Cholesterol and high blood pressure can be hereditary. My cousin had high cholesterol at 25 years old, and she has been a vegetarian since she was 8. Some people in my family have it and some don't. I am a don't, but it doesn't seem to matter the diet of those I am related to, skinny, fat, veggie, vegan, meat eaters, some have it very young. My dad is 73 and had it so high when he was in his teens and early 20's he was excused from Vietnam service.
Same with blood pressure, but there is more of a correlation with being heavier, the skinny people still have hypertension at fairly young ages. My grandparents had extremely high cholesterol in 3 out of 4 cases and all lived to be 86-95 years old. I just watched a 60 minutes episode about the benefits of high blood pressure for older people being beneficial.
I would ask him to talk to his family members and see if others have this, rather than chasing his tail and denying himself pizza. If he is the only one, then it could well be diet related, but if he is eating decently, and it is a family trait, it could well be his normal.
Also, he had some issues a few months ago that landed him in the ER for possible a possible heart episode. He was fine, no heart damage, but the doctor could tell from reading the tests they ran that he had had issues with hypertension for a while. It's causing damage. That's what really spurred all the diet changes and the introduction of meds at that time. He also had a full work up - stress test, ultrasound of his arteries, etc. All fine, for now. I just want him around for a while! No letting this fester now and then him dropping dead at 50.
His parents both have it, but as I mentioned earlier, it wasn't until they were much older. He's from good stock too, all his grandparents lived till their late 80s at least.
His BP readings are high, high. Like 153/99 when he first woke up this morning. His doctor has him on 100 mg cozaar (well generic losartan) and it hasn't touched it. I think it's time to try something else.
That choice is interesting, losartan is an angiotensin receptor antagonist and definitely not usually the first choice in treating hypertension. I would actually ask the MD why he was prescribed that as opposed to a diuretic or beta blocker.
I asked about the psoriasis because there is a rash that is often associated with Celiac but that presents on the knees and elbows.
Yeah I think his doctor said it has less undesirable side effects so he starts there for someone so young? From my novice research found the same thing though. Is there something better he should suggest trying?
He's on 20 mg of Pravachol for the cholesterol. He hasn't had any more blood work done since he started it so I have no idea if it's working yet.
Cholesterol and high blood pressure can be hereditary. My cousin had high cholesterol at 25 years old, and she has been a vegetarian since she was 8. Some people in my family have it and some don't. I am a don't, but it doesn't seem to matter the diet of those I am related to, skinny, fat, veggie, vegan, meat eaters, some have it very young. My dad is 73 and had it so high when he was in his teens and early 20's he was excused from Vietnam service.
Same with blood pressure, but there is more of a correlation with being heavier, the skinny people still have hypertension at fairly young ages. My grandparents had extremely high cholesterol in 3 out of 4 cases and all lived to be 86-95 years old. I just watched a 60 minutes episode about the benefits of high blood pressure for older people being beneficial.
I would ask him to talk to his family members and see if others have this, rather than chasing his tail and denying himself pizza. If he is the only one, then it could well be diet related, but if he is eating decently, and it is a family trait, it could well be his normal.
His parents both have it, but as I mentioned earlier, it wasn't until they were much older. He's from good stock too, all his grandparents lived till their late 80s at least.
His BP readings are high, high. Like 153/99 when he first woke up this morning. His doctor has him on 100 mg cozaar (well generic losartan) and it hasn't touched it. I think it's time to try something else.
Does he have anxiety about taking the blood pressure readings? My DH, who is pretty fit for his age, has done many marathons and ridden his bicycle across the country has high readings for bP generally, but when the doctor ask him to take it 3 times a day for a couple of weeks, it was considerably lower. If you ask my DH, he would not say it was a problem, but by the second week, the readings dropped off a great deal. If he goes to the doctor, the readings are still high.
Are his parents sure they didn't have high cholesterol until they were much older, or were they just not tested? (Legitimate question, since it was not common to test younger people, until fairly recently.). Also, what is his break out of LDL, HDL, and triglycerides because it matters.
I am am not saying diet isn't a factor, but I am saying that cholesterol cannot be managed for 100% of people with diet. As my cousins doctor told her, if you were not 25, I would put you on Lipitor.
His dermatologist mentioned a correlation between the psoriasis and heart issues at his appointment this morning. First she brushed it off because of his age but when he mentioned his recent issues.... He has a new script for that too that will supposedly clear it up in two weeks but I'm not sure what it is.
His parents both have it, but as I mentioned earlier, it wasn't until they were much older. He's from good stock too, all his grandparents lived till their late 80s at least.
