Blood Test Results - Please Comment On My Condition

[yerrag]

Endocrine (no Reverse T3, unavailable):

• T3 -1.89 nmol/l
• T4 -112.60 nmol/l
• Free T3 - 5.70 pmol/L
• Free T4 - 17.53 pmol/L
• TSH - 0.847 uIU/ml

Chemistry:

• Sodium - 142.30 (mEq/L & mmol/L)
• Potassium - 4.47 (mEq/L & mmol/L)
• Calcium - 9.40 mg/dL; 2.35 mmol/L
• Ionized Calcium - 1.14 mmol/L
• Inorganic Phosphorus - 3.11 mg/dL; 1.00 mmol/L
• Magnesium - 2.03 mg/dL; 0.83 mmol/L
• Carbon Dioxide - 24.00 mmol/L
• True Glucose (fasting) - 106.50 mmol/L
• BUN - 15.54 mg/dl; 5.55 mmol/L
• Creatinine (male) - 0.93 mg/dL; 82.40 umol/L
• Uric Acid (male) - 7.49 mg/dL; 443.0 umol/L
• Total Cholesterol - 210.42 mg/dL; 5.45 mmol/L
• Triglycerides - 47.79 mg/dL; 0.54 mmol/L
• Lipoprotein Profile
  • VLDL Cholesterol - 9.56 mg/dL; 0.25 mmol/L
  • LDL Cholesterol - 144.88 mg/dL; 3.75 mmol/L
  • HDL Cholesterol - 55.98 mg/dL; 1.45 mmol/L
  • HDL Ratio - 3.76

Liver :

• SGPT (ALT) - 22.7 U/L
• SGOT (AST) - 21.2 U/L
• Alkaline Phosphatase - 46.0 U/L
• Amylase - 137.9 U/L
• Total Protein - 6.78 g/dL; 67.8 g/L
• Albumin - 3.74 g/dL; 37.40 g/L
• Globulin - 3.04 g/dL; 30.40 g/L
• A/G Ratio - 1.23
• Total Bilirubin - 0.44 mg/dL; 7.50 umol/L
• Indirect Bilirubin - 0.30 mg/dL; 5.10 umol/L
• Direct Bilirubin - 0.14 mg/dL; 2.40 umol/L

Hormones:

• Prolactin - 7.82 ng/ml
• Cortisol - 18.5 ug/dl
• Progesterone - 0.512 ng/ml
• Estrogen - 27 pg/mL

Hematology:

• Hemoglobin - 15.0 gms%; 150 g/L
• Hematocrit - 47.0 vol%; 0.47
• White Blood Cell - 4.5 x10^9/L
• Red Blood Cell - 5.18 x10^12/L
• Morphology (differential count):
  • Neutrophils - 0.74 (SI); 74 (traditional)
  • Lymphocytes - 0.23; 23
  • Monocytes - 0.02; 2
  • Eosinophils - 0.01; 1
  • Basophils - blank
  • Stabs - blank
• Platelet Count - 194

My body temperature has ranged from 33.9 (waking up) to a high of 35.6 the past 3 days. My blood pressure, during the same period, has ranged from a low of 165/100 to a high of 203/123. Pulse has ranged from a low of 58 to a high of 83 during the same period.

Aside from rT3, I lack some tests on the following - adrenalin, ammonia, free fatty acids, T-Wave on ECG, and basal metabolic rate. Would these be crucial?

Thanks for your comments and advice.

 

[Emstar1892]

Do you have reference ranges for any of these?

(The only thing that jumps out at a glance is the highish glucose, if you did indeed fast for this test?)

 

[yerrag]

Do you have reference ranges for any of these?

(The only thing that jumps out at a glance is the highish glucose, if you did indeed fast for this test?)

Glucose is on the high end of the reference range of 70-115. I was surprised it's that high lately. I have usually stayed on the mid-80s in the past w/r to glucose. I should probably put the reference range, but I thought better not to. The reference range gives me a bias towards feeling satisfied when I'm within that range, even when I know the reference range is not something we can rely on to say we're healthy. It, however, lets me know how far or near I am from the general population. Sorry for knowingly putting the burden on you not being able to see the reference range. If it's going to help, I can post it tomorrow.

