The Fate of the PURE Study – Fat and Carbohydrate Intake Revisited

Most experts agree that diet is an important modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular disease and many other chronic noncommunicable disorders. Hence, defining and implementing a healthy diet is a matter of great public health interest. However, although there is substantial agreement on many issues, such as the importance of fruits and vegetables, several matters are still … Read more

From Low-Fat, High-Carb to Insulin Resistance, Fatty Liver, and Heart Disease

I recently gave a talk at a meeting with colleagues, most of them cardiologists and endocrinologists, where I, among other things, discussed the current status of diet-heart hypothesis and the possible relationship between our fear of dietary fats and the obesity epidemic. After the meeting, a senior colleague of mine, an old friend, and a … Read more

Artificially Sweetened Beverages and the Risk of Stroke and Dementia

I’m often asked which is worse for health, sugar- or artificially sweetened beverages. My most common response is to recommend skipping both and choose water. In the era of fructose phobia and the apparent association between high fructose consumption and the risk of metabolic syndrome and diabetes, many tend to prefer artificially sweetened beverages (1,2). … Read more

High Carbohydrate Intake Worse than High Fat for Blood Lipids

Data presented at the World Heart Federation’s World Congress of Cardiology & Cardiovascular Health 2016 (WCC 2016) in Mexico City may radically change our perspective on how carbohydrates and different types of fats affect blood cholesterol and other lipid biomarkers. The presentation was based on data from the Prospective Urban Rural Epidemiological (PURE) study. The data have not been … Read more