This past holiday season, I had my blood tests after eating lechon on three occassions. Not only eating, but feasting. Gained 10 lbs. So had my results the day after the test and the doctor came screaming in the email. All my cholesterol, especially the LDL are more than twice the minimum allowable for my age. My sugars are high, and almost all the indicators in my blood are high and the doctor prescribed statins and blood pressure lowering drugs, and if so, I will have to abstain eating citruses and drinking sweet wine.

So I argued that the blood tests were biased as they were taken right after the Holidays and she agreed to have my blood tested again after 2 weeks. So I said to myself, the stakes are really too high. First not eating any citruses nor drinking any wine is like not having any life at all. I don't like taking any medications either.

So I went on a strict diet of eating only fish, beans, fruits, veggies, nuts and wine. I cut back on rice and bread. Then walked my dog every night for 30 minutes. Two weeks and I lost 10 pounds and went for the blood test. It now came back all normal and so the prescribed medications were withdrawn, and my doctor congratulated me and told that very few people are able to change that so quickly in so short a time with just diet and excercise when my LDL level were that high.

But the real motivation for me is I can't afford not to eat citruses like Oro Blancos, Melogold, blood oranges, even the Star Ruby, Rio Star, Calamondins, lemons. How can my world be without these fruits, especially if they can be had straight from my yard?

So I think excercise and proper diet are key, and I think citruses now helps as a natural medication for me. I still eat little bits of beef, pork, chocolates, only to satisfy my palate but not indulge.

I also began making Hibiscus sabdariffa wine again, as there are now concrete scientific evidences that the flower extracts are effective at lowering the LDL in your blood ( http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=11902968&dopt=Abstract ). I combine these with red grape juice such as cabernet, merlot or concord after extracting the colors from the hibiscus flowers. Have some batches brewing again last weekend. And also make wine from bitter melon and cinnamon, which are proven diabetes busters.

I agree with you Joe, and also not eating citrus would be a tragety not to mention that citrus has so many valuable nutrients and enzymes.

Hey JoeReal,

I'm really happy for you that you got the cholesterol down like that! Good for you!!

When reading your post this "make wine from bitter melon and cinnamon" jumped out at me. This must taste absolutely fantastic! I can't even imagine!!

wow, I didn't realize you were into making wime to this degree. Are your wines commercially available?

Glad you got your cholesterol under control, but what did citrus have to do with cholesterol?

I have been watching my cholesterol for years and had tried just about everything to get my HDL up. The last 2 test it has been 41-- the highest ever for me. My doc thinks I'm crazy, but I really believe that cinnamon and chocolate are the key-- I add 1/4 tsp of cinnamon to my coffee every morning and eat 2 pieces of Dove dark chocolate with my coffee. Before that the highest HDL was 37-- but usually it was below 35.

Skeet

Skeet, I think you need to eat unsalted almonds. They are proven to increase HDL. The recommended intake is about 15-25 almond nuts a day but you have to replace some food, calorie-wise with it. So what I did as to cut down on carbs, and replaced with about 20 almond nuts and drown it with red wine. My HDL was around 35 during the end of holiday blood tests, and the last tests showed that it is 47. I believe it is even higher now.

Well, about my LDL, the grapefruits have to do with it. I replaced my lunch with a whole grapefruit which could either be Melogold, Oro Blanco, Star Ruby, Texas Rio Star, whatever is available from the yard, and then one whole banana. If I go hungry by around 3:00 pm, I would gobble up an apple, a valencia or a satsuma. I found out I never felt sleepy with this regimen and felt energetic throughout the day at the office. Grapefruits are known to lower your LDL, that is why it is banned by doctors because they can't quantify its effect for an individual person if they are taking statins at the same time. Other substitutes would be tangelos and any pummelo or grapefruit cultivars and their hybrids. I even suspect that navels may also have the same effect as their tendency of their juices to become bitter.

What a shame! If ever I am finally visiting Cali, may I drop by for a glass?

Very intriguing, cheers

Here's the label of bitter melon wine. That wine even surprised myself. I didn't expect it to be so good that it was nominated and then given as gift to Philippine President.

And here's my latest Citrus wine. Blend of Yuzu and Calamondin:

Joe:
One of these days you are going to hit the jackpot and be rich for one of those wines of yours. You have to let the right person know that you have one that nobody has yet invented.

Joe, I'm impressed with just your labels! Your wine must be great!

As for the almonds, I tried that-- it helped get it from 32 to 37. I tried red wine too, but did not see much effect. I still eat lots of nuts. The thing that got me started on cinnamon was an article in a medical journal that tested 3, 6 and 12 g/day of cinnamon + controls in patients with high blood sugar in India. The 3 g dose was just as effective as 12 in reducing blood sugar. It appears that the active ingredient is poly-phenols-- the same ingredient believed responsible for effects from red wine, but they are much higher in cinnamon. The chocolate is very high in antioxidants--oxidants can destroy HDL.

I have read some of the stuff on grapefruit, you are right about it's effects on drugs-- I remember one article saying it could raise the serum leves of statins by as much as 7 fold! It clearly has active components that affect receptors.

Skeet

Benny, there is no such thing as a hit wine except when fad or fashion takes over the senses of the masses, then you could have a hit. Wines are like fruits, some you love more than others, and some you really hate. It also varies with your mood in what you like. Regardless of price, if you like the wine, buy it, it doesn't matter what the wine snobs, world's best wine critics, or others have to say, what matters is you really like it. I have been wrong a lot of times from the wines that I make and I would rank them low but then was surprised that they were a hit with my friends. Then there are those wines that I think no one would love, but then my friend's mother-in-law would love it to death and would fly all the way from Canada just to get that one last bottle I have.

I make wines primarily to preserve my excess fruits and not to get rich. While fresh fruits rot away with time, the wines get better with aging. When I sip, I remember the joys and pains of producing those fruits. The very cold mornings, the hot summers, the panic during the arctic blasts and the like...