ExRx.net

Yeh, I know (sigh).

Josh, what are you doing with diet? Metabolic syndrome is easy to reverse with proper diet although the medical community seems to be mystified by it. Are you currently on statins? Have you ever had a heart attack or been diagnosed with heart disease?

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Let thy food be thy medicine, and thy medicine be thy food.~Hippocrates
Strength is the adaptation that leads to all other adaptations that you really care about - Charles Staley
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Thanks TimD

I try to adhere to the usual wisdom - low glycemic loads achieved by frequent small meals of low glycemic index foods, no simple carbs of any kind, mostly unsaturated fat, no trans, etc.
Being the couch potato I was at the time, this was the first line of action I took when diagnosed. Didn't do much for me, but I never had a problem with my weight anyway, and my diet was not too bad to begin with. I am one of those who have to blame their parents, not their food, for their poor state. Meds together with my training are doing the job except for the diabetes with which I still fight with only some success.
Yes and no - but let's not get into the anti-statins debate (BTW, for some reason I only find it in fitness groups).

The low glycemic carb thing only works in heathy populations. It does nothing to significantly improve metabolic syndrome. There is a mystical assumption that there are nutritional benefits from grains. That's only true relative to the normal crap diet. Read "The Paleo Solution" by Rob Wolfe or "The Primal Blueprint" by Mark Sisson. Implementing either approach (They're very similar) will involve eliminating grains and dairy (2 or the 4 foods groups), at least initially, and will involve increasing animal foods and vegetables. Your genetics don't determine your health. Genetics increase liklihoods of issues that may arise but your environment, mainly food, contribute most to your health.

Side effects from Statins cause muscle problems (liver too) and those side effects become very obvious to someone who is tuned into using their muscles. That's why it's common on fitness forums. That's the last I'll say on it as I know it's upsetting when people contradict their doctor.

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Let thy food be thy medicine, and thy medicine be thy food.~Hippocrates
Strength is the adaptation that leads to all other adaptations that you really care about - Charles Staley
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Thanks TimD

I'm wondering if Gemfribrozil falls into the statin catagory, as I stopped taking it about 2 or 3 months ago, and I'm always having problems with muscle injuries. I lost a few lbs. (13), and my tris were 300 with gem., and are now 300 without using nician, but the good to bad col. wasn't the best, so I'm taking extra fish oil, and trying to (am losing) lose more weight. And now just for fun I came down with psoriais and was told it goes to joints. Love it.

Speaking of injuries, I was doing a very careful (bad back) 3 sets of 120lb bench, 140 curls, 240 (the weider only goes to 240) shrug, and after all the wonderful injuries Im doing 70 bench, 60 curls, 80 shrugs out of fear of hurting myself again, and I'm getting weaker. Ain't it great? I work out to get weaker.

Frank, I'm not ignoring your question, it's just that I don't know anymore than a Google search would turn up. Jungledoc might know but I assume he didn't see this.

Josh, just so you know I'm not just blowing smoke about Paleo as a treatment for Metabolic Syndrome, I offer these references as background reading. http://www.paleoforlife.org/success/metabolic-syndrome

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Let thy food be thy medicine, and thy medicine be thy food.~Hippocrates
Strength is the adaptation that leads to all other adaptations that you really care about - Charles Staley
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Thanks TimD

Thanks for the link Stu!

Gemfibrizil is a bile acid sequestrant, so it works by a different mechanism than the statins. It, like the statins and all medications, has side effects, but like the statins and all other medications (a risky generalization here), the side effects only affect a portion of people using them, while the others enjoy the unalloyed benefits, to some degree or another. Statins are not inherently evil. They (again, like all medications) have side effects that must be monitored for and responded to, but they benefit many people, and have prolonged the life of many.

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Our greatest fear should not be of failure, but of succeeding at things in life that don't really matter.--Francis Chan

The thing with grains is that it's very difficult for me to give them up: it's a non-expensive, easily available, tasty and filling source of carbs. Life without bread, rice and pasta? I guess it's possible, but I would hate it. There is only that much legumes can do. That's why I never gave too much thought to many low-carbs diets as opposed to low-fat which is much easier for me to follow). However, after reading that link I will probably do some more reading and give it another thought.

Thanks for taking the time Doc, you are a nice asset to this forum!
I'm hoping by getting all my weight off I won't need the Gem. Also my diet for the most part is low/almost no carb unless I go nuts.

Nuts are also low-carb, though!

Sorry, couldn't resist.