His BP readings are high, high. Like 153/99 when he first woke up this morning. His doctor has him on 100 mg cozaar (well generic losartan) and it hasn't touched it. I think it's time to try something else.
Does he have anxiety about taking the blood pressure readings? My DH, who is pretty fit for his age, has done many marathons and ridden his bicycle across the country has high readings for bP generally, but when the doctor ask him to take it 3 times a day for a couple of weeks, it was considerably lower. If you ask my DH, he would not say it was a problem, but by the second week, the readings dropped off a great deal. If he goes to the doctor, the readings are still high.
Are his parents sure they didn't have high cholesterol until they were much older, or were they just not tested? (Legitimate question, since it was not common to test younger people, until fairly recently.). Also, what is his break out of LDL, HDL, and triglycerides because it matters.
I am am not saying diet isn't a factor, but I am saying that cholesterol cannot be managed for 100% of people with diet. As my cousins doctor told her, if you were not 25, I would put you on Lipitor.
He has a cuff that attaches to his iPhone. He takes it every morning before he gets out of bed and is straight up, half asleep so I doubt he's overly anxious. I looked at the app to see the 153/99 reading from this morning. That is a little higher than typical just from what I saw on the graph but it's consistently high and the meds he's on hasn't dropped it really at all. I've taken my reading and it's normal so I know it's not the device.
He's outside getting a workout installing a new swing set for the kids with my dad or I'd ask him about the cholesterol readings again. I know the total is over 100 and has been for a decade. He's on 20 mg Pravachol. His doctor is most worried about the cholesterol issue right now.
Post by imojoebunny on May 6, 2014 20:17:00 GMT -5
I am interested in what is causing the concern with the cholesterol. Over 100 is not a problem, so that can't be total cholesterol. www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/high-blood-cholesterol/basics/tests-diagnosis/con-20020865 It is interesting to me because I have 13 doctors in my family, and they have differing opinions on the best way to treat those in our family with the problem, as do the physicians they see, since many of them also have it. Some are super pro drugs, some super pro diet ( which doesn't seem to help them). The drug people are winning in our family for now. My brother is one of the high cholesterol/high blood pressure people, so I pay attention to the research and the family dinner conversation. My brother manages it with exercise and diet, but also takes drugs. He has been stable for about 13 years using that approach.
My dad tried diet the whole time we were growing up, but it never helped. Now he takes drugs, and eats what he wants, which is mostly home cooked meals,and a lot from his huge garden.
It is a curious conundrum, and precautions should be taken, but not necessarily an early death sentence.
Post by wanderlustmom on May 6, 2014 20:53:08 GMT -5
Purely anecdotal, but my DH was also a normal weight (6'3", 190) and active (five days a week, an hour on the bike) but still had high BP. It's genetic for him. We started limiting processed foods and he began competing in road bike races. That has its own set of issues (time suck and scares me) but he is five years off his meds, he is very thin now (170) but he says he has never felt better and his BP is fine and all the extra exercise manages his stress. He rides about 20 hours a week with interval training.
Purely anecdotal, but my DH was also a normal weight (6'3", 190) and active (five days a week, an hour on the bike) but still had high BP. It's genetic for him. We started limiting processed foods and he began competing in road bike races. That has its own set of issues (time suck and scares me) but he is five years off his meds, he is very thin now (170) but he says he has never felt better and his BP is fine and all the extra exercise manages his stress. He rides about 20 hours a week with interval training.
I definitely want him to get running again. I think it will help in a lot of areas.
Purely anecdotal, but my DH was also a normal weight (6'3", 190) and active (five days a week, an hour on the bike) but still had high BP. It's genetic for him. We started limiting processed foods and he began competing in road bike races. That has its own set of issues (time suck and scares me) but he is five years off his meds, he is very thin now (170) but he says he has never felt better and his BP is fine and all the extra exercise manages his stress. He rides about 20 hours a week with interval training.
I definitely want him to get running again. I think it will help in a lot of areas.
BP is scary! I can tell from the posts how much you love him. I hope you have good news to report soon. I agree, physical activity can be so empowering. My DH hated the meds and had a lot of side effects and its stressful to be the provider.
I am another with a ton of enviornmental allergies. I have had three rounds of shots. One in my teens, one in my 20s and one in my 30s to keep the allergies under control. Use of a humidifier at night helps me to breathe during allergy season.
This last round of allergy shots did wonky things to my blood pressure. My blood pressure spiked and I had to go on a no salt diet for the month I was taking shots. If salt is his craving, trying subbing in natural salt (like celery and hummus) for saltier chips and pretzels.