Great post Malcolm,

Thank you for all you share here, it is so very much appreciated.

Greg,

Very glad you are ok and here telling us about that. Take care of yourself. I thought Statins were very hard on the liver. I suppose there needs to be a trade off when it comes to our health.

Tig,

I quite November 5th 1979 but who's counting. It was my birthday present to myself, one day after since why punish myself on my Birthday. Putting aside the healthy part of my quitting, In the mid 90's someone decided to calculate based on the price of cigarettes in the early 80's and of course appreciating the value since they went sky high and I very quickly realized that I almost bought a house with the money I had saved . It was the best present ever!

The price of a single pack in Ontario is between $8-$12 and a carton based on a google search was around $90 April 2015. In Manitoba it's around $125. Yes, we have taxes on the sin items. How people can still afford to smoke is beyond me. 

- glad you're all good Greg, sounds like a scary incident.

Thanks for bringing the topic up Malcolm - cholesterol had crossed my mind with SVR as I had read somewhere that people with Hep C tend to have low cholesterol and mine has been in the healthy range of low for many a year.

As my brother, who has quite a 'beer pot', also has low cholesterol I wasn't sure if mine was genetic, because of Hep C or because I mainly live quite healthily. I had an echo-cardio-something last week as my Gastroenterologist heard 'something' when I saw her at end of treatment and mentioned my heart racing and blood pressure going up during treatment.

With this timely reminder from Malcolm I'll be asking her about cholesterol when I see her next week.

Regards

Ari

Hi Greg,

Holy smokes! Sorry, I had to say that...   Forgive me! I'm so glad that you're okay. What a scare that must've been. I know you're serious about doing things right, so stick to that new healthy lifestyle and stay away from those cigarettes. I quit in 90 and am glad that I did. 

Good luck on your recovery!

Thank you Malcolm. (Do not want to alarm anyone...) Not sure about a link but as a smoker and evaluated at a high risk last December, I had a heart attack on the golf course exactly three smoke free weeks ago. Wasn't sure what was happening but it definitely felt like someone was squeezing my heart so of course, when I look back, it was a heart attack. Duh. Heart attacks appear in different ways so don't wait too long for any heart discomfort to 'go away' and fyi your left arm is not always involved. A couple of things saved me- I got to the hospital relatively quickly like within an hour and a half (by ambulance- no siren) and my heart responded well to what it was being given at the hospital. Three stents were navigated and positioned through an artery in my right arm the next morning and I am feeling great now with the help of a variety of mediation, statins included.

Anyways, I don't want to dwell too long on heart issues but Malcolm's advice is well stated and is something to definitely keep an eye on. Oh and be honest with your doctor, some people hide the fact that they closet smoke

This is a great bit of information regarding cholesterol Malcolm, Thank You!

Your post sums things up nicely and I find it very useful in helping to understand a more about good and bad cholesterol(s).

Thanks,

Dave

Thanks Malcolm, I enjoyed the post. Reminds me I need to get a physical scheduled. I could benefit from increased activity too. Just need to do it, tomorrow 

Hi all,

This may seem a bit off-topic but I think there is a link between HCV and fat metabolism.

Firstly, a bit about cholesterol. It's a complex waxy substance, essential for many body functions including hormone production and cell wall health. Most is produced in the liver, but we get some from foods, such as meat, cheese and egg-yolks. Excess cholesterol is broken down in the liver.

Cholesterol is released into the blood and carried by lipoproteins . There are two main types, HDL (High Density Lipoprotein) and LDL (Low Density Lipoprotein). The lipoproteins are part of the body's triglycerides, which are the fats, stored in the fat cells and used as an energy source. LDL is known as 'bad cholesterol' as it causes plaque, the hard fatty deposits seen in the walls of arteries. Plaque narrows arteries and can lead to heart attack, stroke and peripheral vascular disease. HDL is 'good cholesterol' as it causes the LDL to be removed.

We have our blood tests, and get a reading of 'Total Cholesterol'. This is a sum of the HDL, LDL and 20% of the blood triglycerides.

You may hear a person boast that their cholesterol is normal. This is only part of the story. A proper blood test gives results for: Total Cholesterol, Triglycerides, LDL cholesterol, HDL cholesterol and Cholesterol/HDL ratio.

Values have been standardised worldwide, but check with your Lab.

We need LDL Cholesterol to be <2.0 mmol/L and HDL Cholesterol to be >1.0 mmol/L, and the Triglycerides should be <1.5 mmol/L.

It is possible to have a 'normal' total Cholesterol but to have low HDL's.

People with abnormal results have a few options. Drugs like the 'Statins' reduce the LDL levels. Exercise, diet (fibre and tree-nuts) can increase the HDL.

Obviously the whole picture is governed by several things. Genetic make-up, obesity, race, gender, age, amount of exercise and diet all play a part.

I had a long chat with my Cardiologist yesterday, which is why I'm interested. I have always had a low-normal Total Cholesterol with normal HDLs and LDLs. During my 48 weeks of treatment, my HDLs began to drop. This was almost certainly due to lack of activity (I sat in a recliner for 48 weeks) and poor diet ( As I had to get through 18 pills a day at strict 8 hour intervals, I only ate a bit of yogurt). Since EOT, my HDLs stayed below 1.00, despite increased activity and a better diet. Yesterday, my HDLs were up to 1.4, from 0.8 6 months ago. I wonder how or why HCV can affect these levels. Perhaps it's just a coincidence. In any case, I'm happy as I didn't want to take any Statins.

This may be of interest to those who have achieved SVR. It'd be a real bummer to suffer a heart attack at this stage. Cheers.