Results

Triglycerides 161mg/dl

Cholesterol (Total) = 178 mg/dl

HDL Cholesterol = 52 mg/dl

LDL Cholesterol = 94 mg/d

lInterpretation

1. Triglycerides

Triglycerides are a form of fat in the bloodstream. People with high triglycerides often have high total cholesterol, high LDL (bad) cholesterol and a low HDL (good) cholesterol level. Many people with heart disease also have high triglyceride levels. Several clinical studies have shown that people with above-normal triglyceride levels (greater than or equal to 200 mg/dL) have an increased risk of heart disease. People with diabetes or who are obese are also likely to have high triglycerides.

My Triglyceride level went from 160 to 178 mg/dl.

2. Cholesterol ratio: A total cholesterol to HDL cholesterol ratio is a number that is helpful in predicting an individual’s risk of developing atherosclerosis. The number is obtained by dividing the total cholesterol value by the value of the HDL cholesterol. (High ratios indicate higher risks of heart attacks, low ratios indicate lower risk). High total cholesterol and low HDL cholesterol increases the ratio, and is undesirable. Conversely, high HDL cholesterol and low total cholesterol lowers the ratio, and is desirable.

In my case the ratio rose from 2.8 to 3.4 (178/52). It got worse!

An average ratio would be about 4.5. Ideally we want to be better than average if we can. Thus the best ratio would be 2 or 3, or less than 4.

3. HDL: With HDL (good) cholesterol, higher levels are better. In the average man, HDL cholesterol levels range from 40 to 50 mg/dL. In the average woman, they range from 50 to 60 mg/dL. An HDL cholesterol of 60 mg/dL or higher gives some protection against heart disease.

My HDL went down from 57 to 52 mg/dl!

4. LDL The lower your LDL cholesterol, the lower your risk of heart attack and stroke. In fact, it’s a better gauge of risk than total blood cholesterol. In general, LDL levels fall into these categories:

LDL Cholesterol Levels
Less than 100 mg/dL Optimal
100 to 129 mg/dL Near Optimal/ Above Optimal
130 to 159 mg/dL Borderline High
160 to 189 mg/dL High
190 mg/dL and above Very High

My LDL level went up from 86 to 94 mg/dl!

Overall my blood results are very discouraging, in every measure my risk factors actually increased! Thoughts?!

Our School’s graduation pledge contains reference to a commitment to lifelong learning. And over the last 32 days learn I did. The question now is just what do I do with my newfound knowledge on the subject of vegetarianism, ecology, and social responsibility? Public health professionals recognize that knowledge alone does not necessarily translate into health behavior change.

For my part, I have elected to remain vegetarian, punctuated by intermittent consumption of fish protein. I think these people are called pescatarians. To take it a step further, I aim to consume only wild caught fish.

The Challenge has resulted in me gaining a closer relationship with the participants, particularly those who attended the support group. I also made new friends and have newfound appreciation for others, who I barely knew before. I learned that the challenge also led to entire families adopting a vegetarian lifestyle.

This month has reaffirmed to me that one sincere individual can indeed positively influence a small part of the world.

That’s food for thought.

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Visit the blog site in a week or so – I will be posting my post-challenge blood test profile.

Thanks to Hans Diehl for environmental and nutritional literature, Pat Johnston for the cartoons, Brian Weed for technical support, Bill Collwell for securing University support for the blog (the 1st of its kind at LLU), and everyone who took time to submit an entry. Dr. Sabate, Dr.Snyder (SAHP) and Dr. Ask were instrumental in making the support group successful. I hope to see you at the Vegetarian Congress March 4-6, 2008 here at LLU.

While I could easily spend my time this evening discussing cruelty to animals, rehashing the deaths suffered each year by the 9 billion farm animals and 15 billion aquatic creatures to accommodate me and my fellow countrymen’s carnivorous habits, I prefer not to take that road. But does the Bible provide us any hints as to how we should live our lives?