 

[Emstar1892]

Glucose is on the high end of the reference range of 70-115. I was surprised it's that high lately. I have usually stayed on the mid-80s in the past w/r to glucose. I should probably put the reference range, but I thought better not to. The reference range gives me a bias towards feeling satisfied when I'm within that range, even when I know the reference range is not something we can rely on to say we're healthy. It, however, lets me know how far or near I am from the population. Sorry for knowingly putting the burden on you not knowing the reference range.

No worries at all, I understand your reasons for doing so. Indeed the reference ranges are very biased, and based on loose (often poorly compiled) correlations that vary from town to town! However, for some of these values like the electrolytes and minerals I can't remember ideal numbers off the top of my head (and am at work so don't have time to look them all up). I'm surprised you don't have an iron profile i.e. TIBC, ferritin, saturation etc?

 

[yerrag]

No worries at all, I understand your reasons for doing so. Indeed the reference ranges are very biased, and based on loose (often poorly compiled) correlations that vary from town to town! However, for some of these values like the electrolytes and minerals I can't remember ideal numbers off the top of my head (and am at work so don't have time to look them all up). I'm surprised you don't have an iron profile i.e. TIBC, ferritin, saturation etc?

Glad you mentioned them. I'm not familiar with all of them, but I had ferritin taken before, just to make sure my hemochromatosis condition did not come back. And it was fine since I donated blood to reduce the iron in my body. But maybe it's not. I was relying on the reference range. The ferritin I had from 3 years ago was 228 ng/mL, and the reference value was 30-400 ng/mL.

 

[PakPik]

Glucose is on the high end of the reference range of 70-115. I was surprised it's that high lately. I have usually stayed on the mid-80s in the past w/r to glucose. I should probably put the reference range, but I thought better not to. The reference range gives me a bias towards feeling satisfied when I'm within that range, even when I know the reference range is not something we can rely on to say we're healthy. It, however, lets me know how far or near I am from the population. Sorry for knowingly putting the burden on you not knowing the reference range.

I'm glad you were able to get your labs :)
It would be nice to have the reference range; by no means reference range are to make one feel everything is fine if results are within the range, it is just a guide.

Very briefly, it caught my attention that cortisol is on the high end, and glucose is as well. Cortisol is famous for raising blood sugar and free fatty acids, could there be a connection there?
I agree that a complete iron panel is important -serum iron and ferritin are not enough, they usually recommend Transferrin Saturation and TIBC for a more complete picture), at least to check if there's an overload condition.
Albumin seems a little lowish. Peat has said that the albumin range used to be 4-5 in the past, but the lower value has been set lower in recent times (I think 3.5-5 or so in most labs). He said the population is getting sicker and sicker, hence the new "normal" ranges.

You can check this source with Peat's quotes on Blood pressure Ray Peat, PhD on High Blood Pressure – Functional Performance Systems (FPS)

I don't think you've shared what your diet (calories, nutrients, meals) looks like. If you'd like to, you may share and get people's feedback.


EDIT to add: If concerned about blood sugar, a Hemoglobin A1C test may be valuable.

 

[Mittir]

Your total T3 is close to average and TSH is in good range.
T4 is at the lower end of normal, but it is not a problem
with your T3 close to average. Your temperature is quite
low for your T3 value. There is probably other factor that
is lowering your temp, reverse T3 would be one of that.
Low caloric intake can also cause low temp. Are you getting
at least 80 grams of protein and lots of sugar/carb?
Your CO2 level should be close to 29 or more.

Fasting blood glucose is not that useful. You can try
Glucose tolerance test to get a better idea.
If blood sugar is an issue then increasing fructose intake
can make things better quickly.

Your prolactin is ok. Your albumin level is quite low.
Albumin level plays a big role in over all health.
You need to increase your quality protein intake
80+ grams to raise albumin level .Lowering endotoxin
can help improve liver function and that in turn can
resolve a lot of your health issues. Endotoxin increases
estrogen and estrogen blocks albumin synthesis.

Your total cholesterol is fine if you follow older version
of reference range which was 160 to 200+age or 250.
RP things cholesterol has wide variety of protective effects.

If iron overload is an issue, knowing both saturation index
and ferritin level is very important.

RP thinks pulse pressure if more important than the actual reading.
A pulse pressure ( difference between high and low number)
should be less than 50.

