President's doc: 'excellent' health, cut the cholesterol

Source: CNN

Washington (CNN) - President Obama got a checkup Sunday, and his doctor liked what he found.

"The president is in excellent health and 'fit for duty,'" Dr. Jeff Kuhlman, a Navy captain and physician to the president wrote in his report. "All clinical data indicate that he will remain so for the duration of his presidency."

The doctor did recommend Obama change his eating habits a bit. "Recommend dietary modification to reduce LDL cholesterol below 130," Kuhlman wrote. The report lists Obama's LDL level at 138. LDL, or low-density lipoprotein, is what's known as "bad" cholesterol, according to the American Heart Association.

Kuhlman noted that the 48-year-old president should keep up his efforts to stop smoking. Obama's medications include nicotine replacement therapy.

The 6-foot-1-inch president weighed in at 179.9 pounds with his shoes and workout attire on.

His body mass index (BMI) is 23.7. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, that's in the upper end of the "normal" weight range. "Overweight" begins at 25.0.



Read more: http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2010/02/28/presidents-doc-excellent-health-cut-the-cholesterol/?hpt=T2&fbid=ura2iuxYpJ0

useful information bmi gives us.



the statistical measures of health (including things like blood sugar, cholesterol) have been repeatedly tightened, not in the interest of improving health, but in the interest of labeling more people "abnormal" or "unhealthy" in order to track, penalize & dose them.

Every year the numbers change as far as what is "normal". All done to enrich Big Pharma. If we could get that BS under control we could lower health care costs dramatically.

my Oat Meal everyday with honey and cinimonnon and flex seed everyday.

I still do the same amount of exercise.
When I went back to the doctor's office this year he was shocked----
He said it was within the Normal range.

All I know is, I can't take any of those Meds but I will keep at this and see if it can still be positive.

Those meds made me cramp all over!

I made some changed for him, since I do the shopping...
His blood pressure and cholesterol are much better....way better...
so good for you for taking the natural route to solve your problem.

I changed some of the foods he eats..(we've been married three years)
Luckily he saw a few Dr Oz episodes that scared the shit out of him, so he's given up sodas AND high fructose corn syrup.
He did that on his own. I was shocked.

He really just used to eat crap...I'm not kidding. He really won't change his habits and he snacks a lot.
So since he wouldn't change his heating habits...I changed his snacks and his ingredients for him.

He's a big meat eater, so I started making barbecue sauce for him, to avoid sugar and bad oils.
He loves nuts, so instead of buying salted/roasted...I buy him raw unsalted.
He now eats a whole grain cereal in the morning...sometimes I put flax seed on it.
I make our own whole grain bread or buy sprouted bread.
He drinks milk like crazy, so I switched him to organic fat free milk...and organic butter.
I started buying that brand of oil that is cold pressed and processed to withstand high heat.
(he makes his own popcorn and refuses to use an air popper, so at least I got him to use a good oil that won't turn carcinogenic/burn on him)
We've been lucky in that his parents raised some beef recently...but I'll start buying organic meats after that runs out.
He won't eat veggies at ALL, but I've got him eating spinach ground up, not noticeable in pasta sauces, he'll eat yellow squash now.
He will eat mexican salsas if they are completely processed and not chunky....so I make my own. He'll only eat it with chips, so I buy chips that don't have extra crap in them.
No hydrogenated oils.
He used to eat tons of fried okra (which makes me laugh because that something many people don't like), but I developed a baked okra recipe and you can't taste the difference.
I also put him on fish oil tablets...a good brand, Bluebonnet, that makes sure it takes the heavy metals out and tests it.
He will eat fruit....and yogurt...so sometimes I can get him to eat my fake "ice cream". Thank god he'll eat most fruit.
I add cinnamon and cardamom to the coffee grounds in the morning.
I buy local eggs that are very good quality.

I can't control what he has at lunch during work, but he does sometimes take his lunch now...which is another big shocker.

Just making those type of changes has really helped him. Since he'll eat yellow squash now, I hope over time he'll eat more veggies.

I'm glad you reminded me about the Fish Oil, I've got to get back to it.

it's purely selfish, I assure you :P

NO WAY is that physique in the "upper range of normal bmi."
President Obama is very lean...almost skinny.

A pair of $20 jogging shoes from Mervyns and a little motivation and self control.