In the first chapter of Genesis (1:29): “God said ‘See, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit; you shall have them for food.” Is this an incomplete thought or a lifestyle directive? I honestly don’t know, but I am struggling with what to do with Luke 12:6. “Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies?” Jesus later asks. “And yet not one of them is forgotten by God.”

I am at once disturbed and simultaneously reassured by the notion that God has his finger on the pulse of every living creature. If I really need to consume what was once a blinking, breathing animal to maintain my life, I think I could stand at Saint Peter’s Gate and make a case as to the necessity of meat eating. But for me, and many people in this country, it is a choice, not a necessity. The theologian Clement of Alexandria urged Christians to become vegetarians, saying, “It is far better to be happy than to have your bodies act as graveyards for animals.”

Happiness it is.

Tomorrow: The last day of the challenge.

Organic or not? Check the label
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has established an organic certification program that requires all organic foods to meet strict government standards. These standards regulate how such foods are grown, handled and processed. Any farmer or food manufacturer who labels and sells a product as organic must be USDA certified as meeting these standards. Only producers who sell less than $5,000 a year in organic foods are exempt from this certification.

Products certified 95 percent or more organic display a USDA sticker.
If a food bears a USDA Organic label, it means it’s produced and processed according to the USDA standards and that at least 95 percent of the food’s ingredients are organically produced. The seal is voluntary, but many organic producers use it.
Products that are completely organic — such as fruits, vegetables, eggs or other single-ingredient foods — are labeled 100 percent organic and can carry a small USDA seal. Foods that have more than one ingredient, such as breakfast cereal, can use the USDA organic seal or the following wording on their package labels, depending on the number of organic ingredients:

 100 percent organic. Products that are completely organic or made of all organic ingredients.

 Organic. Products that are at least 95 percent organic.

 Made with organic ingredients. These are products that contain at least 70 percent organic ingredients. The organic seal can’t be used on these packages.

 Nutrition. No conclusive evidence shows that organic food is more nutritious than is conventionally grown food. And the USDA — even though it certifies organic food — doesn’t claim that these products are safer or more nutritious.

 Quality and appearance. Organic foods meet the same quality and safety standards as conventional foods. The difference lies in how the food is produced, processed and handled. You may find that organic fruits and vegetables spoil faster because they aren’t treated with waxes or preservatives. Also, expect less-than-perfect appearances in some organic produce — odd shapes, varying colors and perhaps smaller sizes. In most cases, however, organic foods look identical to their conventional counterparts.

 Pesticides. Conventional growers use pesticides to protect their crops from molds, insects and diseases. When farmers spray pesticides, this can leave residue on produce. Some people buy organic food to limit their exposure to these residues. Most experts agree, however, that the amount of pesticides found on fruits and vegetables poses a very small health risk.

 Environment. Some people buy organic food for environmental reasons. Organic farming practices are designed to benefit the environment by reducing pollution and conserving water and soil.

Cost. Most organic food costs more than conventional food products. Higher prices are due to more expensive farming practices, tighter government regulations and lower crop yields. Because organic farmers don’t use herbicides or pesticides, many management tools that control weeds and pests are labor intensive. For example, organic growers may hand weed vegetables to control weeds, and you may end up paying more for these vegetables. (Dave’s Editorial Comment - 1 bag of baby organic greens uses 57 calories of fossil fuel to bring you 1 calorie of food energy)

The above is derived from: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/organic-food/NU00255

Do any of our readers swear by Organics? I’d like to hear your perspective.

Tomorrow: Why do people keep tempting me to stray?

Thirty five years ago most of the sugar we consumed was sucrose derived from sugar beets or sugar cane. Then sugar from corn, especially high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) began to gain popularity as a sweetener because it was 20% less expensive to produce than traditional sources. High fructose corn syrup is extremely soluble and mixes well in many foods. It’s used in everything from soda, pasta sauces, cereal, meat products, chips, beer as well as in “health products” like protein bars.

In 1980 the average American consumed 39 pounds of fructose. By 1994, this increased to 83 pounds representing 19 percent of total caloric energy. Today approximately 25 percent of our average caloric intake comes from sugars, with the largest fraction coming as fructose.