If you can, check your PTH, that is a good indicator of some health
issues. It also gives you direction in adjusting calcium and Vitamin D
intake. I think knowing vitamin D3 level is very important, at least once.

 

[tara]

My body temperature has ranged from 33.9 (waking up) to a high of 35.6 the past 3 days.

Did you keep your thermometer in place for at least 5 mins?
33.9 seems very low.

 

[yerrag]

Thank you very much for your comments. Since I didn't include the reference values at first, you may not have caught a few things. Sorry for omitting them, but here are my blood test results again , with the reference values included:

Endocrine (no Reverse T3, unavailable):

• T3 -1.89 nmol/l {Normal Value 1.23- 3.07}
• T4 -112.60 nmol/l {66.00 - 181.0}
• Free T3 - 5.70 pmol/L {3.10 - 6.80}
• Free T4 - 17.53 pmol/L {12.0 - 22.0}
• TSH - 0.847 uIU/ml {0.27 - 4.20}

Chemistry:

• Sodium - 142.30 (mEq/L & mmol/L) {Reference Value: 137 - 150}
• Potassium - 4.47 (mEq/L & mmol/L) {3.6 - 5.00}
• Calcium - 9.40 mg/dL; 2.35 mmol/L {8.4 - 10.6; 2.10 - 2.65}
• Ionized Calcium - 1.14 mmol/L {1.12 - 1.32}
• Inorganic Phosphorus - 3.11 mg/dL; 1.00 mmol/L {2.5 - 4.6; 0.81 - 1.48}
• Magnesium - 2.03 mg/dL; 0.83 mmol/L {1.6 - 2.6; 0.65 - 1.06}
• Carbon Dioxide - 24.00 mmol/L {22-31}
• True Glucose (fasting) - 106.50 mg/dL; 5.91 mmol/L {70 - 115; 3.88 - 6.38}
• BUN - 15.54 mg/dl; 5.55 mmol/L {4.76 - 23.25; 1.70 - 8.30}
• Creatinine (male) - 0.93 mg/dL; 82.40 umol/L {0.90 - 1.50; 80.0 - 133}
• Uric Acid (male) - 7.49 mg/dL; 443.0 umol/L {less than 7.10; less than 420.0}
• Total Cholesterol - 210.42 mg/dL; 5.45 mmol/L {less than 200; less than 5.18}
• Triglycerides - 47.79 mg/dL; 0.54 mmol/L {less than 200; less than 2.26}
• Lipoprotein Profile
  • VLDL Cholesterol - 9.56 mg/dL; 0.25 mmol/L {0 - 40; 0.0 - 1.40}
  • LDL Cholesterol - 144.88 mg/dL; 3.75 mmol/L {60 - 158; 1.56 - 4.1}
  • HDL Cholesterol - 55.98 mg/dL; 1.45 mmol/L {35 - 65; 0.9 - 1.7}
  • HDL Ratio - 3.76

Liver :

• SGPT (ALT) - 22.7 U/L {Reference Value: 0 - 49}
• SGOT (AST) - 21.2 U/L {0 - 46}
• Alkaline Phosphatase - 46.0 U/L {38 - 111}
• Amylase - 137.9 U/L {28 - 180}
• Total Protein - 6.78 g/dL; 67.8 g/L {6.4 - 8.3; 64 - 83}
• Albumin - 3.74 g/dL; 37.40 g/L {3.5 - 5.0; 35 - 50}
• Globulin - 3.04 g/dL; 30.40 g/L {2.9 - 3.3; 29 - 33}
• A/G Ratio - 1.23 {1.2 - 1.5}
• Total Bilirubin - 0.44 mg/dL; 7.50 umol/L {less than 1.4; less than 24}
• Indirect Bilirubin - 0.30 mg/dL; 5.10 umol/L {less than 1.1; less than 19.0}
• Direct Bilirubin - 0.14 mg/dL; 2.40 umol/L {less than 0.30; less than 5.0}

Hormones:

• Prolactin - 7.82 ng/ml {Normal Value: 3.46 - 19.40}
• Cortisol - 18.5 ug/dl {A.M. 6.2 - 19.4; P.M. 2.3 m- 11.9}
• Progesterone - 0.512 ng/ml {0.2 - 1.4}
• Estrogen - 27 pg/mL {11 - 44}

Hematology:

