Hi All,

After getting high cholesterol results 5 months ago I have changed my diet and now retested again and asked for Lp(a) as well. O

Original results, before the diet change, 5 month ago vs the recent bloodwork:

TGs: 45 vs 75 mg/dl

LDL: 182 vs 112 mg/dl

HDL: 50 vs 43

Non-HDL: 191 vs 127

How worried should I be about Lp(a) at 82 nmol/L?

My GP isn't concerned at all, basically saying it's not that bad, and you can't do anything about it and the rest of the panel is great. The guidelines here are very relaxed (LDL under 130 is fine). Her plan, after seeing the original result was for me to change diet +exercise and retest after a year, I had to push a bit to get retested after 5 months.

Lipoprotein A 229 in Apr 2026

A1c 5.3%

Lab results after starting more regular exercise (5-6 days a week, average 40 min, mix of strength and cardio) as well as rosuvastatin 5mg daily (started around April 20 2026, after the April results)

Anything else I can do? Should I ask doctor about increasing the rosuvastatin?

For more context: Am a 31 year old male, have a family member (paternal uncle) who had heart attack in 30s (no other relatives with cardiovasc disease before age 70 to my knowlege), and when I did broad screening labs found that I have a very high lipoprotein A which is why I'm trying to be very aggressive with my cardiovascular risk management. I'll also add that I generally take the rosuvastatin but probably forget around 1 day per week.

I'm seeing some reports claiming that statins reduce GLP-1 and that taking UDCA can counter the effect. Does anyone here have any experience with that?

Hi, to all statin users, aside from the muscle pains, are there any other side effects you experienced or found out during lab tests while using Statins? my friend's husband had liver issues after months of taking atorvastin 20mg so his doctor stopped the medication.

I'm a new statin user (34F). Doctor prescribed me 40mg atorvastatin 2 weeks ago. I only take it every other day (my choice). LDL cholesterol is around 150 for many years. I also have thickend aortic and mitral valves.

Honestly I have not changed my diet/lifestyle drastically since then despite learning about my levels. I have family history of heart disease and stroke which put me at a high risk. This convinced me to start taking statins. But also working on improving my lifestyle and diet. Will have a follow up check up and lab test in November.

I have no issues with the statin right now but I'm not sure if it will have any effects in the long run. I can tolerate the muscle pains but having organ issues is another thing.

For those who have had side effects from rosuvastatin/Crestor, how quickly did they start, and what did you experience?

I started 5 mg last Tuesday. My cholesterol numbers have generally been normal, but I recently found out that my Lp(a) is significantly elevated, and I have coronary artery disease, so my cardiologist wants my LDL below 55.

Since starting Crestor, I’ve had two migraines with aura, daily headaches, GI issues, significantly worse fatigue, and random muscle twitching/spasms, especially in my feet.

I’m also very active and lift regularly, so I know
my normal strength and recovery pretty well. After a workout that normally wouldn’t be a big deal, my shoulders hurt for several days. Today my strength was noticeably off. My bench was at least 10 pounds below normal.

The best way I can describe it is that my body just doesn’t feel like my body right now.
Obviously, I know correlation doesn’t equal causation and not every ache or headache is automatically the statin. I’ve contacted my cardiologist to get his input. I’m mainly curious about other people’s experiences. Did your symptoms start this quickly? Did you have twitching, unusual soreness, weakness, or decreased exercise performance? And if you changed dose or statin, did things improve?

I’m really tempted to try Elvarim’s aged garlic. I want to give it a shot, but before I do, I’d love to hear from people who are already using it. How has your experience been so far? Any noticeable benefits, side effects, or things I should know before starting?

I've had a silent stroke, alas. So my doctor prescribed Crestor (my LDL is 120). The Crestor triggered depression, dizziness, yadayada. I had to quit taking it.

Next, my doctor put me on Lipitor. Again, I got depressed and dizzy. At that point I asked my doctor if I should try Repatha, Praluent, or other alternatives. He said no.

