Great news!  Can we get more details on Freddie - age? does he exercise? meal frequency? etc.

that's rather impressive! did he need/get a vitamin K1/K2 supplement as well, or was the 20kIU D just working fine without additional co-factors?

Dr Davis,

This is interesting and as it relates to me baffling. I see many doing well even with just a little cleanup of their act. Meanwhile I have always been in good shape and eating right, triglycerides below 100 and good cholesterol but still had plaque and ended up with an MI last year. So, I cleared out all wheat and sugar etc, and more recently all grains other than sweet potato. In August my LDL was 74, HDL 46 and trigs 43.  
Last weeks bloodwork looks like this:
Total-184
LDL 98
HDL 70
Triglycerides 74
Lp(a) 4.0
Pattern A.
All other numbers good.

"BUT" In the last month I have also been feeling chest discomfort and burning. My BP has been slightly higher than usual also.I called the doc and he ordered a stress test. This was Monday and now I am scheduled for an angiogram tomorrow. There is another blockage. I am 5'10" and 168 athletic lbs at 53 years old. WTF?
The discomforts only started since adding more fats to my diet. I only started that about 3 weeks ago though. No grains at all.  But back around July or August I added Coconut oil to my diet. I cook with it and add 2 tbsp to my salad daily. I'm starting to suspect that stuff. Not the extra sat fat from meat and full fat greek yogurt but maybe the coconut oil. How the hell can I be developing plaque? I'm getting really frustrated and beaten down...what more can I do?  The doc keeps saying I'm doing everything right....but genetics.

I take Vitmin D3 supps, 3 grams fish oil daily.

I reallly don't understand what is the equivalent name of this blood test in Romania for Small LDL.

It couldn't be VLDL, then what could be the one ?
Thank you !

Tommy,
maybe you should start a blog.  You can post your usual meals and other things and get feed back from the community.  Or you could visit Dr. Davis for a paid visit where he could actually help you as he can't legally practice medicine over his blog.

I'd vote for too low of cholesterol where you are unable to fight the pathogen that is causing the problem in your veins.  The chest pain could be psychosomatic or a sodium/potassium/magnesium imbalance.  You might also want to up the Omega3 intake to 6 grams, at least, of the actual omega3 (usually around 300mg per 1000mg fish oil pill)  robbwolf has a link under tools for a fish oil calculator.

Jonathan,
My diet isn't that complicated.
Typical:
Morning: Pastured Eggs, Asparagus, 1/2 cup cot cheese, some nuts, ground flax, raw milk. 1200 mg dha/epa. sometimes strawberries.  8 oz Coffee with a teaspoon raw honey.  Vit D supp.

Lunch:  Large salad (dark green) with raw broccoli, tomatoes, peppers etc with coconut oil and apple cider vinegar. Beef or bison baked or cooked over low heat in coconut oil in a frying pan, once per week sardines, veggies and a banana,600 mg dha/epa. 8 oz coffee, no sweetner.

Dinner: Baked chicken breast (last 3 weeks with skin) or beef if I've  had bison for lunch, veggies and a sweet potato-plain, an orange. Sometimes some nuts....6 almonds.  1200 mg dha/epa

snack before meds at night: greek yogurt (recently switched to pastued/raw) a tablespoon raisins.

If I get hungry between meals I'll have some almonds...about 6-8 or walnuts raw, strawberries.

I also include a protein shake once and awhile of raw milk and whey powder (no fat/no carbs powder). If I do I cancel the breakfast milk. I only drink 8 oz per day. I may be going to relace the cot cheese with the shake in the near future.
I also have salmon every few weeks.

That's about it. Potassium and mag are ok. Thyroid also.

That's about it.

Hi All,
Please take a look at the latest blog of "The Healthy Sceptic" regarding fish oil!  May make us all rethink how much fish oil we take daily.

@tommy
what was your last CRP, vitamin D and homocysteine level? how is your general energy? do you feel less energetic after eating certain meals or foods?

Tommy,

This isn't the whole answer - but - don't take your Vitamin D anywhere near fiber.  Also, as wonderful as milk is, it's fat and sugar combined, not unlike  Twinkies.  There may be some other things you have hidden in your diet as well.

Steve

Dr. Davis:

Can you verify for us the protocols under which both CAC scoring scans were done?  The equipment used on each, the scanning protocol, type of software used, whether the same radiologist scored both tests, etc.?

While you mention that Freddie's serum D was raised to 66 ng/ml with supplementation and that he experienced tremendous weight loss, and you also mention the absence of any statin, to what do you actually attribute the rather outsized decrease in CAC score?  Possible error or scan variation?  Different equipment?  Or?   If not any of these, then what do you think was the mechanism of action causing the change in score?

Tommy,
Think about joining TYP. Lots of info on the forum alone that would help you.

