Pancreatis and Cholesterol Disease

[Guest guest]

Rosie,

You wrote, " I've been told that my cholesterol levels are quite high and I

wondered whether this was part of my CP - or just another random symptom.? "

Cholesterol problems are definitely associated with certain disease processes,

particularly diabetes [which is almost synonymous with pancreatitis], as well as

liver disease and hypothyroidism (low levels of thyroid hormones). People with

diabetes tend to have LDL particles that stick to arteries and damage their

walls more easily. Glucose (a type of sugar) latches onto lipoproteins.

Sugar-coated LDL remains in the blood-stream longer and may lead to plaques.

People with diabetes tend to have low HDL and high triglyceride (another kind of

blood fat) levels, both of which boost the risk of heart and artery disease. To

learn more about this very real concern go to:

http://www.diabetes.org/uedocuments/ADACardioReview3.pdf

It is titled, " Diabetic Dyslipidemia " .

There are also a variety of other things that affect cholesterol levels.

1. Diet. It is true that animals and their byproducts (especially egg yolks,

meat, poultry, fish, seafood and whole-milk dairy products) contain cholesterol

and that foods from plants (fruits, vegetables, grains, nuts and seeds) do not.

It is unusual for persons to be complete vegetarians and not consume any daily

products at all. Oils and other saturated fats are also difficult to avoid.

2. Weight. Being overweight tends to increase your cholesterol. Losing weight

can help lower your LDL and total cholesterol levels, as well as raise your HDL

and lower your triglyceride levels.

3. Physical Activity. Not being physically active is a risk factor for heart

disease. Regular physical activity can help lower LDL (bad) cholesterol and

raise HDL (good) cholesterol levels. It also helps you lose weight.

4. Age and Gender. As women and men get older, their cholesterol levels rise.

Before the age of menopause, women have lower total cholesterol levels than men

of the same age. After the age of menopause, women's LDL levels tend to rise.

5. Heredity. Your body actually produces all the cholesterol it needs on its

own, but sometimes this can be too much. Your genes partly determine how much

cholesterol your body makes. High blood cholesterol can run in families.

6. Cigarette smoking can lower HDL.

7. Several medicines can worsen cholesterol levels. These include widely used

drugs such as thiazide diuretics (a kind of water pill), oral estrogens (such as

in birth control pills) and some beta-blockers (a class of blood pressure

drugs).

As a closing note: If you are not insulin dependent, please do not ignore the

significance of this problem. Any disase of the pancrease, especially one like

pancreatitis which is progressive, is a high risk factor.

Karyn E. , RN

Executive Director, PAI

Pancreatitis Association International