I know this is a medical question but I need an Aussie answer.

My DH has just had his first check-up since he started low carbing and his cholesterol results were given to him as: -

Cholesterol - down from 6.4 to 5.3
Triglicerides - down from 1.8 to 0.6

Now I'm not sure what this means. As far as I can find out, HDL is the good cholesterol and should not be less than 40g. LDL is the bad cholesterol and should be less than 100mg.

Does anyone know how to interpret his results?

no i think you should call the doc and ask to have it explained clearly. just remember, often cholesterol can creep up at first, then drop...some people take 3-6 months before this happens.

Yes, after I made the post I thought the same and made him ring the doctor. They faxed through about 5 pages of pathology reports to him which showed all the readings in detail and also explained what the healthy ranges are. I haven't examined them myself but he is rapt with the results as all of his levels have improved. Can't necessarily put the improvements down to low carbing as he's only been doing it for 4 months and didn't get a pre-Atkins test done but it's still an excellent result. I can't wait to get mine done.

in the 6 months my g/f low carbed her cholesterol went from 2.6 to 5.7 ...Quiet a dramatic increase!
I nbever had mine checked pre-atkins but after 6 months of low carbing it was at 6.5 ...rather high.
This worried me and we have both since stopped low carbing.
Does any1 have any thoughts on this ?

It's been a couple of months since I did all my cholesterol research so I would rather not give advice on you and your friend's results. I will say however that it's more about the individual results (HDL, LDL and triglicerides) rather than the overall ratio. My good cholesterol (HDL) increased, bad cholesterol (Triglicerides) decreased and other bad cholesterol (LDL) increased a small amount. My overall ratio went up so you see it's not necessarily a bad thing if this happens so long as the individual results are within the recommended guidelines. My DH's results were very similar to mine.

The guidelines (according to my pathology report) are as follows:-

Cholesterol <5.5
Trigliceride <2
HDL >1
LDL < 3.5

there are certain risk factors (diabetes, heart disease etc.) that can change these values but I don't have that information at hand.

I suggest you read the sticky in the cholesterol and heart disease forum on this site as it is very informative.

Also as you never had yours checked pre-atkins how do you know it didn't improve?

Thanks Zed,
From memory I think my LDL was elevated.
You're right I don't know it didn't improve, if it did however it must have been sky high b4 hand
I do know my g/f's increased dramatically.

although I'm by no means an expert, I'll reinforce the fact that the ratio of HDL vs LDL is more important than the overall value. My HDL is at the upper of the normal range, and my doc is happy with that. He is also thrilled that my triglycerides are very low. I dont have pre LC comparisons though.

My theroy is that the overall health benefits of losing weight in the long run will by far outweigh any temporary changes in bloodwork.

Hrmm I spose i'll try again and give it more time
Might even purchase an Atkin's book! ..on that note isn't there 2 or 3 different ones ..if so what's the difference?
to be totally honest i don't know all the nitty gritty just the basics

It's definately worth getting the book. It was reissued a couple of years ago, and there is also an Atkins for life book. The one you want is called Doctor Atkins New Diet Revolution.

Good luck!

Thanks got the book and have just started again (2nd day of induction) ...so will see what happens.
I had some blood work done pre diet so at least now i have something concrete to compare with