The Modern-Day Heart Patient – From One Risk Profile to Another

Although the death rate from coronary heart disease (CHD) has declined rapidly during the last few decades, CHD remains the most common cause of death in most countries around the world. The reduction in death rate is partly due to fewer people being diagnosed with CHD and partly due to a better prognosis of those … Read more

Statins For Elderly People – A Deceptive Message

People older than 65 years are at increased risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD). Such disease accounts for more than 80 percent of deaths in this population. Age itself appears independently associated with risk, and risk factors such as high blood pressure, lipid disorders and diabetes are common among the elderly. An important question facing the medical … Read more

10 Pitfalls of Using LDL Cholesterol to Assess Risk

Blood levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), commonly termed the “bad cholesterol” are widely used to assess the risk of future heart disease. A traditional lipid panel measures total cholesterol, triglycerides, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C). These numbers are then used to calculate LDL-C which has been found to be strongly correlated with the risk of cardiovascular disease … Read more

Greenland Eskimos, Diet and Heart Disease

With so much being written lately about the relationship between dietary fats and  heart disease there’s no wonder we may feel a bit disoriented. Of course we could take the easy way out, and follow main stream recommendations, limit the total amount of fats consumed, and avoid saturated fats and cholesterol. Eating less animal and … Read more

Cholesterol Clarity or More Disparity

For decades cholesterol has been a major player when it comes to preventing heart disease. Measuring blood cholesterol and knowing your numbers is of key importance. If your numbers spell danger, you need to know what to do. Otherwise, you may be in big trouble. In their book published last year, Heart 411: The Only … Read more