Consider an NMR to get your particle number.

great work dr davis.

regarding your previous articles on thyroid i discovered ferrous ascorbate helps with thyroid functioning too.

off topic but i was excited to report this discovery. please check it out yourself!

Tommy, you mentioned before stress, anger, and sleep issues - that's probably where you need to focus.  Also, have you always had the low carb diet you have now or is it more recent?

Anon,

That was last year I sleep good now; 7.5-8 hrs and more on weekends. My energy levels are usually great. Stress? That I don't see going away anytime soon.

Hi, Tommy--

Sara beat me to it: Yes, join our discussions in Track Your Plaque, particularly our Forum discussions. Your very serious questions really cannot be fully considered here. The Forum will yield lots of helpful feedback.

There may be an Apo E4 issue here, for instance. Another possibility: postprandial abnormalities.

Doc - you need to get on TV.  I'm going to make some calls...

@Pater_Fortunatos

In Romania small LDL is not measured, as far as I know. I checked the Synevo website and they don't do it. VLDL is a precursor of small LDL.

Anaonymous said: "Hi All,
Please take a look at the latest blog of "The Healthy Sceptic" regarding fish oil! May make us all rethink how much fish oil we take daily."

'The Healthy Skeptic' is an acupuncturist and promoter of alternative therapies. He obviously don't understand the meaning of irony.

Thanks for your post and welcome to check: here.

Well, since you touch on it, i'd be very interested in what you think about GF alternative flours.

I know you have said in various places to avoid wheat & "corn starch."  Also indications that oats are not very good for us either.  But there are so many other grains.  Amaranth & quinoa are both supposed to be high in protein. Buckwheat?  Corn meals?  Millet?  I could go on & on.

Are nut & coconut flours the only option to living low carb?  

I try to keep your recommendations in mind, but frankly, i struggle with giving up all grains.

Thanks.

Dr Davis, I certainly appreciate you looking for alternatives to the destruction wheat poses, but seems like this product may have issues as well?

Wouldn't the problems with soy greatly out weigh anything positive one could gain from using tofu?

This was taken from an article on Dr. Mercola's site concerning tofu. http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/09/18/what-s-so-bad-about-tofu.aspx

"Many health-conscious Americans, in an effort to improve their eating habits, have switched to eating tofu in place of meat or eggs. The soy industry would have you believe that this is a smart move for your heart health, but in reality processed soy, which includes tofu, is not a health food.

You are much better off eating organic eggs, grass-fed meat and raw dairy products than you are eating processed soy.

"Unlike in Asia where people eat small amounts of whole soybean products, western food processors separate the soybean into two golden commodities--protein and oil. There's nothing safe or natural about this,” Dr. Daniel says.

To Kent:  shirataki noodles are available WITHOUT soy, but you have to order those online, mostly the grocery store variety has soy.  The ones from MiracleNoodle.com are soy free.  I buy mine online at amazon.com, try this link: http://www.amazon.com/JFC-White-Shirataki-Noodles-16-0/dp/B002GDH5Y8/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&s=grocery&qid=1287069415&sr=1-6

I don't miss noodles enough to bother with these, but I have tried them.  They work best with Asian-style noodle dishes better than Italian-style dishes, IMO.  I used the noodles made without tofu, however, as I make antibodies to soy, so I avoid it.

One thing to note for those who try these noodles for the first time - when the package is first opened the aroma is slightly fishy.  They are NOT spoiled.  The smell will go away when they are drained and rinsed.  I tossed two packages before I discovered that was normal.  

Dana Carpender, a popular low carb cookbook author and blogger, had a post up on her Hold The Toast blog not long ago about these noodles.

Kathryn,

Quinoa, and maybe amaranth (I haven't looked at the protein content of that one)  IS higher in protein (and the protein is more complete) than the common grains, but I wouldn't say it is HIGH in protein.  It still has a considerable amount of starch.  That's probably fine if for those who have a robust glucose tolerance.   But I need to limit starches, so I still limit these foods.  I might toss in a handful of quinoa to a pot of stew to thicken it up, but per serving, that's not much at all.  

The longer I cook for my family with little or no without grains, the less I miss them.   I'd like my son to grow up without a huge craving for grain foods.

Anna, you beat me to the punch.

I call these noodles "FISH STRINGS"
They smell bad

I guess it's better then pasta, but all in all, it's still a pretty processed product.

Marc

Try Kelp Noodles sometime. I get them at Whole Foods, in the Deli case (refrigerated).  They're virtually tasteless and when cooked have a great noodle texture.

I much prefer them to Shirtaki noodles.

Sorry doc, But now you avoid the gluten from grains and you introduce the lectins from the legume soy. This leads to a leaky gut and autoimmune diseases http://bit.ly/a9Gvjk

soy noodles??!?! tofu....for real?