• Hemoglobin - 15.0 gms%; 150 g/L {Reference Value: 14 - 18; 140 - 180}
• Hematocrit - 47.0 vol%; 0.47 {40 - 54; 0.40 - 0.54}
• White Blood Cell - 4.5 /L {5-10 x 10^3; 5 - 10 x10^9}
• Red Blood Cell - 5.18/L {4.5 - 6.0 x 10^12}
• Morphology (differential count):
  • Neutrophils - 0.74; 74 {0.50 - 0.66; 50 - 60%}
  • Lymphocytes - 0.23; 23 {0.20 - 0.40; 20 - 40 %}
  • Monocytes - 0.02; 2 { 0.02 - 0.06; 2 - 6 %}
  • Eosinophils - 0.01; 1 {0.01 - 0.03; 1 - 3 %}
  • Basophils - blank {0.00- 0.02; 0 - 2 %}
  • Stabs - blank {0.00 - 0.02; 0 - 2 %}
• Platelet Count - 194 {150 - 400 x 10^9; 150 - 400 x 10^3/cum}

My body temperature has ranged from 33.9 (waking up) to a high of 35.6 the past 3 days. My blood pressure, during the same period, has ranged from a low of 165/100 to a high of 203/123. Pulse has ranged from a low of 58 to a high of 83 during the same period.

Aside from rT3, I lack some tests on the following - adrenalin, ammonia, free fatty acids, T-Wave on ECG, and basal metabolic rate.

 

[yerrag]

Very briefly, it caught my attention that cortisol is on the high end, and glucose is as well. Cortisol is famous for raising blood sugar and free fatty acids, could there be a connection there?

I was concerned about this. Could it be that my past frequent usage of hydrocortisone injections to treat my keloid skin condition have anything to do with this? What is an antagonist to cortisol I could take?

I agree that a complete iron panel is important -serum iron and ferritin are not enough, they usually recommend Transferrin Saturation and TIBC for a more complete picture), at least to check if there's an overload condition.

Is the iron panel's purpose to see if my body iron is in excess? My ferritin level of 228 from 3 years back, would it be a positive indication of excess iron? I read this article Iron's Dangers but it doesn't quite address its effects on my condition (hypertension, possible hypothyroid, probable hypoglycemic- sorry don't want to jump the gun).

Albumin seems a little lowish. Peat has said that the albumin range used to be 4-5 in the past, but the lower value has been set lower in recent times (I think 3.5-5 or so in most labs). He said the population is getting sicker and sicker, hence the new "normal" ranges.

Yes. Conventional doctors would tell patients to increase egg consumption, but I read somewhere that this has something to do with deficiency in vitamin b12 and intrinsic factor. What are your thoughts on this?

I don't think you've shared what your diet (calories, nutrients, meals) looks like. If you'd like to, you may share and get people's feedback.

I haven't been counting calories so I couldn't share that much detail. I also don't take supplements except for having started on aspirin 3x a day with vitamin B6 500 mg daily, which started fairly recently - Ray Peat's influence. Also started taking a teaspoon of baking soda in a glass of water each morning, in the hope of increasing the carbon dioxide in my body. But these are recent changes, so they're not bound to have an impact on the recent blood test I took.

I take a small (1/4 tsp) scoop of MSM daily with juice made from celery, cucumber, bitter gourd, green peppers, and red beets, the MSM being to remove a recurring pain on my left knee. The grains I eat are brown rice (for breakfast, lunch and dinner) and oats (breakfast twice/week), the tubers I eat are sweet potatoes (breakfast) and potato (as dish accompaniments- not significant yet). There is little bread eaten , although an occasional sandwich will happen. The fats I consume are mainly coconut oil, using it for stir-fry and deep-fried food, and also use coconut milk for curry dishes. I also eat pork fat and the fat in beef. Meat are mainly beef and pork, but occasionally there's goat meat and lamb. Chicken is avoided but I can't help eating it, although the chicken is free range and supposedly organic. The beef cuts are usually sirloin, shanks, and brisket, and occasionally striploin. The ground beef are always from sirloin cut that I have asked to be ground, to avoid getting rendered meat from leftovers. Pork - ground pork from pork shoulders for meatballs and sloppy joe-like dishes, thinly sliced pork belly aka bacon to add flavor to vegetable dishes, crispy skin pork belly, pork leg casserole. Egg is eaten daily, either hard-boiled or over-easy. Have about 4 meals per week that include sprouted and cooked beans - chick peas or red kidney beans. Sprouted mung beans are usually eaten as spring roll, mixed with ground pork and carrots and shredded cabbage. A daily afternoon shake made of goat's milk and virgin coconut oil. Vegetables eaten are spinach, carrots, tomatoes, squash, okra, leaves of sweet potato etc - all are either blanched or cooked. Fruits - used to eat pineapples after every meal but have since stopped the practice as it's not Peat-approved. Will need to replace it with papaya, mangoes, sapote, and whatever fruit is in season such as avocado, cherimoya.

