Hidetaka Ohta writes:

        Comparing patient A to patient B, there are some similarities. Patient A and B like dairy products. And there are many differences between patient A and B. First, patient A has chest pain but patient B feels "OK" although she is overweight. Second, patient A and B are a little different in that patient A does no exercise but patient B rides her bicycle on weekends.

        More important, the LDL-cholesterol levels are different between patient A and B. Patient A's cholesterol level is 165 and B's cholesterol level is 125. Good or desirable cholesterol level is 130 mg/dl. 130-159 cholesterol level is a borderline and above that is high risk. Moreover, 160 is a very high risk. Patient A is really at risk. Patient B's level is a little low.

        Advice to Patient A:

        First of all, he must change his daily diet. He likes ice cream, eggs and fatty meats. But his cholesterol level is too high. So he must eat much more of less fatty foods. For example, he could be using margarine instead of butter. He must reduce fat. So he could trim away all visible fat and boil, bake, or broil rather than fry meats. And he must do more exercise. For example, it is good exercise for his health to walk at a quick pace for only 30 minutes. Then, his metabolism will become lively and it his cholesterol level will go down.

        Advice to Patient B:

        She must reduce her weight by changing her daily diet. To reduce the fat in dairy products, she can refrain from dairy products, and use skim milk or 1% low fat milk. And she must control her calorie intake. Then she will be able to reduce her weight.

        Another thing that she should change is that she should refrain from smoking. Smoking has an influence on many diseases. It is important that she should change this habit. These changes should make her healthy.

         

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