Pure fructose contains no enzymes, vitamins or minerals and robs the body of other micronutrients. Some research suggests that HFCS interferes with the heart’s use of key minerals like magnesium, copper and chromium. Among other consequences, HFCS has been implicated in elevated blood cholesterol levels and has been found to inhibit the action of white blood cells.

Because it is metabolized by the liver, fructose does not cause the pancreas to release insulin. Fructose also converts to fat more than any other sugar. This may be one of the reasons Americans continue to get fatter.

During your next trip to the market - read the labels – you may be surprised just how many products contain HFCS.

Tomorrow: What can I eat?

Now things get murkier than chocolate chip cookie debris suspended in a creamy white glass of chilled dairy beverage. I am reading a book entitled The China Study, written by T. Colin Campbell, a retired NIH-sponsored researcher. If Campbell is to be believed, dairy product consumption is related to a variety of health maladies. I am approaching the age where PSA results in my annual blood test mean more to me than a passing interest. According to a Harvard University review, 12 of 14 case-control studies and seven of nine cohort studies observed a positive association between dairy consumption and prostate cancer. Campbell goes on to make a compelling case that milk consumption in babies is also related to the risk of developing Type 1 Diabetes. Campbell completes his dairy coups d’état by suggesting that cows milk consumption is associated with Multiple Sclerosis.

I am not a nutritionist; can someone assist me with this Campbell conundrum? Is he a charlatan or have we been hoodwinked by the dairy industry?

Tomorrow: Four weeks of vegetarianism.

While some individuals conveyed their intent to return to carnivorous habits after our month officially ends on the 7th, others had influenced their families sufficiently to turn their respective households into plant munching vegetarians. I was moved by the thoughtful insights we collectively shared about our experiences. I usually lead discussions about public health in the classroom environment. Today there were no leaders. It did not matter who held what degree or title, we shared our struggles, successes, and failures as equals.

Perhaps it was the vulnerability associated with public risk taking. Perhaps it was the adrenaline rush of a new adventure. Or just maybe it was the camaraderie I felt with our challenge participants, as we indulged in the delightful fruits of living the University’s motto –to make man whole. For my part, the Challenge has been a professional highlight that has revitalized my sense of purpose and commitment to public health.

Tomorrow: Does milk do a body good?

One of our blog visitors early in the challenge posted the website of her local farm. Please visit the site: www.chestnutfarms.org. This is a good example of food grown and consumed locally. Another example of this in southern California is the Inland Empire orange co-op.

I encourage you to search out and support these farmers, and enjoy the taste and textures of fresh, naturally grown foods (including eggs).

No other criteria of environmental quality, the size of the outdoor area, the number of birds confined in a single shed, or the indoor or outdoor space allotted per animal-are considered in applying the label. As with free-range laying hens, many “free-range” broilers live in a facility with only one small opening at the end of a large shed, permitting only a few birds to go outside at any given time. The term “free-range” “doesn’t really tell you anything about the animal’s quality of life, nor does it even assure that the animal actually goes outdoors. The final insult to free range hens is that they too have their beaks clipped to reduce the risk of injury related to being pecked by their neighbor.

Tomorrow: Do we need any animal products, including dairy, to sustain and nourish us?

After immobilization, the birds have their necks cut by a machine blade or by a human hand before proceeding to a scalding tank. Birds who are missed by the mechanical blade or who have only one jugular vein severed may retain consciousness while entering the tank, where they are boiled alive. In Fiscal Year 1993, of the 7.08 billion total poultry slaughtered in USDA facilities, 3.12 million birds were reported to have entered scalding tanks while still alive.

My daughter Paige performed today at Disneyland as part of a flute ensemble. After her Anaheim gigs, we have a custom of dining at Bucca Di Beppo, a pleasant family oriented Italian restaurant. As fate would have it, one of Paige’s friends ordered the chicken parmesan, which on any other evening would have mildly interested me. That temptation is a thing of the past.

Tomorrow: What are free range products?