 

[yerrag]

Your total T3 is close to average and TSH is in good range.
T4 is at the lower end of normal, but it is not a problem
with your T3 close to average. Your temperature is quite
low for your T3 value. There is probably other factor that
is lowering your temp, reverse T3 would be one of that.
Low caloric intake can also cause low temp. Are you getting
at least 80 grams of protein and lots of sugar/carb?
Your CO2 level should be close to 29 or more.

I would think I have enough protein over 3 meals a day, but I will check to make sure. And I have protein always with carb- usually brown rice. It's hard to eat white rice or potatoes, as I notice I get hungry quickly if I eat them instead of brown rice. I am still a hypoglycemic case, as I would get hungry easily after I eat high-glycemic starch, or glucose, or sucrose-laden food.

What can I do to increase CO2 level? I'm taking baking soda 1 tsp daily, in a glass of water, to see if it can increase my CO2 level.

Fasting blood glucose is not that useful. You can try
Glucose tolerance test to get a better idea.
If blood sugar is an issue then increasing fructose intake
can make things better quickly.

I've taken one before. I still am hypoglycemic. Taking fructose really helps. I took honey, which is mostly or all fructose, and it doesn't result in an insulin reaction, and I can carry on the next few hours with energy.

our prolactin is ok. Your albumin level is quite low.
Albumin level plays a big role in over all health.
You need to increase your quality protein intake
80+ grams to raise albumin level .

What is quality protein intake? More glycine, and by association, gelatin? I'll eat more oxtail, pork face, pork legs, and pork skin. And have more Knox gelatin desserts.

Lowering endotoxin
can help improve liver function and that in turn can
resolve a lot of your health issues. Endotoxin increases
estrogen and estrogen blocks albumin synthesis.

I've started to eat raw carrots daily and have started to incorporate cooked bamboo shoot coconut curry into my meals.

Your total cholesterol is fine if you follow older version
of reference range which was 160 to 200+age or 250.
RP things cholesterol has wide variety of protective effects.

I have very low triglycerides though. Should I be concerned as they could be precursors to something good the body needs?

If iron overload is an issue, knowing both saturation index
and ferritin level is very important.

I should add that to the next blood tests I missed this time around. What bearing does it have on my hypertensive condition/hypoglycemic condition?

RP thinks pulse pressure if more important than the actual reading.
A pulse pressure ( difference between high and low number)
should be less than 50.

I'll keep a record of my pulse. So far my pulse pressure is less than 50, but my sampling rate is not enough.

If you can, check your PTH, that is a good indicator of some health
issues. It also gives you direction in adjusting calcium and Vitamin D
intake. I think knowing vitamin D3 level is very important, at least once.

I'll include that as well in the next round. Thanks.[/QUOTE]

 

[yerrag]

Did you keep your thermometer in place for at least 5 mins?
33.9 seems very low.

My thermometer, which is an electronic one, will beep after some time under my armpits, to indicate time's up. I have an old-fashioned thermometer which I tried using, but it's just so hard to see the mercury line I gave up. I'll recheck with another thermometer though. I hope you're right about this being a measuring error.

 

[PakPik]

Your T3 seems on the low side. Sometimes chronic stress hormones or certain chronic adverse conditions lower body metabolism on purpose (sort of as a way to protect itself). Ray Peat has said stress can lower TSH and T3.

