Cholesterol: Old Myths and New Facts
The Latest on Cholesterol and Heart Health
by Steven Masley, M.D.
Cardiovascular disease remains the #1 cause of death in the United States, despite the fact that it is preventable 90% of the time.
The good news is that everyone-regardless of size, genetics, gender, or age-can treat arterial plaque and prevent heart attacks and strokes.
Studies published in the American Journal of Cardiology show that we devote less than 10% of our health care dollars for cardiovascular disease on prevention and medical management and more than 90% on procedures and hospital care. We head down this wrong road because today’s paradigm doesn’t target the real cause of heart disease and cardiovascular events. The truth is, until now, we have not gotten to the heart of the matter. Yet despite the bleak scenario described above, there is a solution: prevention.
Commonly Believed Cholesterol Myths
1. High cholesterol is the leading cause of heart disease.
2. If your HDL is normal or if your total cholesterol/HDL ratio is good, you are safe from heart disease.
3. The amount of cholesterol in your food determines your blood cholesterol level.
4. Moderate egg and shrimp consumption causes your cholesterol level to jump.
5. LDL cholesterol is your enemy and should be as low as possible.
6. A high body mass index (BMI) is a major risk factor for heart disease.
7. Once you start medications for high blood pressure or high cholesterol, you will need to take them the rest of your life.
8. Your family history determines if you are at high or low risk for cardiovascular disease.
9. If you take a statin cholesterol?lowering medication, you can eat whatever you want.
New Cholesterol Facts to Replace Old Myths
1. Many heart disease risk factors are far more important than cholesterol profiles, including: fitness, fiber and nutrient intake, body fat, blood pressure, and inflammation. Total cholesterol doesn’t make sense as a risk factor for heart disease at all!
2. You don’t need to be on cholesterol medications forever! Even people who have taken them for years can change their diet and exercise, shrink their arterial plaque, and may be able to stop further arterial plaque growth without any medication.
3. Most cholesterol doesn’t come from your diet. Your liver makes it while you sleep. Eating saturated fat (found in fatty dairy products and meats) does more to increase cholesterol production than can be caused by simply eating foods high in cholesterol.
4. Some foods that are high in cholesterol don’t raise cholesterol levels at all. For instance, moderate egg consumption doesn’t raise cholesterol levels. Even better, organic, free-range chickens fed flax seed produce eggs with much less saturated fat and much more healthy fats. (However, skip the bacon and syrup-drenched pancakes on the side.)
5. Shrimp is higher in cholesterol than many other foods, yet studies show it seems to have a form that doesn’t cause human cholesterol to increase. Eating shrimp is safe, as far as cholesterol goes.
6. If you take a statin cholesterol medication, you are only partly protected! You may not eat whatever you want. Statins tell your liver to make less cholesterol when you’re sleeping. But they can’t stop bad food choices from coating your arteries with slime and plaque. Notice that statin commercials state correctly, “This medication, when combined with a healthy lifestyle, can reduce the risk of heart disease.” Healthy lifestyle is the operative phrase here. Drugs alone have not been shown to shrink plaque.
About the 30-Day Heart Tune-up
Dr. Masley wrote THE 30-DAY HEART TUNE-UP to enable readers to prevent heart disease and strokes – and how to reverse cardiovascular disease if you have it. This book will arm readers with the tools to build the strongest heart possible.
Dr. Masley’s approach emphasizes prevention. Over the years, as a resident and then as a physician, Dr. Masley has volunteered in more than 15 impoverished countries. He discovered that most of the time, the human body has the capacity to heal itself without high technology, specialized drugs, or risky procedures and surgeries.
Teaching readers to shrink arterial plaque, improve circulation, manage stress, eat heart-healing foods, and strengthen the heart and arteries through specific exercises, Dr. Masley improves on the traditional method of preventing heart disease. By evaluating more factors in a holistic way, rather than the one-dimensional measurement of cholesterol levels, THE 30-DAY HEART TUNE-UP is an answer to the epidemic of heart disease.
For more information, visit: THE 30-DAY HEART TUNE-UP
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About the Author:
Steven Masley, M.D., F.A.A.F.P., C.N.S., F.A.C.N., C.C.D., is a board- certified and fellow certified physician and nutritionist, a health researcher, speaker, author, and trained chef. Over the past fifteen years, he has won acclaim for helping hundreds of patients reverse Type II diabetes and eliminate the symptoms of cardiovascular disease.
Currently, he is the President for the Masley Optimal Health Center, the medical director for the Ten Years Younger ProgramTM, and has a clinical appointment with the University of South Florida. He is also an instructor for the Lasting Leadership training at Eckerd College and teaches programs at the Center for Leadership with Sykes College of Business at the University of Tampa.
Connect with Dr. Steve Masley at: http://drmasley.com