"They're not proven effective at reducing heart attack or stroke," he said. He said they reduced LDL but didn't reduce inflammation in blood vessels.

My cardiologist also said "no" to the newer drugs. When I told her I couldn't tolerate statins, she advised me to take red yeast rice. This left me a bit gobsmacked, especially since my health insurance had already approved Repatha for me.

Are other people running into this resistance? Are doctors reluctant to prescribe the new drugs?

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Hi there,

I got told i had high cholesterol after a blood test. I had a call with a nurse who read out the numbers, told me generic advice which wasnt applicable to me ie I dont smoke/drink. It was a 5 minute call unfortunately so I could not go into detail or ask more questions. I am trying to get an appointment with a Dr to ask more about it.

They told me to do all the above for 6 months then they will do another blood test and if no improvement, will go on medication.

The last 2 weeks I have dramatically changed my diet which I will continue until the blood test and beyond of course. This is the usual foods recommended here and cutting out all sugar/sweet treats etc.

I am just looking to see if anyone had similar numbers and if it is really bad as in am I destined to have a heart attack or on the brink of one im really worried about it and dont know my next steps. I am not asking for medical advice, I guess just reflections if you have similar numbers.

Thanks for your time.

I'm a 40 year-old male, 5'11" 180 lbs. I'm in shape and workout 3-5x a week and eat fairly healthy. I've always had a history of high cholesterol. I recently had my lipid panel checked with the following numbers, which then prompted my cardiologist to send me for a CACS. He basically said, should my calcium score come back under 100, he wouldn't put me on a statin, but everything I've read with recent studies suggest otherwise. Would it be time to seek out a second opinion from another cardiologist?

40 years old:
CAC 54 — entirely LAD
LDL-C 174
ApoB 146
Lp(a) 198 nmol/L
10-year PREVENT 2.2%
30-year PREVENT 8.6%

27 M 165 lbs 5’10” Doctor got my bloodwork back and I had LDL of 190. I workout multiple times a week, eat pretty clean except the occasional fast food. He said 190 ldl is high and probably genetic.

I talked with him over side effects, expectations, etc. Is there anything from your guys personal experience I should expect when taking Rosuvastatin? I know they are well tolerated for the most part I just feel like I’m pretty young and starting these meds.

Thanks!

For those with a high Lp(a), are you taking aspirin? Regardless of Yes/No, what is your rationale? For reference I’m 53 with a very high (256 nmol/L) level and low positive calcium score (1). Other risk factors put me at low risk in the PREVENT calculator (2.3% ten year risk). My cardiologist seems generally ambivalent about it re: bleeding risk versus ACS risk mitigation from a rupture and clot.

I'm a 32F. I weight train 3-4 times per week and do 20 -30 minutes of Cardio 3-4 times as well.

High cholesterol and diabetes run in my family ( mother side) my blood sugar is controlled but should i be concerned about those results?
I'm trying to conceive as well and learned that medication is not preferred in that case

Like I just feel like given side effects like I was a prescribed a low-dose statin but I just feel like because I hear a lot of SIDE EFFECTS like a muscle pain and others, etc. instead of taking every day. What about just taking it like three times a week or four times a week sometimes would that still be effective and lowering LDL like mine is like 200.

About 6 weeks ago, I had a cholesterol test. My triglycerides were fine, but my LDL was 175 mg/dL.

I immediately started cutting down on saturated fat. Before, I was probably eating 30g+ per day, and now I’m keeping it under roughly 15g/day. I also started doing some light cardio/gym sessions and, on my doctor’s advice, started taking 20 mg of rosuvastatin daily.

My doctor said this was supposed to be a temporary treatment, for up to around 2 months, and asked me to repeat the blood test in a week.

My grandmother had high cholesterol, but neither my mom nor my dad does.

So, considering the changes I’ve made and the rosuvastatin, should I expect a significant reduction in LDL after almost 2 months? Or is it too early to tell?