The grains I eat are brown rice (for breakfast, lunch and dinner) and oats (breakfast twice/week), the tubers I eat are sweet potatoes (breakfast) and potato (as dish accompaniments- not significant yet). There is little bread eaten , although an occasional sandwich will happen. The fats I consume are mainly coconut oil, using it for stir-fry and deep-fried food, and also use coconut milk for curry dishes. I also eat pork fat and the fat in beef. Meat are mainly beef and pork, but occasionally there's goat meat and lamb. Chicken is avoided but I can't help eating it, although the chicken is free range and supposedly organic. The beef cuts are usually sirloin, shanks, and brisket, and occasionally striploin. The ground beef are always from sirloin cut that I have asked to be ground, to avoid getting rendered meat from leftovers. Pork - ground pork from pork shoulders for meatballs and sloppy joe-like dishes, thinly sliced pork belly aka bacon to add flavor to vegetable dishes, crispy skin pork belly, pork leg casserole. Egg is eaten daily, either hard-boiled or over-easy. Have about 4 meals per week that include sprouted and cooked beans - chick peas or red kidney beans. Sprouted mung beans are usually eaten as spring roll, mixed with ground pork and carrots and shredded cabbage. A daily afternoon shake made of goat's milk and virgin coconut oil. Vegetables eaten are spinach, carrots, tomatoes, squash, okra, leaves of sweet potato etc - all are either blanched or cooked. Fruits - used to eat pineapples after every meal but have since stopped the practice as it's not Peat-approved. Will need to replace it with papaya, mangoes, sapote, and whatever fruit is in season such as avocado, cherimoya.

From your description, I would suspect that your calcium intake is very low in comparison to the phosphate intake, a low Ca : Ph ratio. Ca : Ph ratio seems to be a big thing for metabolism and a very low ratio leads to calcification of soft tissues including blood vessels, arteries (hence potentially your sugar and blood pressure problems). Including more fruit and/or dairy and/or lowering some of the meat consumption can improve the ratio. Maybe @Mittir could offer more insights on that. I suggest reading the RP quotes on high blood pressure in relation to that.

It's hard to know how many calories you're consuming from your description. If you're a man it should be at least 2500, or even more. It is also hard to tell the composition of your diet (the proportion of Carbs, protein, fats). Being on the low or insufficient carb side would be a problem (for metabolism, liver, repair, immune system etc...). I suggest checking out Cronometer.com if you need to track those values (it's free).

I was concerned about this. Could it be that my past frequent usage of hydrocortisone injections to treat my keloid skin condition have anything to do with this?

As far as I know any chronic sustained stress condition will probably induce aberrations or tissue damage/malfunction in the long term. Cortisol is a stress hormone, so if you abused it it may have to do with some of your problems. But I don't think that it is directly increasing your cortisol lab levels if you stopped it a long time ago.

Running marathons, chronic stressful exercise can do the same (extreme reliance on stress, catabolic hormones and oxidative stress).

Is the iron panel's purpose to see if my body iron is in excess? My ferritin level of 228 from 3 years back, would it be a positive indication of excess iron? I read this article Iron's Dangers but it doesn't quite address its effects on my condition (hypertension, possible hypothyroid, probable hypoglycemic- sorry don't want to jump the gun).

That ferritin value seems quite high (ferritin can increase due to infection, inflammation, high iron, etc...), but again, it is hard to conclude anything about the iron status based on the ferritin test alone. That's why they recommend the full panel.
Iron accumulation in tissues contributes to blood vessel damage, organ damage, metabolic damage since it is a potent participant of oxidative stress.

Since you're asking about the iron connection to your issues, this may be of your interest:

"Previous findings have indicated an association between accumulated iron and the components of METS, including hypertension and diabetes mellitus. Serum ferritin levels correlate with hypertensive retinopathy [5], and clinical hypertension is characterized by a higher prevalence of increased iron stores [6]. In two Danish population studies, the hemochromatosis genotype and increased transferrin saturation were associated with increased risk of requirement for antihypertensive medication [7]. A positive association between iron stores and insulin resistance or diabetes mellitus has been found in numerous epidemiologic studies [8, 9, 10, 11, 12]. Furthermore, both, ferritin and transferrin were shown to be significantly associated with the presence of the METS and its components [13, 14]. Notably, increased ferritin levels may be a determinant for METS in postmenopausal women but not in premenopausal women [15]. It was further suggested that iron overload may be crucial for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in METS [16], and raised ferritin levels were found to be independent predictors of vascular damage in NAFLD and METS" BMC Medicine​

Yes. Conventional doctors would tell patients to increase egg consumption, but I read somewhere that this has something to do with deficiency in vitamin b12 and intrinsic factor. What are your thoughts on this?

