When you write a post about health and nutrition, it’s kind of fun to see who comes out of the woodwork. It’s kind of nice to know I’m not the only (yikes) mid-30-something with cholesterol issues not controlled by diet and exercise. And Mom reminded me that I’ve probably inherited it through my father and his father. Thanks, Dad. You can’t give me the long legs or sweet metabolism, but you give me the crappy cholesterol. Oh well, I guess I can’t be perfect.
After posting, I realized that I did have access to some old cholesterol numbers, thanks to my blog. I wrote about my cholesterol test back in 2012. Really, I should be keeping track of these numbers better, but those are the only numbers I have available.
The bad news? My numbers weren’t good then either.
The good news? All the markers are very slightly improved. Not enough to make me think that diet and exercise is going to fix everything, but it is reassuring to know that things haven’t gotten significantly worse either.
I like having the numbers in front of me. So many times, doctors just say “Your levels are fine,” or “this needs work,” but I like to be able to quantify things. I understand why doctors don’t give out the numbers all the time. They don’t need people going and asking Dr. Google about their health. (Spoiler alert: you think it’s a papercut, but you ask Dr. Google and it’s probably cancer.)
I know plenty of people who don’t get annual physicals and never have their bloodwork run so take this as a reminder to have those tests done! I live a healthy enough life and I end up with stupidly unhealthy bloodwork anyway. It’s better to know and take precautionary measures. And getting a physical isn’t that bad. I promise.