Familial Hyperlipidemia

One thing I want to clarify about my cholesterol is my lifestyle. I’m an active rock climber and I eat low-fat, low-cholesterol, low carbohydrate meals, if you can consider them meals at all. Balanced is what I’d call them, and healthy is what I’d add. I have a vegan friend that lives in another part of town who has allowed me to try some of her vegan faire and I’ve adopted much of this into my own diet. I limit my meat to fish and chicken and try to eat plant-based proteins more often, as well as greens and salads with little or no dressing. The basic problem is threefold.

First, a genetic condition on my father’s side called familial hyperlipidemia, or high blood cholesterol by default. Second, medication called statins that make it difficult to move around without pain, and third, medications that I take for my mental disorders that all have the side effect of weight gain (yes, I’m overweight). None of those are excuses. They’re just facts. So I’m open to suggestions and doing what I can to manage my health.