes, and result in both a reduction in LDL cholesterol and an increase HDL cholesterol. For best results, at least two servings a day should be used.

[BASK8KACE]

HDL - diet and drugs

What about a low-fat diet?

While Americans traditionally have ingested too much fat in the diet, and while limiting total fat in the diet is useful not only for cholesterol control but also for weight reduction, evidence is emerging that too little fat in the diet can be dangerous. A diet in which fat has all but been eliminated can result in a deficit in the essential fatty acids - certain fatty acids that are essential to life, but which the body cannot manufacture itself. Furthermore, ultra-low-fat diets have been reported to result in a significant reduction in HDL cholesterol in some individuals.

The best advice regarding fat in the diet appears to be this: 1) reduce the fat intake to 30 - 35% of the total calories in the diet - but probably no lower than 25% of total calories; 2) try to eliminate saturated fats and trans fats from the diet, and substitute monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats instead. (That is, eliminate animal and dairy fat, and substitute unprocessed vegetable fats. Click here for a quick review of the various types of fatty acids.) Such a diet will avoid the problems seen with an ultra-low-fat diet, and should help raise HDL cholesterol levels.

What about drugs for raising HDL cholesterol?

Drug therapy for raising HDL cholesterol levels has, so far, been less successful than for reducing LDL cholesterol. Statins, in particular, are often quite poor at increasing HDL levels. And while some newer statins do reliably increase HDL, these drugs might not be optimal for people whose LDL cholesterol and total cholesterol levels are normal in the face of low HDL cholesterol levels. Of the drugs used to treat cholesterol, niacin appears to be the most effective at raising HDL levels. Niacin is one of the B vitamins. The amount of niacin needed for increasing HDL levels are so high, however, that it is classified as a drug when used for this purpose, and should be taken only under a doctor's supervision.

Now that HDL levels are attracting more and more attention, several drug companies are attempting to develop new drugs aimed specifically at increasing HDL.

[1badcamaro]

excellent information bro

[fitnessguy]

great post bro. I was wondering about my cholesterol, but i already do all of the above so i hope i'm good. thanks again

[BigMike J]

bump

[vaeltaire]

Great post.

[joevette]

Nice post, thanks.

[SMYL_GR8]

Don't forget about Omega-3's from fish and flaxseed oil also. BUMP

[BASK8KACE]

Don't forget about Omega-3's from fish and flaxseed oil also. BUMP

Very true. Good additions.

[AustrianOAK14]

good info i have high blood pressure im definately going to increase my aerobic exercise for sure

[symatech]

great info as usual bro. bump

[johnsomebody]

Thanks, BSKTKC for bringing this up! I believe this is absolutely the number one danger for gear use (high BP is a close, and related, second). Remember, Bill Clinton had passed a stress test with flying colors only a few months before needing bypass surgery, and the biggest reason was he let his cholesterol get out of control. The same thing has happened to a couple (non-gear using) friends of mine -checked out fine and a couple months later POW, heart attack city from letting their cholesterol get out of control. So it seems to me it's not at all unreasonable to assume that a few months of high total cholesterol/LDL and extremely low HDL from a cycle can do the same amount of damage, if not immediately, then over time.

According to Dr Meir Stampfer, chair of the Department of Epidemiology at Harvard Medical School, a one-point drop in HDL represents a 6% increase in heart disease risk. This means if your HDL goes from 50 to 10 during a cycle, which is not unusual, you're experiencing a 240% increase in developing heart disease during that time. The really nasty thing about atherosclerosis, from what I'm reading, is it's very hard to tell one has serious blockage until a heart attack hits -it's something that builds up gradually over time.

Here’s an interesting and very relevant study I came across this morning...
http://www.altmednet.com/trialsubs/trialsubstory3.html
“Cardiac Effects” under the title, “Anabolic -Androgenic Steroids for Athletes: Adverse Effects”. “Low-mediated vasodilatation (FMD)” , “an early indicator of future risk of atherosclerosis”, was studied in 20 steroid users versus 6 non-users before, during and eight weeks after a cycle. “Healthy arteries give higher FMD values as measured by ultrasound.” Results: FMD levels were significantly lower in the (steroid using) bodybuilders at all stages of the study, including eight weeks after ending use. And this wasn’t a bash-steroids article at all.

Anybody with more info or comments, especially relevant studies and suggestions, please post!

[BASK8KACE]

Thanks, BSKTKC for bringing this up! I believe this is absolutely the number one danger for gear use (high BP is a close, and related, second). Remember, Bill Clinton had passed a stress test with flying colors only a few months before needing bypass surgery, and the biggest reason was he let his cholesterol get out of control. The same thing has happened to a couple (non-gear using) friends of mine -checked out fine and a couple months later POW, heart attack city from letting their cholsterol get out of control. So it seems to me it's not at all unreasonable to assume that a few months of high total chosterol/LDL and extremely low HDL from a cycle can do the same amount of damage, if not immediately, then over time.

Johnsombody,

Your comments and study are an excellent addition to this post. Thank you! I love the fact that many people on the board have begun to post studies and articles to back up the information and opinions they share.

I think this is an issue that many people ignore. I hope more people become aware of the importance of HDL and keeping lipids balanced.

Thank you to those who said they enjoyed this post. I appreciate the positive feedback!

[johnsomebody]

Thanks BSK8 (will I ever figure out a good abbreviation for your name?), this is something that's been on my mind since my last (2nd) cycle last Spring. It was Prop/Var and by the end I was so sluggish and my cardio capacity had fallen by so much it really put me off ever doing that again. It's taken me six months to get my cardio capacity back up to normal. I really believe that the Var particularly was the culprit -although I can't prove it because I didn't check my HDL til a month after the cycle, at which point it was 45, which is fine.

