Changes in diet and exercise take 3 to 6 months to lower cholesterol

Q: After I was diagnosed with high cholesterol, I changed my diet to include more grains, less fats and as little as possible high fructose corn syrup and partly hydrogenated anything. As for exercise, I bicycle regularly. How long, if at all, does it take to reverse the damage done by 36 years of eating garbage? Also, do supplements like Cholest-off from Nature Made and One-a-Day's Cholesterol Plus vitamins do anything? — S.C., Ballwin

A: The answer to your first question is "it depends." Depending on how aggressive your diet, exercise and weight management is, it often takes three to six months to see a change in your lipid profile for LDL, or bad cholesterol, says Dotti Durbin, a dietitian at Washington University's Heart Care Institute in West County.

"As people try to modify their diet, they need to restructure their plate," Durbin says. And she literally means your dinner plate. She recommends filling your plate half with vegetables, a quarter with lean meats, fish or poultry and a quarter with whole grains or starchy vegetables. Decreasing proteins and fatty foods and increasing fruits, vegetables and foods rich in soluble fibers (think dried beans and oats) will help lower your cholesterol and make your diet healthier.

On to the second question about supplements like Cholest-off and Cholesterol Plus: "They're probably not harmful, but be careful of what is in the product," Durbin says. "Often supplements promise too much."



Supplements are not regulated by the FDA, so the labels can make claims that aren't entirely True. "It's better to get your nutrients through food," she says.

On the positive side: Some food products contain plant sterols and stanols (think plant membranes) that help the body absorb less cholesterol from foods. Foods fortified with plant sterols are beverages like Minute Maid Heartwise Orange Juice, Benecol and Promise Activ margarines and Promise Supershots.

Q: What muscles are used when you use a recumbent trainer vs. a regular road bicycle? — S.C., Ballwin

A: About 90 percent of the muscles used with a recumbent trainer are the same as when you're riding a regular road bike. Kathy Ostrander, exercise physiologist at BJC WellAware Center, says you're using quadriceps, gluteus maximus and calf muscles on both.

"On the recumbent bike, you don't use as much of the core muscles," Ostrander says. "The recumbent is much more comfortable for someone who has back pain."

Riding a regular bicycle uses more of the core muscles, lower back and the entire gluteal group.

"As far as effort level goes, you can get a road bike workout on a recumbent by increasing the intensity level," she said. "On a street bike you can stand up and use more muscle variation."


taken from STL Today