Guess what industries just LOVE the people who make light of our national obesity epidemic?

I'm sure Jack and the Hamburglar would love to shake the hand of those who belittled Michelle Obama for her anti-obesity campaign.

I'm sure GlaxoPfizerKlineSmithWhoeverthehell cant wait to sell blood pressure and diabetes medication to all of the children who are growing up with poor diets and exercise habits learned from their parents.

Edit: And yes, I agree that BMI is ridiculous. But being aware of your health and appearance are not.

You're also right in your assertion that normal values for health measures have been tightened for purposes other than accurate health assessment.

but I feel pretty good...I've just started to exercise.
I was pretty active until the last few years...so now I've started...over a few months, I'm sure I'll slim down.
I'm a size 14/16, and not really that concerned about it. But I'll be pushing 40 soon, so I thought I needed to get in shape.


I'm 200 lbs ( most people don't believe me when I say that...I dont' look it)
I'm about 5-3

But my cholesterol is in the normal range...in fact "very good"... and my blood pressure is actually below "normal".
The nurses always end up checking it 2 or 3 times, because they never believe the reading. lol

Notice they didn't mention his HDL or triglycerides?

If they didn't do a LDL sub-particle test, they have no idea whether or not his levels are actually too high.

His resting heart rate of 56 beats per minute and blood pressure of 105/62 were both in very healthy ranges.

But his cholesterol levels have risen since 2007.

His latest exam found that his overall cholesterol was 209, slightly above the normal level of 200. His level of LDL, the so-called bad cholesterol, was 138 and his doctor recommended that he try to reduce that to 130 through changes in his diet.

In the 2007 exam, Mr. Obama’s overall cholesterol level was 173 and his LDL cholesterol was 96.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/01/us/politics/01obama.html?hp

probably.

Even on the campaign trail, he was flying around in a plane that rivaled Air Force One and had a huge campaign fund, many employees, etc.

And, I bet the same place that slings burgers could come up with a salad with dressing on the side and a can of tuna.

I had gone from a size 4 to a size 6. I ignored him and lived to regret it.

Putting on weight gets easier as you get older. Conversely (and perversely) takes off weight gets harder as you get older. So, it's best to nip weight gain in the bud, before ten pounds to lose becomes forty pounds to lose.

Both in the 07 & this recent physical..

Plus his blood pressure is excellent, at 105/62...

I'm just blessed in that regard because I don't watch my food intake much.

If they get a high reading on my cholesterol test, they do the second test--and then congratulate me. Though, lately, some say they want the total figure to be under a certain number, even if most of it is "good cholesterol."

:shrug:

And right now 67% say No, if you had to deal with Republicans everyday, you'd smoke, too.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2010/02/28/2010-02-28_president_obama_still_smoking_doctors_note_may_be_smoking_gun.html

I voted no too. :)

part of being the President.

He'd be disciplined for violating confidentiality.

Mr. President looks the picture of health. I'd guess the tests that show otherwise are the results of stress on the job. Gee, what could have increased his stress level between 2007 and now?

Not that I need to know it for either of them, really. I was more concerned about GWB's mental health.

What level of detail the media chooses to publicize is a different matter.

Wait til election year. We'll get the images from his colonoscopy.

As far as Dummya, a friend suggested--very clinically, not {simply}snarkily--that he had dry drunk syndrome. After googling, I tended to agree. And I thought trigger happy Crash McNuts should have had to pass the sanity test and dry drunk syndrome tests, too--and that was even BEFORE he picked his running mate.

Maybe mental exams should be mandatory for candidates and Presidents. Not to be mean, but I'd rather a President simply drop dead from a heart attack than run the country while insane or suffering with Alzheimer's--though, ideally, neither would happen.

I'll be 62 later this month and I have P.A.D. Peripheral arterial disease, but yet I have Cholesterol, both hi and lo, right in the middle of what the doctors say it should be for a healthy person. I don't believe about 99 percent of what big pharma has to say about whats good for me and I question the other 1%..
6 ft tall weighing in at 162 lbs with a 31 inch waist, used to be solid steel but not anymore.

Long life and good health, Mr. President (and please bring home the troops so they have a better chance at same as well).

I suspect it has something to do with this;

:shrug:

You know, for that cholesterol issue.

Troublemaker = me.

:popcorn: