Anyone Vegetarian

[gertie]

A little over a year ago my cholesterol & triglycerides were high, my HDL & LDL also not normal. At the time the testing was done I was eating meat occ. I decided to try lacto veg diet using 1% fat milk occ in

cooking, also no sugar except a spoon of jelly occ.

I had blood test done last week & was I surprised to find out that all my test were higher than the previous year. Triglycerides had gone up from 183 to 255. My vit B12 was also high. It was 945 on a scale from 243-894 being normal range. My B12 has never been high even when I ate meat. The reason the dr checked it was because he thought it might be low since I had not been eating meat. The only suggestion dr had was for me to exercise more. Anyone a vegan & have this problem. thanks.

[AllAboutPeace]

Alicia,

Are you on any medications or taking any suppliments that could be affecting your levels? I know that a few types of meds can increase triglyceride levels - they include beta blockers, estrogen, etc.

I don't know if my triglycerides were checked or not. I did have my B12 levels checked 5 months ago and my level was 780 (much higher than I expected it to be), but still well within normal range. My sister in law is a nutritionist and she was very suprised that my level was a few hundred points higher than hers (she eats meat and I'm vegetarian).I do take a multivitamin, but the amounts in those are generally considered pretty low.

It is odd that your B12 level would go up (unless you were taking a suppliment). Your level would be expected to stay in normal ranges for a year or two after you stop getting it in your diet due to the liver storing so much of it.

Were your LDL and HDL off this time as well?

[MomtoGiuliana]

I am a vegetarian. My triglycerides have always been low.

I have read that your body needs very little B-12 and it can be gotten from a lacto-veg diet very easily. If you are a true vegan then this can be a problem and B-12 supplements are probably needed. In parts of India, large populations are vegan. I remember reading that a study found that these people did not suffer B-12 deficiency b/c there were insects/insect parts inadvertently in their diet. I know that sounds yucky, but the point is that very little animal material is needed to get the B-12 the body needs, unless you have an absorption problem.

[gertie]

I am on no medications or supplements. My DH thinks it's funny because he eats meats, sugar, all kinds of junk & his chol &

triglycerides are very good. I've always read that if you don't eat things that contain chol that your body makes it. I just don't get it. I even stopped using olive oil because of fat content.

thanks.

[MomtoGiuliana]

Yes, for some people, diet does not have enough of an effect to bring their values to healthy level. I know others with that problem.

[brownsea]

ive been veggie for nearly twenty years. because of my nan dying of a condtion related to high cholesterol (think she had undx eds too) we had to be tested. i was 13 the first time. what i have found out over the years is. if im underweight my chol is ok, yet if im a normal weight my chol is high, along with high trig.

due to the nausea my weight varies at times, to how much i can eat. usually underweight, or bordering on normal/low.