Hey there!
Hope you’ve enjoyed the first Saturday of November. I don’t know about you all, but I’m in total holiday mode now. The Uggs are on, as are the scarves and puffy vest. I was already browsing the holiday cards at Target today, and I love lighting our comforting candles in the morning and at night as I sip hot coffee, or a cup of spicy tea.
Some of you may remember when I learned I had high cholesterol [read: My Serious Sugar Struggle Part III]. It wasn’t a complete shock that my cholesterol was at the high end for hereditary reasons, but people are definitely surprised when I tell them that I, the runner/vegetarian/Nutrition Nut, have high cholesterol.
Most people my age have never had their blood lipids checked, but being the health nut that I am, I decided to check-in on my borderline high levels — it’s been nearly a year, and I was curious if anything’s changed.
1 quick prick, $4!, and less than 48 hours later, I had results – thank you, Student Health Center.
December 2010
- Total: 209 mg/dL
- LDL: 142 mg/dL
- HDL: 67 mg/dL
- Triglycerides: 56 mg/dL
November 2011
- Total: 183 mg/dL
- LDL: 105 mg/dL
- HDL: 67 mg/dL
- Triglycerides: 57 mg/dL
My LDL/HDL ration is 1.57 or “below average risk”.
I was very happy to see that my total and bad (LDL) cholesterol both decreased significantly. I’ve played around with my “diet” since December, but obviously, I can’t pinpoint the cause(s) of my healthier numbers (no drugs for me).
The rest of my blood results were sparkling – nothing out of range – so, I figured I’d give back another pint of my healthy blood to someone in need.
After two finger pricks to check my iron, I was denied to donate today, so I walked away with a free movie pass – score! – dreaming up an iron-rich dinner menu.
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quinoa & black bean bowl with roasted sweet potato & red onion (olive oil, maple syrup, cinnamon, s+p), crumbled chevre and crunchy raw pepitas
As a pescatarian, I struggle with my iron and protein intake (they go hand-in-hand).
Before I try to donate again, I plan to load up on some of my high-in-iron favorites:
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dark leafy greens
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soybeans
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tofu
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molasses cookies – yum!
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oatmeal
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beans
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sunflower seeds
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dried apricots
…as well as decrease my caffeine and increase my Vitamin C (Vitamin C helps with the body’s absorption of iron).
Enough with this nerdy post already… I promise more exciting things are to come!
Hillary
bella bars.
Spiking Summer with Spindrift
my college kitchen.
5 Things I’ve Done to Enhance My Digestion
My {Fall} Kitchen Staples
who won the giveaway?
the winner will be announced today…
i struggle with my iron intake as well – but i love to see the options non-meat eaters have to still get adequate iron!
Hillary – have you ever tried Cream of Wheat for iron? I’m often rejected to donate blood and it’s one of the suggestions the nurses give to me. Some people don’t like the texture. I like mine with brown sugar.
I’m 99% vegan and rarely have any trouble with the protein thing. Legumes, whole grains, loaded veggies, nuts and the like and I’m good. Add in soy products like tempeh and tofu and I’m over the charts! Good luck and congrats on the cholesterol!
I liked this nerdy post! Haha, great links though :)
I struggle with my iron, too, and I eat all the foods on the list of vegetarian sources the Red Cross gave me (chickpeas, spinach, etc.). It’s not too low (just too low to give blood), but I have read that vegetarians, women, and runners typically have low iron. I fit all three of those categories, so that makes sense!
Wow, that’s great Hillary!! Good news for your health :)