Vegetarian Diet – Will Going Vegan Reduce the Risk of Heart Disease?

I became a bit puzzled the other day when I read a blog article written by Kim A Williams MD, a cardiologist at Rush University in Chicago and the next president of the American College of Cardiology.   Doctor Williams describes how one of his patient’s history inspired him to change his dietary habits and adopt a … Read more

Dietary Fat, Carbohydrates and Metabolic Syndrome

Time makes us fat. It’s not a myth, it’s a biologic fact. When we get old we get fat. In December 1863, William Banting, an English undertaker who went to great lengths to treat his own obesity, wrote in his now famous Letter on Corpulence: … For I have been generally informed that corpulence is one of the natural results of … Read more

Are General Health Checks Useless?

Many people believe that visiting the doctor regularly will prevent problems. Diseases may be diagnosed and cured early, before they cause harm. We have our cars checked on a regular basis. Why shouldn’t the same apply to our bodies? But are general health checks really helpful? Putting it differently; could health checks possibly be harmful? Will they lead to unnecessary diagnostic and … Read more

Statins, Statistics and Statinistics

Current medical knowledge is to a large extent based on results from scientific studies. Traditionally, these results are published in peer-reviewed medical journals. Before being accepted, a scientific paper has to go through critical assessment by expert reviewers who will assess the paper’s suitability for publication. The peer review process is intended to guarantee standards of quality and … Read more

Can Further Lowering of Blood Cholesterol Save Lives?

For many years, lowering blood levels of low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) has been a key target for individuals with cardiovascular disease (CVD) and healthy people at increased risk for developing such disease. Statin drugs play a key role for risk reduction and are prescribed to millions of people worldwide. Apart from lowering blood cholesterol, … Read more