I have found several studies showing Var alone cuts HDL levels typically in half at as little as 20mg/day and has negative effects at at even 5mg/day.

I'd highly recommend anyone doing gear should buy a HDL/LDL kits (online or at the drugstore) and checking levels from time to time throughout a cycle. I wouldn't do it again without monitoring that regularly.

That's my two cents for today.

[BASK8KACE]

BK8, and B8K are the ones I see most frequently. But, keep trying. You might create one that you like--that nobody else uses.

I've heard people say that var terribly affects HDL's .

I'm going to experiement a bit more, but it looks like I'll be sticking with Test (cyp and prop) and Deca for the long haul.

This coming cycle I might try the 10mg of nolva per day to keep the lipids in order; although, I've been heavily considering doing a cycle without any anti-e's.

[BASK8KACE]

BTW...Johnsomebody,

Did you do anything special for the month between your cycle and your cholesterol test to get your HDL back above 40?

[johnsomebody]

Hey Bask8,

Nothing at all that I can think of, and the reading surprised me. It was way lower a month after my previous cycle, which was T and EQ -I did Var the last couple weeks or so that time, rather than 12 weeks, as I did in my Prop/Var cycle. So I may be way off about my suspicions about the Var -I just can't think of any other explanation for how I felt. I do suspect my HDL was lower during the Var cycle, but only because of what I've been reading about Var and HDL. But since I didn't test during the cycle I'll never know for sure. I did go into the Var cycle with my total Cholesterol at only 150, so I wasn't so concerned going in, and it was 200 a month after.

But all the studies I've collected show the lipid effects of Var to be transient. I can post some if you like. Perhaps the fact that it clears so quickly expalins why it may be faster for HDL to improve after discontinuing it, and that in turn explains my results.

Being cholesterol-based, test apparently increases total Cholesterol readings in and of itself. I have one study here on transgendered women (who became "men") showing higher cholesterol readings commensurate with test injections.

Also I've been told about Policosanol and niacin are OTC supplements that can help and wonder if you or anyone else can confirm their usefulness in this situation?

[BASK8KACE]

Hey Bask8,

But all the studies I've collected show the lipid effects of Var to be transient.

If you post a link or the summary of the study on the transient effect of var, then that would be WAY helpful because I am considering using var.

BTW...I'm gonna look forward to all your posts to see how long it takes you to find the the "just right" combination of letters and numbers for an appropriate nickname for me.

[johnsomebody]

Hey Bask8 (I like that one),

Here's one, relating to pediatrics but still, IMO, relevant...

"There was a significant fall in mean HDL cholesterol concentrations among those in the oxandrolone group. Oral androgenic anabolic steroids are known to cause a decrease in HDL cholesterol. However, levels after 12 months of oxandrolone therapy were near the lower limit for normal, and LDL cholesterol levels did not rise. The suppression of HDL cholesterol levels by drugs such as oxandrolone is transient, with levels returning to normal after cessation of therapy, and, thus, the lower HDL cholesterol levels were not considered clinically significant."

http://www.findarticles.com/p/articl..._17927490/pg_3

The dosage was 0.1 mg/kg daily, but being an ignorant American I haven't got a clue to what that would average in mg/day.

Still, I wouldn't recommend the stuff to anyone after my experience, which I realize is anecdotal. Actually, this should be another thread -we're off topic! Are you hijacking your own thread??

[BASK8KACE]

Thank you for posting this abstract, JS. Apparently, the dose was weight dependent: 0.1mg per kg of body wieght daily.

Yes, this is certainly relevant. We also have to take into consideration that these kids needed the oxandrolone (var) due to some other deficiency. I'd guess that var skewes HDL in a healthy male far greater than it skews the HDL in a young child that takes it for health issues.

Either way you look at it--healthy person or not--the var obviously has a negative effect on HDL.

I think there are other hardening agents that can be used effectively with less negative effects on HDL.

[johnsomebody]

On one study I've found comparing the effects of Var & Deca , the Var group lost fat while the Deca group gained it, but the Var group was switched to deca eventually entirely due to concerns over their low HDL levels.

I really didn't notice any fat loss on 40mg/day for almost 12 weeks myself.

[BASK8KACE]

Was that a formal study? The reaon I ask is that when people use deca for bodybuilding, they are normally bulking, hence the fat. When using var, people are often (not always) cutting, hence the fat loss.

I'd be interested to know that if this was a formal study, why were they comparing the uses of deca and var. Could this have been a study done on patient who are loosing weight due to a disease? If so, then the weight loss on var wouldn't make sense if it were being used to prevent weight loss.

[johnsomebody]

I believe it was research about preventing/reversing HIV muscle wasting, as most of these studies seem to be these days -I'll look for it.

[BASK8KACE]

I believe it was research about preventing/reversing HIV muscle wasting, as most of these studies seem to be these days -I'll look for it.

That's what I figured--HIV/AIDS related waisting.

[Matto20]

You should add some info on plant sterols (policosanol, specifically) to your post and make it a sticky or FAQ, although I agree that all the methods you touched on should be included as well.

I always take policosanol to help me regulate my lipids with oxandrolone. It is an efficient, side-effect-free treatment. Oh yeah - its CHEAP too.

Just thought I'd chime in. Its good to see a post regarding HEALTH on the steroid forum for a change.

[Badgerman]

i was thinking of adding 10mg furazabol to all my cycles, it's the only AAS that lowers cholesterol. it's actually used a trreatment for cholesterol in some countries. anyone have any info on it?

Bump for info on this statement.....anybody???