• About
  • Media
  • Seminars
  • The Good Doctor TV
480 270 100 50 true true false true

The Good Doctor TV

Don't miss Dr. Dave's new hit web talker.
Read more

Your gateway to empowering, health-related news and information in a user-friendly format. Each section contains original content, as well as other resources and links for further learning and discovery. Use the search box to find topics of interest.

Search

Self Health Categories

"You truly are a ‘fountain of knowledge"
– Susan Weinberg

"Energizing! Dr. Dave has created a supportive community where people can receive up-to-date accurate information and be uplifted and encouraged as they make the commitment to master their overall health."


– Dr. Gloria Walters,
Psychologist,
Cognitive Behavioralist

"I will continue to participate and advocate Dr Dave's Health Mastery grass roots effort because we ALL MUST learn to reflect on how we live, eat, exercise, and project our fit selves to our children and community! Thanks Dr Dave!"


– Kathleen Brown,
Registered Nurse
Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

Tags

Answers Ask Dr. Dave asthma bloating caffeine calorie counting cervical cancer Children's Health Cholesterol crohn's disease diabetes diarrhea dieting Dr. Dave Montgomery energy drinks exercise exercise induced asthma fibroids foot pain good cholesterol health coach Health Topics healthy eating healthy recipes Heart Health hemoglobin A1c how much sleep how to improve cholesterol Men's Health menopause mental health pancreatic cancer physical therapy plantar fasciitis pneumonia vaccine prevention salad sleep causes heart disease stomach pain stress managment symptoms of menopause thyroid health vaccine weight loss Women's Health

HDL-The Good Cholesterol

By Dr. Dave Montgomery
Tuesday, July 27th, 2010

Dr. Dave’s response to a question from a Facebook page member 

My husband’s HDL is 26. He’s almost 40 and has been trying to raise it for 9 years. He was told today it will not go up any more after pills and vitamins, etc. If he has not any other risk of health problems, just this super low HDL, what are his risks for a heart attack? His mother and her whole family all passed early (by 50-60) due to heart problems and he’s so worried now…

Thanks for asking this important question. Let’s bring everybody up to speed on HDL cholesterol.
HDL, the so-called ‘Good Cholesterol’, is an acronym for high-density lipoprotein. The reason it is GOOD is because HDL actually removes cholesterol from artery walls (and other places). Studies have shown the higher your HDL the lower is the incidence of coronary disease (plaque build up in heart arteries) and heart attacks (death of heart muscle due to artery blockages). Conversely, the lower the HDL the higher is the risk for coronary disease and heart attacks.

There are a number of causes of low HDL, including inherited genetic abnormalities, obesity and insulin resistance, diabetes, high triglycerides, anabolic steroids and certain medications. It seems most likely that your husband has an inherited disorder.

Here are the things that we know can increase HDL:
1. Daily aerobic exercise (at least 30 minutes a day)
2. Weight loss and tight control of diabetes, where applicable
3. Nuts: raw almonds, pistachios, etc
4. Smoking cessation, where applicable
5. Niacin—prescription strength (often as high as 2000 mg dialy) is one of the primary medications used to treat isolated low HDL
6. Fibrates—another class of medicines that can increase HDL in some patients.

If there’s room to work on any of these, I would not necessarily conclude that he’s out of devices to achieve a higher HDL.

Categories : Cholesterol, Diet, Eating Right, Heart Health, Prevent Disease
Tags : Cholesterol, good cholesterol, how to improve cholesterol
Copyright © 2018 All Rights Reserved
Website Design by Steph Borel Design
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • CONTACT
  • Health Mastery Blog
  • COACHING
  • MEDIA
  • home
Use of this site is subject to our terms of use and privacy policy. All content and material provided on this website is provided for informational or educational purposes only. It is not intended to diagnose, treat or prevent any medical condition.  Consult a physician concerning the applicability of any opinions or recommendations with regard to your symptoms or medical condition(s).