Weight Watchers diet effect on INR

[MarkU]

For what it's worth, in consultation with my PCP, I started on Weight Watchers 5-1/2 weeks ago, not only to lose weight, but to also get my triglycerides down without having to resort to medication.

My INR has been very stable over the years, but because of the significant change from my "normal" diet, we decided to shorten my INR test schedule from six weeks to four weeks.

Just got tested and was at 5.0. We're reducing my dose and will go back in one week to check it again.

Mark

PS: I've also lost about eight pounds so far.

 

[KristyW]

Wow Mark,

That's opposite of where I thought you'd go. Usually when someone goes on a diet, their INR goes down because they're eating more vegetables and usually getting more exercise. Do you think yours went up because your portions are smaller? Just curious.

 

[MarkU]

Not sure why. I exercise a lot all the time, so that hasn't changed. Certainly portion control is a factor. My veggie intake has stayed about the same, but I've been eating a lot less red meat and adding a lot of low-fat yogurt and fresh fruit.

Mark

 

[Cooker]

I am on WW and have been for a while.... My INR has been and still is stable.... Have you changed what you eat or the amounts or both?... My diet is pretty much the same just less of it?..

 

[Bina]

Cooker, a couple of months back didn't your INR go to around 4.2 and you weren't sure why?

 

[Cooker]

Cooker, a couple of months back didn't your INR go to around 4.2 and you weren't sure why?

I retested and it was back down .... I think it was a bogus reading.... But I like mine between 3.5 and 4 .....

 

[Bina]

Cooker, I think it was all those bogus Snickers bars....I'm glad u are back on track.

 

[Lisa in Katy]

Lots of oils have high Vitamin K, so if you are eating about the same veggies, but less salad dressing, mayo, cheddar cheese, nuts, etc., you probably cut some Vitamin K from your diet.

 

[geebee]

One of the first things my cardio said to me when I started WW was to closely watch my INR. He did not indicate whether he thought it would go up or down.

It has gone up slightly, enough for me to tweak my dose by 5%.

Mark, congrats on the weight loss. I have lost 11 pounds so far so I am a happy camper also.

 

[catwoman]

Lots of oils have high Vitamin K, so if you are eating about the same veggies, but less salad dressing, mayo, cheddar cheese, nuts, etc., you probably cut some Vitamin K from your diet.

Lisa hit the nail on the head!

I went through the same thing as MarkU when I joined Weight Watchers in June 2004. Even though I was more active, my INR went up. Puzzled, I analyzed everything and determined that it was because I had switched to a low-fat diet.

 

[khamis73]

believe me the doctors don't know what will happen with diet i started i diet 3 months ago and sometimes he tells me to stop eating greens or to do my INR every week instead of every month and then he told me to do it every month my INR was 2.4 last time I think diet with more greens makes the INR go down

 

[khamis73]

believe me the doctors don't know what will happen with diet i started i diet 3 months ago and sometimes he tells me to stop eating greens or to do my INR every week instead of every month and then he told me to do it every month my INR was 2.4 last time I think diet with more greens makes the INR go down

 

[AgilityDog]

Khamis, yes, a diet with more greens will increase your intake of Vitamin K and will make your INR drop somewhat, requiring some increase in your coumadin dosage. The best thing to do with your diet is to keep your intake of Vitamin K consistent, i.e. the same number of servings of green vegetables and oils per week. If you try to eliminate K or greatly reduce your intake of vitamin K, your INR will be inconsistent, because it will swing each time you have anything with K in it.

You should learn to adjust your coumadin dose to your diet, do not try to adjust your diet to your dose.

If you are dieting to lose weight, then it is logical your required dosage of coumadin may (i) drop as your body weight decreases, or (ii) increase because you are eating more vegetables and less junk food.

So if you are starting a new diet, then your doctor is right you should check your INR more frequently until you know how the diet may require a change in your dosage.

 

[catwoman]

Mark:

Here are my INRs from right before I joined Weight Watchers and for several weeks after, until I connected a low-fat diet with an increase in INR:

dosage: 6.0mg X 7
6/2/04 -- 3.5 (normal)
6/3/04 -- joined Weight Watchers
6/9/04 -- 4.3
6/17 -- 3.3
6/23 -- 4.2
7/3 -- 4.0
dropped to 5.0 X 7 (too much, I learned)
7/8 -- 2.8
upped dosage back to 6.0
7/16 -- 3.2
7/23 -- 3.6
With the increased activity level -- walking, biking, swimming, I was able to keep my INR about 3.5 for the next several tests.

I was surprised to see my INR's in the 4's, so I did some online research and chalked them up to the decrease in vitamin K intake from going to a low-fat diet.

 

[sue943]

When a person starts a diet often there is a sudden weight loss at the very beginning which is attributed to loss of fluid, perhaps it is that which caused the INR to rise.

 

[catwoman]

Sue:

However, when you start a diet or change your diet (that's the more appropriate term), you generally are encouraged to drink more fluids (Weight Watchers say to drink at least 6 8oz glasses of water daily). One of the reasons to assure water intake is because a healtful diet includes more whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and the increased water intake helps in digestion.

Proper water intake would negate loss of weight just from loss of fluid. And resulting increase in INR.

I still believe an increase in INR is from decreased intake in vitamin K due to a reduction in fats and oils.
Of course, you could put the oils in sunlight to destroy the vitamin K. I've seen that several places. But it would probably increase rancidity or make the oils taste crappy.

 

[Lisa in Katy]

Sue:

One of the reasons to assure water intake is because a healtful diet includes more whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and the increased water intake helps in digestion.

Is that why they do that? I thought it was a sneaky way to force me to exercise - hurrying to the bathroom!

The first week of a new diet usually results in what most call a loss of "water weight", resulting in a larger than normal weight loss for that week. However, that shouldn't really affect your INR, at least not in the long haul. If you cut fats out of your diet, or significantly lower them, your INR will increase. If you add lots of greens, your INR will decrease and that may balance the effect. In Mark's case, he stated that his veggie intake was about the same, so I think his INR increase is attributed to the reduction in fats.

The answer would be different for different people, depending on how you modified your diet. In my case, I had the same effect as Mark, because I eat lots of greens on a regular basis, so the only thing that changed when I followed Weight Watchers was portion control and reduction in fats.

 

[Cooker]

Is that why they do that? I thought it was a sneaky way to force me to exercise - hurrying to the bathroom!

The first week of a new diet usually results in what most call a loss of "water weight", resulting in a larger than normal weight loss for that week. However, that shouldn't really affect your INR, at least not in the long haul. If you cut fats out of your diet, or significantly lower them, your INR will increase. If you add lots of greens, your INR will decrease and that may balance the effect. In Mark's case, he stated that his veggie intake was about the same, so I think his INR increase is attributed to the reduction in fats.

The answer would be different for different people, depending on how you modified your diet. In my case, I had the same effect as Mark, because I eat lots of greens on a regular basis, so the only thing that changed when I followed Weight Watchers was portion control and reduction in fats.

I agree ... I have not changed what I eat but the amount .... everyone is diff....

 

[catwoman]

Is that why they do that? I thought it was a sneaky way to force me to exercise - hurrying to the bathroom!

That, too!

 

[MarkU]

Here's an update:
We adjusted my weekly dose down only a total of 5mg and I'm back at 3.1, almost perfect. Will test again in two weeks.

Down 9 pounds, so that's good too.

Mark