Is Low Carb Better For Your Cholesterol?

June 14 2012 by in Cholesterol

What’s best for your cholesterol, low-fat or low-carb? According to the Senior Scientist Ronald Krauss, MD, the man behind the research on LDL (bad cholesterol) size, low-carb is better:

2012 ADA Diabetes Dispatch: Low-Carb diet may reduce CVD risk better than low-fat diet

20 comments

1
Tia
June 14 2012
Would be interesting to know how they specify "red meat" 8-)
2
John Myers
June 14 2012
I have to limit my steak? This is ill news. I've never heard Dr. Krauss mention the effects of red meat on small LDL. This must be new.
3
Princess Dieter
June 14 2012
I had a total chol of 213 at age 44- 50 while severely morbidly obese, often not exercising at all, and eating high-carb (but organic and pretty healthful high-carb).

I have a total cholesterol of 266 with a very high LDL since switching to lower carb/neo-Paleo, no longer obese, exercising. Doc is spasming. My trigs and HDL are nice, I'm pattern A, but the LDL is 190.

So, yeah, I worry some, but I'm NOT obese or prediabetic anymore, and I feel better. So, um, whatever.
4
Pauline
June 15 2012 1
Darn, yet another uneadable-on-Android site. Sigh. And what'd he write about red meat? Based on what kind of studies?
5
Ash Simmonds
June 15 2012
Limit steak?

This month I'm eating almost nothing BUT steak! :)

http://highsteaks.com/tag/30-day-steak-challenge/
6
Ed
June 15 2012
Pauline,

Try this link:

http://tristarpub.com/ada2012/?p=218
7
LHY
June 15 2012
Is there a link to look at the red meat study?
8
Ash Simmonds
June 15 2012
@LHY - I think this is the study: http://jn.nutrition.org/content/early/2011/10/26/jn.111.139477.short?...
9
John
June 15 2012
Princess Dieter,

You may want to look into NMR Lipoprofile. This blood test provides LDL-P particle count , various marker sizes and counts. From the NMR results, you can gauge your risk level for CVD and insulin resistance.

The standard lipid panel only provides the cholesterol marker volume and not the marker numbers. The LDL-C is calculated from a formula. You can only make indirect inferences about your risk level from lipid panel reading.
10
LHY
June 15 2012
@Ash Simmonds,

Thanks for the link. Read the abstract, a bit too deep for me. Sample size of 40 is perhaps too small to draw significant conclusions? May be that's the reason for the NIH further study to look at effects of protein from different meats/nonmeat.
11
Laura
June 15 2012
The red meat bit:
1) In this kind of studies it is essential to control for food interations. Even a small amount of carbs (and other nasties used in processed meats) hidden away here and there can throw the results and make meat consumption look bad for u
2) the life style of the animals before becomeins meat is also important. The 'grass fed' bit is important. By eating corn fed animals we are eating essentially obese animals with bad lipid profiles who are likely to make us as sick they were....

I still think this is early days low carb research and they are unlikely to watch out for the above important detail. The questionnaires used in these observational studies simply ask about your meat consumption rarely about its quality provenance degree of precessing.
In the absence of carbs/sugar meat is good for us! Just needs to be proved more convincingly
12
Jeff
June 15 2012
Ronald Krauss is sponsored by the Atkins Foundation, Egg center, Pork Board and National Cattlemen's Association, nevertheless even he recommends that low-carbers go easy on saturated fats.

“Plasma total, LDL, and non-HDL cholesterol as well as apoB concentrations were lower after the low-carbohydrate, low-saturated fat diet period than after the low-carbohydrate, high-saturated fat diet period. Given our previous observations with mixed protein diets, the present findings raise the possibility that dietary protein source may modify the effects of saturated fat on atherogenic lipoproteins”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22031660
13
Marcy
June 15 2012
I have been eating low carb for many years. I just had a Berkeley Test done that broke down my high LDL and what they found was although my LDL was high, the particles were all the light fluffy ones that supposedly are not harmful like the smaller ones. My husband is a low fat eater and he had a lot of the dangerous smaller LDL particles. They put him on a statin. My C-Reactive Protein, a marker of inflammation, was high and they tried to put me on a statin for that, but I refused. I knew they would find some reason to foist a statin on me. My HDL is always really high, higher than most anyone else I know that are supposedly eating a 'more healthy diet', ie, more fruit and grain.
14
Nadir
June 1 2014
Guys I got Perfect Knowledge, my total cholesterol levels were 311mg/dL, LDL - 205mg/dL. I followed Atkins diet along with Statin as support and now reduced my total cholestrol to 177mg/dL & LDL - 94mg/dL. Carbohydrates were the culprit, I wanted to try reducing cholesterol without Statin as there was a new research which stated that limiting carbohydrates in itself produces natural effects of Statin. If in future if my levels do rise I would try only with the Atkins diet and post the result. Till then Happy Eating....

Reply: #15
15
Reply to comment #14 by Nadir
erdoke
June 1 2014
Nadir,
Just be careful with the amount of protein and include a lot of fat and a lot of (non-starchy) vegetables.
I definitely recommend to phase out statins as soon as possible. Their effect is questionable while side effects are aplenty.

Reply: #16
16
Reply to comment #15 by erdoke
Nadir
June 1 2014
My Statin dose was for 3 months, I just finished my dose two days ago and did my cholesterol checkup today. Yes you are right on its side effects, my doctor advised me to take only one dose before going to bed. At the moment I am moderately sticking back to my diet with adequate carbohydrates, will see how it goes in the future. Thanks for the heads up.....

Reply: #17
17
Reply to comment #16 by Nadir
erdoke
June 1 2014
I doubt we can draw conclusions based on overall and cholesterol and LDL figures only. HDL and triglycerides are at least as important measurements to be able to safely conclude on an improvement.
I'm not sure I fully understand what you meant on "adequate carbohydrates". 50-100 g daily is certainly adequate even when working out. That is still considered low carb.
18
Nadir
June 2 2014
Where did my last comment go?? I am reposting again, regarding the cholestrol figures I have only given you the key indicators, I have posted complete details in the next post, note that the 1st value is the previously tested data (20-02-2014) while the next value is the latest data (01-06-2014) along with its criteria. I am from India, carbohydrate consumption can go beyond 250g over here, during the 60-70s unrefined carbs were frequently consumed while during the 90s till now, refined carbs such as white rice, white bread were consumed more often then. I used to have severe mood swings after eating carbs which almost derailed my employment activities, reduced consumption not only reduced these swings but most importantly my stress levels. At the moment I go to about 50g when I do not have any severe physical work, while I go beyond 100g when I go for a jog, maybe would require more for high intensity exercises....

Reply: #20
1 comment removed
20
Reply to comment #18 by Nadir
erdoke
June 2 2014
Never mind, I got it in the comment notification email. Much lower triglycerides and LDL, significantly better HDL to LDL ratio.
That is a huge improvement in just a few months, so I strongly advise to stick to the diet. You need to find out how much more carb is needed for heavy exercise if any.

Reply: #21
21
Reply to comment #20 by erdoke
Nadir
June 2 2014
Ok great.....I had been trying repeatedly to post the results, supposedly the comment box does not get the fields right.....anyway I have lost a little fat during the process but now with my cholesterol levels down I have managed to balance my weight on to 78kg as per my BMI. Yes, the next thing I need to check on will be on how much carbs I would require for intense workout without the statin.....

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