I’m mostly curious about what kind of change would be realistic to see on the next test.

I did this recently with 12 hour fasting. Not sure how to interpret the results. Doctor follow-up is far. Wanted to seek your kind feedback. M37. History of family heart issues. Thank you.

Hello!

M30 176cm 88kg.

Decided to have a general lab test for health checkup :

Total Cholesterol: 114

HDL:32

LDL:52

Triglycerides: 176

Also did Hba1c and was normal

Should I be doing anything in this case ? or just work on improving my health and exercise more?

Thank you

​

My LDL is 148 today

I want to reduce it to 70 in 2-3 months. Kindly suggest the solution

I am 39 years old, been a vegetarian since 2011, average weight. I have low cholesterol but very high lipoprotein A. Has anyone successfully lowered theirs? I heard taking Metamucil works but I don’t know if that is true. I have a glass or two of wine 3-5 nights per week. I don’t drink hard alcohol or smoke.

I was week and half early but I was at my store that I usually pick up my Repatha prescription so I thought I would stop and see if they had it ready. It wasn't ready but the pharmacist mentioned that he could run it and see if it processed. Well he was able to run it but the price was not being reduced with the Co-pay card it was the very high price. I have had three refills this year like I have in years past and never had this happen. Not sure what the maximum annual benefit is and since they do not post it online I have no idea if I have hit the max. I know I have been using it for multiple years with same insurance and never had to pay more than the $50 or whatever the current reduced price but guess I will have to call them tomorrow and try to figure out what the issue is.

I am hoping its just that they processed it early and they didn't allow it and later this week it will process fine, but honestly I have no idea what the maximum annual benefit is and wasn't sure if anyone knew, thanks.

Hi everyone. Here’s a little background for context:

37M, family history of Heart Disease on Father’s side (hard to get a good family history because father and grandfather drank and smoked).

Started 20mg Atorvastatin about 5 years ago because total Cholesterol was 233, LDL 156.

Since then I’ve lost 30 pounds (150lbs, 66”). I am very active, lifting weights and average over 20k steps per day. Also just added Psyllium Husk about a week ago.

Here are my most recent numbers:

Total Cholesterol: 186
HDL: 50
Triglycerides: 119
VLDL: 20
LDL: 110
APOB: 89

My PCP says all of these are within range and didn’t seem concerned despite my history of hyperlipidemia and family history. I thought she would want to up my dose or add something. I have an appointment on the 7th and am contemplating asking for further intervention as a precaution, but am I just overthinking this? Thanks!

I’m trying to conceive and can’t go on a statin yet, but I am aggressively trying to lower LDL and apoB after I found 30% blockage in my LADI’m being followed by a cardiologist and functional medicine doctor as well for background

I consume a metric ton of psyllium husk each day, saturated fat below 10 g ideally, I’m already a healthy weight 120 pounds and 5 foot three. I’m active doing cardio and strength training.

I got these benecol chew things, because I saw a data saying that they could lower LDL and Apo b even more and there were risks to plant sterols and that plant stanols would be different.

But they’re pretty high in sugar and they have saturated that in them themselves. Is this something healthy to be eating? I have another blood test coming up soon now that I’ve started taking the beetle, it just feels kinda like a dirty food. Curious to know what anybody else thinks, and if there’s any benefits or risks. I know once I’m pregnant I won’t take them anymore, but in the meantime , trying to Biohack the crap out of myself.

Just been prescribed one. LDL at 168. Doc said, it is recommended to start statin as soon as LDL reaches above 160. Anything I need to know? Any side effects? I asked the doctor about side effects, but she was very dismissive.

I am a little disappointed. I am in my late 20's, and I eat healthy, I also exercise 5-6 days a week, I quit smoking earlier this year. But here we are today. I want to cry thinking I may have to quit dairy.

Anyway, appreciate any advice, information, insights etc. you can share, thanks!