It could be many things: a malfunctioning or overburdened liver (Peat thinks many albumin problems can be due to intestine material poisoning liver function), it could be malnutrition, it could be stress mediators increasing the "positive acute phase proteins" and thus lowering the production of albumin, etc...

vitamin B6 500 mg daily, which started fairly recently - Ray Peat's influence

Peat recommends only low doses of B6 -up to 10 mg-.

Hope this helps.

 

[tara]

What can I do to increase CO2 level?

Keep your mouth shut. :) All day and night except when eating, drinking, singing, talking, playing the trumpet. And if you talk a lot, it can be worth working in a few breath holds in between to let CO2 recover.

My thermometer, which is an electronic one, will beep after some time under my armpits, to indicate time's up. I have an old-fashioned thermometer which I tried using, but it's just so hard to see the mercury line I gave up. I'll recheck with another thermometer though. I hope you're right about this being a measuring error.

I have an electronic one too. It beeps to say it's ready. But I don't believe it till I've kept it in place and had it take at least wo readings the in a row giving the same value. When I've used my armpit, it typically takes more than 5 mins - sometimes 7-8 mins to come up to a stable temp. In my mouth it's a bit quicker, but harder to read while keeping in place. :) The difference between the first beep and the final repeated reading can be up to about 2deg C.

with vitamin B6 500 mg daily, which started fairly recently - Ray Peat's influence

I can't think of any B vits that Peat has recommended such high doses of. I aim for ~5mg B6/day. There are some potential issues that can arise from overdosing B6 over a period (neuropathy?) - I think there are threads on it.
You can experiment with larger doses of niacinamide (one of the B3 variants), but even then, the general case is more like 50-100mg at a time (though a few people and studies report benefit for particular conditions with more).

I haven't been counting calories so I couldn't share that much detail.

I'm not going to recommend meticulous daily (who's got the time for that?) but it might be worth just plugging in and recording a couple of typical days every now an then, jut to check if you are in the ball park of reasonable amounts. It can also give another indicator about how metabolism is running. Cronometer.com is one relatively easy way.

 

[yerrag]

Keep your mouth shut. :) All day and night except when eating, drinking, singing, talking, playing the trumpet. And if you talk a lot, it can be worth working in a few breath holds in between to let CO2 recover.

I try very hard, believe me I've attended a Buteyko course. Although it's hard doing the Buteyko exercises daily, I make sure to close my mouth when I'm awake. Asleep, I don't know. I should revert to taping my mouth with masking tape and see if I can get more CO2 at night.

I have an electronic one too. It beeps to say it's ready. But I don't believe it till I've kept it in place and had it take at least wo readings the in a row giving the same value. When I've used my armpit, it typically takes more than 5 mins - sometimes 7-8 mins to come up to a stable temp. In my mouth it's a bit quicker, but harder to read while keeping in place. :) The difference between the first beep and the final repeated reading can be up to about 2deg C.

Thank you thank you Tara! I haven't had a fever in 16 years and had lost the ability to use a thermometer. Following your advice, I took my temperature and I got an armpit temperature of 36.8 and oral temperature of 37C. I may not be hypothyroid after all, and I may need to cast hypothoroidism as a cause of my hypertension, and focus on my blood iron levels. Maybe I need not take the expensive rT3 test yet, and do an iron panel test to determine if I am too high on iron. I'm happy you're pulling your heads together on this. Glad Emstar1892 and Pakpik is nudging me towards taking an iron panel, and Mittir kinda keeping me from pushing too far ahead on the hypothyroidism angle.

I'm only too glad it's a user measurement error. Glad you saw something amiss with the very low temperature I'm reporting. It's just so easy to overlook something so basic, and carry on with that assumption!

I can't think of any B vits that Peat has recommended such high doses of. I aim for ~5mg B6/day. There are some potential issues that can arise from overdosing B6 over a period (neuropathy?) - I think there are threads on it.
You can experiment with larger doses of niacinamide (one of the B3 variants), but even then, the general case is more like 50-100mg at a time (though a few people and studies report benefit for particular conditions with more).

I cut the 500mg pill so I only have 100 mg each day. I can go much lower but then I'll have to pulverize it. Besides, in the absence of something better that is easily accessible in Manila, I got a store brand so it must not be that potent anyway.