"Unlike in Asia where people eat small amounts of whole soybean products, western food processors separate the soybean into two golden commodities--protein and oil. There's nothing safe or natural about this,” Dr. Daniel says."

While I agree with the soy issue and stay away from processed soy (I do eat a little fermented soy tempeh) I am not sure about these reports I've read about the Japanese eating soy in small amounts. A Japanese friend of mine who recently came back to the U.S. after living in Japan for a few years says that there are actually Tofu stands on the street much like hot dog vendors in the U.S. He says they have tofu of all kinds (even flavored) and it is a popular snack. According to him Tofu is everywhere in Japan. He was puzzled when I mentioned the reports of low soy/tofu consumption in Asia.

I tried shirataki noodles for the first time and loved them. I agree Asian dishes would be absolutely delightful with these noodles.

@Kent. I have heard a fair amount about this Dr. Mercola you speak of. Sounds like he's not the most sciencific guy out there. Is he just out there trying to sell his products and really not caring about the science part of it?

See below:
http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/?p=2116

Dr Mercola is one of the only sane voices out there and he is right about soy.  And yes he IS science based, the difference is he tells the truth and doesn't hide the truth and just dole out pills like most doctors.

http://www.quackwatch.com/11Ind/mercola.html

of course the government tries to silence Dr Mercola, if they knew about the Heart Scan blog they'd try to silence its author as well since it doesnt recommend the food pyramid and tons of grains to support the US dept of Agriculture, LOL.  Its so obvious.

Tommy, if you are interested in good, alternative medicine & natural ways of healing, Quackwatch is NOT the place to get your info.  He is paid much money to present his very biased (in favor of conventional medicine) articles.  

If he doesn't yet have an article on what Dr. Davis does here, he probably soon will.

Let me add a qualifying comment.

This, and perhaps some other ideas and suggestions in future, are simply meant to help people who seek replacements for familiar wheat-based foods.

However, I believe that we should still focus primarily on real foods, not substitutes. Real eggs, real meats, real vegetables, real nuts, etc.

Foods like shirataki noodles are meant to be occasional fun dishes.

For the majority of people, I do not share Joe Mercola's fear of soy, provided you take an iodine source such as kelp tablets.

Hi, Kathryn--

Gluten-free foods are candy, unfortunately.

Here's my previous post on this issue: http://heartscanblog.blogspot.com/2010/07/what-increases-blood-sugar-more-than.html

Quackwatch busted:  http://www.gaia-health.com/articles251/000277-quackbusters-are-busted.shtml

I have never read or followed Quackwatch and have no interest. While Googling Mercola that popped up. Ionly  posted it only as a statement that for every claim of life saving/altering advice one can point out there are just as many who disagree with it and show data to support their disagreements with all these doctors and gurus, diets etc.

I continue to be amazed at the support "both" sides of all this diet stuff show; all with supporting data and studies.  It sort of reminds me of the Helmet law wars the bikers used to have with the Government. For every proof (with studies) of the safety of helmets there was  also a counter (with studies) of the danger.  It seems the same with diet.  I feel like I'm watching a tennis match...lol. My head goes back and forth, back and forth...

@Tommy
I totally agree! I've been on both sides and they both have their 'scientific' proof. Also, everyone seems to want to or have to lose weight. That too is quite frustrating for me since I've been slender all my life and have no high BP or triglycerides - just have to watch my blood sugar. And here too both sides have their proof that it works. UGHHH!!!

I've tried these and really have tried to give them a place but they taste like rubber. The worst.

Spaghetti squash. Problem solved.

Right on Carl, spaghetti squash rocks.

SHiritaki noodles with soy are typically about 20% soy so that's not going to be a ton of soy unless you eat them often.  The other 80% is fiber from a tuber.  You actually don't need to boil these noodles, just rinse well and then add to your dish at the last minute to heat them.  Over cooking makes them more rubbery.  YOu really only need to heat them.  They also will NOT soak up liquid so make sure your sauce is plenty thick before adding the noodles.  If anything the noodles tend to release a bit of water back into the dish.  I don't normally eat soy but am OK with the small amount in an occasional dish of shiritaki noodles.

I'm very sensitive to starches, and grains, pseudo-grains, and starchy tubers all spike and crash my blood sugar. Beans, however, do not. When I want to indulge in pasta, I buy mung bean fettuccine at the healthfood store. They're made from whole mung beans, not refined mung bean starch, like the translucent, mung bean based, Asian noodles.

I use zucchini and yellow squash as a great low-carb replacement for noodles. Not only do they lack carbs, but they are a decent source of some vitamins and minerals.

Check out miraclenoodle.com, they have the soy free and have tons of varieties, try the orzo!!!