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High calcium score: I'm in shock
Heart & Blood Health | Last Active: Nov 4 2:36pm | Replies (214)Comment receiving replies
Well, it probably depends on one's baseline. If you're eating fast food breakfast tacos, fast food burgers, steaks and pork chops for dinner with fatty snacks between, then sure. But in these cases medical intervention with BP meds, and cholesterol lowering meds is likely first line (I'm not a med professional) while long term diet modification occurs.
In many of the cases posted here, folks are simply dealing with the long term cholesterol buildup (60 years in many cases) ... so sure, slowing progression with diet change helps, but it took a long time to get to the high cholesterol buildup.
In my case - I've been married for nearly 50 years - we eat at home most of the time. We had kids and when there was no other choice did fast food, but cooked most of the time at home. Net - I ate what my wife ate. Had a bit more alcohol, but pretty much same intakes. Her CAC zero, my CAC 1365.
I take statin, BP med (mild), 81mg aspirin, icosapent ethyl, vitamin. She takes no statin, no aspirin, no icosapent ethyl.
The genetic predisposition ... sorry, got off topic!
Replies to "Well, it probably depends on one's baseline. If you're eating fast food breakfast tacos, fast food..."
I am in the same boat but had a NSTEMI at 57. I had a CAC score of 952…but I have been eating well…low carb plant based for over 30 years, exercise regularly, and love life and my job. I have statin intolerance, so could not take statins, but avoided red meat and saturated fats.
It wasn’t until John’s Hopkins tested me for Lipoprotein(a). It is a separate risk for CVD. My test came back at 312 nmol. Get your Lipoprotein(a) tested - it is not included in your lipid panel. You are doing all the right things…and remember…the stuff(calcified plaque) you see is not as dangerous as the stuff the doctors don’t see.
My brother smoked and drank for 40 years, was overweight, stressful job, and had a pretty rough diet from so much travel for work. He has been on low dose statins for nearly 15 years and has a lower CAC score (125), younger than me, and heart attack. His Lp(a) is 188 nmol…still high but less than mine. I think the statins helped him… So sometimes lifestyle doesn’t really matter. 😉
Kindest regards…life is good.
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It's a fair conversation and I agree that baseline matters.
I'm looking for data showing a causation or correlation between sudden diet changes, primarily a reduction of daily saturated fat from animals, and cvd.
My numbers are managed except CAC 1,208. However, I lost both grandfather's to arteriosclerosis.
Everything I'm finding is data linking saturated fat with cvd progression.
My goal is to stop the progression of lesions and formation of new blockage.
Is there opposing data for more than short-term future?
Im thinking where I'll be in 10 or 15 years.
Yes, it's calcified now. I am wondering about my brain and the rest of my circulatory system that may not have as much blockage yet.
My inner voice is saying the diet that got me here is not going to change direction and get me where I want to go. Years 10-15-20-25...