Heart disease is the #1 killer. However, traditional heart disease protocols--with their emphasis on lowering cholesterol--have it all wrong. Emerging science is showing that cholesterol levels are a poor predictor of heart disease and that standard prescriptions for lowering it, such as ineffective low-fat/high-carb diets and serious, side-effect-causing statin drugs, obscure the real causes of heart disease. Even doctors at leading institutions have been misled for years based on creative reporting of research results from pharmaceutical companies intent on supporting the $31-billion-a-year cholesterol-lowering drug industry.
The Great Cholesterol Myth reveals the real culprits of heart disease, including:
- Inflammation
- Fibrinogen
- Triglycerides
- Homocysteine
- Belly fat
- Triglyceride to HCL ratios
- High glycemic levels
Bestselling health authors Jonny Bowden, Ph.D., and Stephen Sinatra, M.D. give readers a 4-part strategy based on the latest studies and clinical findings for effectively preventing, managing, and reversing heart disease, focusing on diet, exercise, supplements, and stress and anger management.
Get proven, evidence-based strategies from the experts with The Great Cholesterol Myth.
MYTHS VS. FACTS
Myth–High cholesterol is the cause of heart disease.
Fact–Cholesterol is only a minor player in the cascade of inflammation which is a cause of heart disease.
Myth–High cholesterol is a predictor of heart attack.
Fact–There is no correlation between cholesterol and heart attack.
Myth–Lowering cholesterol with statin drugs will prolong your life.
Fact–There is no data to show that statins have a significant impact on longevity.
Myth–Statin drugs are safe.
Fact–Statin drugs can be extremely toxic including causing death.
Myth–Statin drugs are useful in men, women and the elderly.
Fact–Statin drugs do the best job in middle-aged men with coronary disease.
Myth–Statin drugs are useful in middle-aged men with coronary artery disease because of its impact on cholesterol.
Fact–Statin drugs reduce inflammation and improve blood viscosity (thinning blood). Statins are extremely helpful in men with low HDL and coronary artery disease.
Myth–Saturated fat is dangerous.
Fact–Saturated fats are not dangerous. The killer fats are the transfats from partially hydrogenated oils.
Myth–The higher the cholesterol, the shorter the lifespan.
Fact–Higher cholesterol protects you from gastrointestinal disease, pulmonary disease and hemorrhagic stroke.
Myth–A high carbohydrate diet protects you from heart disease.
Fact–Simple processed carbs and sugars predispose you to heart disease.
Myth–Fat is bad for your health.
Fact–Monounsaturated and saturated fats protect you from metabolic syndrome. Sugar is the foe in cardiovascular disease.
Myth–There is good (HDL) cholesterol and bad (LDL) cholesterol.
Fact–This is over-simplistic. You must fractionate LDL and HDL to assess the components.
Myth–Cholesterol causes heart disease.
Fact–Cholesterol is only a theory in heart disease and only the small component of LP(a) or “bb shot” LDL predisposes one to oxidation and inflammation.
Jonny Bowden, Ph.D., C.N.S., is a nationally known expert on weight loss, nutrition, and health. He is a board-certified nutritionist with a master’s degree in psychology and the author of twelve books on health, healing, food, and longevity, including three best-sellers, The Great Cholesterol Myth (coauthored with Stephen T. Sinatra), The 150 Healthiest Foods on Earth, and Living Low Carb. A frequent guest on television and radio, he has appeared on CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, ABC, NBC, and CBS as an expert on nutrition, weight loss, and longevity. He is the nutrition editor for Pilates Style and is a regular contributor to Clean Eating, Better Nutrition, and Total Health Online.
He has contributed to articles for dozens of print and online publications, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, O (The Oprah Magazine), The Daily Beast, The Huffington Post, Vanity Fair Online, Time, Oxygen, Marie Claire, Diabetes Focus, GQ, US Weekly, Cosmopolitan, Self, Fitness, Family Circle, Allure, Men’s Heath, Prevention, InStyle, Natural Health, and many other publications. He appears regularly as an expert on ABC-TV Los Angeles. He is a member of the American College of Nutrition and the American Society for Nutrition. He lives in the Topanga Canyon section of Southern California with his dogs, Lucy and Emily. Follow him at www.jonnybowden.com and @jonnybowden.
Stephen T. Sinatra, M.D., F.A.C.C., F.A.C.N., C.N.S., C.B.T., is a board-certified cardiologist and assistant clinical professor of medicine at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine. He is the author of many books, including The Great Cholesterol Myth (coauthored with Jonny Bowden), The Sinatra Solution: Metabolic Cardiology, Earthing: The Most Important Health Discovery Ever, Reverse Heart Disease Now, and Lower Your Blood Pressure in Eight Weeks. Certified as a bioenergetic psychotherapist and nutrition and antiaging specialist, Dr. Sinatra integrates psychological, nutraceutical, and electroceutical therapies in the matrix of healing. He is the founder of www.heartmdinstitute.com, an informational website dedicated to promoting public awareness of integrative medicine. He is a fellow in the American College of Cardiology and the American College of Nutrition. His websites include heartmdinstitute.com and drsinatra.com.
