Cholesterol Help Please

I had to phone up for my blood test results today and the nurse said everthing came back normal except my cholesterol reading which was 5.9. She said i must start doing more exercise and cut out fatty foods. I tried to explain I find it hard to exercise that much as I have bad joint and muscle pain, and extreme fatigue, but i do make sure I walk daily with the dogs. She just said well do what you can and hung up.
Now is 5.9 very high then as I am not sure, apparently my last reading was 4.3 a year or so ago.
I've tried looking it up on the internet and its all on about so much of this sort and so much of that so i don't understand it.
It was going on about family history and I do know everyone on both sides of my family has had heart problems for generations and died from them.
I am overweight and I do smoke. Should I be eating only certain foods, the nurse was not very helpful really and never mentioned foods.
I don't know if I should be concerned or just not worry. She didn't say to see the doctor again, so I presume it must be fairly normal.
If its of any consequence it was not a fasting blood test, they just tested it amongst other things.

5.9 is not that high but above the recommended level of 5.

At the beginning of last year I was 5.1, and my nurse made a comment about it could be lower , anyway I had a benecol drink everyday, ate nothing that was more than 10% fat, about 10 portions of fruit and veg everyday, lots of oily fish and started exercising.

I lost just under 6 stone.

Had my cholesterol tested and it was 6.9!... which I found out as the dietician gave sent me a book with the results, of foods I should cut out, to lose weight and to exercise etc.
I stopped buying the benecol!

Anyway, had a chat with the gp, who is lovely and he said actually when you look at the good cholesterol I was at the best level I could possibly be, and when he put all my results into a little calulator thing on his screen I came out in the green section, ie very healthy.

So... I wouldn't worry too much, and if you do have a chat with your gp... if he is as nice as mine.

They're soooooo hot on our cholestorol readings at the moment, especially if you've got any history of heart problems. I honestly think they're being paid tremendous amounts of money to stick us ALL on cholesterol lowering statins!!! That's MY take on it all, coz they even put my old mum on them at the grand old age of 84 when hers was only 5!!!!! I got it stopped though coz I don't agree with them, and apart from that does it really matter when you're 84 with no heart problems considering it takes years and years to build up cholesterol plaque in your arteries!!!!

Anyway, to answer your question, 10 years ago they would have said this is a GOOD reading! I had cholesterol of 11, 10 years ago, my m.i.l. had a reading of 17 10 years ago, but now they want us ALL below 5! I can understand it with me coz I do have a heart condition, and they like me to be below 5 but it's not, it's almost the same as yours because I blatently refuse to take any statins. That'll be the next thing, they'll be wanting to put you on statins I'm afraid! I suggest you read up on them. They've ruined my muscles because they were affecting my liver and they didn't realise soon enough and I was suffering a lot of pain in my muscles whilst on them, and that's why they suggested a blood test, and then they went into panic mode and said I had to stop them immediately. I have since been used as a guinea pig for 3 other varieties until I said enough is enough, I will put up with the "high" cholesterol, which is NOT high when you consider what was classed as normal 10 years ago, a reading of 6 was considered to be ok in those days!!!!

Funny that Becky, I saw a specialist doctor at the hospital and he also told me he had never ever seen such a high HDL cholesterol count in anyone's blood, and that was the only reason mine was high, the good cholesterol had gone sky high, and he also pointed at this this was KEEPING ME ALIVE, so hence the reason I would never take the statins they want to give everybody!!!

shucks, i hate it when things like this happen. people are so quick to associate plato's theory of categorising into 'boxes' so that they can be destinguishable. TBH 5.9 means naff all. Sure people may well say that over 5 is bad or whatever, but there is no hard and fast rule, except you know its too much when you keel over.

If you feel that its worth worrying about, eat more greens, use benecol (yuk!) and keep doing as you are.

Otherwise, I'd celebrate with a big fat greasy fry up

(morale to the story - numbers mean nothing without reference...)

A "general" blood test was how they discovered mine was "above the norm for Croydon" whatever the heck that means. I remember it being 5 point something........
Despite having a pretty good diet, it didn't drop enough to pleased them, so I'm now on drugs to reduce it - albeit just a low dose. I'm on so many pills now, that I rattle....

ok i was told it should be 4 and over that needed to be careful. i would say make an appointment to see your doc hun that way they can help with what you can do instead of trying to work it yoour self. i would not worry to much and see what they say. the nurse was not helpful at all and i would point that out to your doc.

good luck hun i am sure they will help you

when i was taken into hospital with angina my level was 6.6. they did the angioplasty and i had 2 stents fitted. since then ive quit smoking. been 2 and 1/2 yrs now i watch what i eat.i try to stick to a saturate level of 2.0 . i eat loads of fruit and veg. i know walk alot more. and yes i have other medical probs. so theres some days where all i do is travel from the bed, to the loo and to the sofa, but i try not to loaf about.
my dad died of isometric heart probs. my mum also had angina. and i want to live and enjoy my life.
i have the treats. and if i do cheat i i try n be good for the rest of the week.
im seeing the cardiologist this week and im hoping he tells me to clear off and not come back for a long while.
im on lots of pills plus painkillers and a couple of herbal ones.
i wish i had a *warning* then i wouldnt be in so much bother now. so take it seriously and adjust your life accordingly. i dont mean live like a saint. heck no i go out i go to festivals/ gigs/ out on the motor bike.
im on statins as well high rate as well. but as i have osteoarthritides in my hips and back the muscle pain just blurs in with the other pain.
wish u luck. and if theres anything worrying u let me know.
oh and quit the smokes they dont help at all.