Nutrition questions

Question
Hi,

I am a 28 year old male.  I weigh 245 but I am 6'5. I just had a physical and was told that I need to change my eating habits for the first time of my life.  I was told my cholesterol is high for someone my age. (221 and LDL of 1480 I don't really exercise other than some golf and softball in the summer because I never really thought I needed to.

I am really struggling with this diet change thing and need a little bit of guidance.  I will be the first to admit that I eat pretty poorly.  I am on the road a lot for work so finding a place to eat that is fast is always first on the list.  McDonalds, Wendys, and BK are stops I make about twice a week.  My favorite food is buffalo wings with blue cheese which I probably eat in some variety (boneless, grinder, regular wings) once or twice a week.  My wife works crazy hours so I find myself fending for myself at night.  I am not a great cook so I find myself eating frozen chicken, pasta, pizza, and other quick bites in the freezer or at a take out joint. I love eating meat in any capacity. (steaks, burgers, chicken, hot dogs, etc)

Here is my confusion, now that it's been a week I have been looking at nutritional info on everything.  It seems that everything in my freezer that I know is unhealthy lists cholesterol at 10% of daily value or lower per serving. This also includes pasta, bread, and condiments I have. I understand I need to cut back on the obvious (McDonalds, etc...) but what am I missing with these other processed foods or food in general?  Other than looking at the "cholesterol" label info should I be looking at other label info that may increase my cholesterol indirectly?

I really am lost in this whole process.  My doctor said I need to moderate and not necessarily give up things with high cholesterol but I am struggling to determine what it is other than fast foods. I don't think cutting back on the fast food will be nearly as hard as giving up red meat. I love burgers and steaks or anything I can grille, especially in the summer and really don't want to give that up.

On a side note I do plan on exercising 3 or so times a week from here on out.

Are there any foods that I should make a priority to stop completely? (if you say buffalo wings I may kill myself...kidding obviously but it would be hard.) I look forward to any advice and answers to my questions you may have.

Thanks in advance

Alex

Answer
Hi Alex,

Great questions!

I can't give medical advice but here's what I would do if it were me in your situation:

First of all, I would stop worrying about counting calories or cholesterol in foods. Cholesterol is a natural substance in the body and it's necessary to transport essential fats to your cells. The problem is not cholesterol per say, it's oxidized cholesterol. The reason people have high cholesterol levels is because the cholesterol is oxidized and damages the endothelial cells (lining of your blood vessels). This damage causes the endothelial cells to swell up and become what's called Foam Cells. When that happens, cholesterol backs up in your blood system because the damaged endothelial cells can no longer process it naturally.

On top of that, cholesterol can only come from animal products (meat and dairy). It does not exist in plant foods.

So the best way to limit cholesterol intake and reduce oxidation of your cholesterol (which would ultimately help bring your cholesterol levels back to a healthy level) and damage to your endothelium is to eat lots of antioxidants from raw fruits, vegetables and berries. The USDA recommends 7-13 servings a day!! I'm guessing you're not even coming close given what you wrote about your diet.

That's okay - you don't need to be perfect - you just need to start adding more raw fruits and veggies in every day and make small changes and new habits.

So that's why fruits and veggies are so important - you really need to eat as much of them as you can handle. A good way to add extra fruits and veggies in every day is with a healthy breakfast smoothie. You can use milk, but because of the cholesterol, hormones and saturated fat it's much better to go with a milk alternative - like soy milk, almond milk, rice milk, oat milk, cashew milk or hemp milk. Then just add in lots of good fruit you like and try to add in some greens as well (if you add a handful of spinach or kale you won't be able to taste it but it will be incredibly good for you).

As for what foods to avoid:

#1 - Anything processed. No more fast food because it's all processed. No white sugar, white flour, cookies, crackers, etc. Meat is not going to help your condition, but I'd rather you eat unprocessed meat than any processed junk.

There's so much more to share, but I can't do it all here. Luckily for you, Dr. Candace Corson and I have written in much more detail about the ideal diet and you can get it all for free just by signing up for our newsletter at www.AuthenticHealthCoach.com

Honesttly though - if you want to lose the weight, drop the cholesterol, reduce your risk of disease and get a lot more energy (all of which is possible!), it's going to require a big shift in your knowledge about nutrition and in your habits. The key is to start slow and make it a life-long habit. If you eat an extra apple a day tomorrow and every day for the rest of your life, it's going to make much more of a difference in your health than a 1-week diet program.

I hope that helps!
Tom

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