 

[yerrag]

From your description, I would suspect that your calcium intake is very low in comparison to the phosphate intake, a low Ca : Ph ratio. Ca : Ph ratio seems to be a big thing for metabolism and a very low ratio leads to calcification of soft tissues including blood vessels, arteries (hence potentially your sugar and blood pressure problems). Including more fruit and/or dairy and/or lowering some of the meat consumption can improve the ratio.

I eat vegetables, especially leafy greens, which are high in calcium, but I admit to not eating enough of them. I could eat more of them, such as a local spinach called "talinum" and leaves of sweet potatoes, as well as moringa, which just grow well in my backyard garden. But then, even when they are cooked well or blanched, it may not be advisable as they could contribute to endotoxins in the gut. I may just need to incorporate powdered eggshells into my food. Or I can increase cheese consumption, as I already drink goat's milk everyday. As for fruits, I can go with the fruit in season, but when fruit is costly, I think I can just take in more fructose from sources such as local honey and coconut sugar. Do you think it's a good idea to replace my cane sugar with honey and coco sugar - because of the higher fructose levels in honey and coco sugar?

It's hard to know how many calories you're consuming from your description. If you're a man it should be at least 2500, or even more. It is also hard to tell the composition of your diet (the proportion of Carbs, protein, fats). Being on the low or insufficient carb side would be a problem (for metabolism, liver, repair, immune system etc...). I suggest checking out Cronometer.com if you need to track those values (it's free).

I signed up in cronometer. Still have to play around a little on the site to get familiar with it. I hope I'll be able to post something. Do I have to sign up for Gold membership to do much with it?

That ferritin value seems quite high (ferritin can increase due to infection, inflammation, high iron, etc...), but again, it is hard to conclude anything about the iron status based on the ferritin test alone. That's why they recommend the full panel.
Iron accumulation in tissues contributes to blood vessel damage, organ damage, metabolic damage since it is a potent participant of oxidative stress.

Since you're asking about the iron connection to your issues, this may be of your interest:

"Previous findings have indicated an association between accumulated iron and the components of METS, including hypertension and diabetes mellitus. Serum ferritin levels correlate with hypertensive retinopathy [5], and clinical hypertension is characterized by a higher prevalence of increased iron stores [6]. In two Danish population studies, the hemochromatosis genotype and increased transferrin saturation were associated with increased risk of requirement for antihypertensive medication [7]. A positive association between iron stores and insulin resistance or diabetes mellitus has been found in numerous epidemiologic studies [8, 9, 10, 11, 12]. Furthermore, both, ferritin and transferrin were shown to be significantly associated with the presence of the METS and its components [13, 14]. Notably, increased ferritin levels may be a determinant for METS in postmenopausal women but not in premenopausal women [15]. It was further suggested that iron overload may be crucial for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in METS [16], and raised ferritin levels were found to be independent predictors of vascular damage in NAFLD and METS" BMC Medicine

You've convinced me to take the iron panel! Really see how much effect iron has on blood pressure. My ferritin levels of 3 years ago at 228 seemed way high, compared to what Dr. Mercola would deem a good range: 20 -80, Little-Known Secrets about Optimal Iron Levels

Thanks PakPik!

 

[yerrag]

I went over my blood test again and noticed that my triglycerides seemed way too low, and I don't know if there's such a thing as being too healthy. Probably not. Do you have any idea what's going on there?

Same thing also with my white blood cell count, at 4.5 where 5-10 is the range. Would appreciate more of your thoughts on these.

 

[Giraffe]

I went over my blood test again and noticed that my triglycerides seemed way too low, and I don't know if there's such a thing as being too healthy. Probably not. Do you have any idea what's going on there?

Undereating can cause low trigycerides.

 

[yerrag]

Undereating can cause low trigycerides.

That can't be though. I haven't been fasting or staying away from food. The triglyceride value being so low to the point of incredulity, I might just take another triglyceride test to make sure it's not a measurement error.

 

[tara]

I should revert to taping my mouth with masking tape and see if I can get more CO2 at night.

I found shutting it at night (with tape) improved my life - if you've done it before you know what you are doing.
For me, I think getting nutrition up helped with the breathing too.

I took my temperature and I got an armpit temperature of 36.8 and oral temperature of 37C.

That's more like it. :)