Small LDL: Simple vs. complex carbohydrates
Summary of another great post from Dr. Davis: He has a client who's lukewarm about changing the wheat in his diet - but needs to change something! His LDL is over 262 mg/dl LDL, of which 89% is small LDL (very high).
The client replaced all sugar and refined flour products with whole grains, but did not restrict whole grain consumption. LDL dropped to ~ 245 mg/dl, but maintained 81% of LDL small particles.
The client then eliminated the whole grains, and his LDL dropped to ~ 139 mg/dl, of which only 48.9% were the dangerous small LDL, a reduction of over 65% since the first test. Wow!
Dr. D's conclusion: "This is typical of the LDL responses I see with elimination of wheat products on the background of an overall carbohydrate restriction: Big drops in precisely measured LDL as LDL particle number (i.e., an actual count of LDL particles, not LDL cholesterol) and big drops in the number of small LDL particles. You might say that wheat elimination and limitation of carbohydrate intake can yield statin-like values . . . without the statin."
That's a big deal. Notice the clarity provided by measuring the results before, during and after, vice the normal mish mash of theory you get when folks just speculate about one formula or another. The interesting thing to know is how much grain the client was eating, and also what foods he used to replace the grain he eliminated.
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