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

Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) – From Symptoms to Diagnosis and Treatment

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common disorder among women. It is characterized by menstrual irregularities, infertility, signs of androgen excess, and polycystic ovaries. It is often associated with obesity, insulin resistance, and lipid abnormalities. PCOS is the most common cause of infertility in women (1). PCOS was first described in 1934 by Irving F. Stein … Read more

Fructose Restriction – An Effective Lipid Intervention?

The association between lipid disorders and heart disease is well known. Medical checkups usually involve measurements of cholesterol and other lipid parameters, and most doctors advise their patients on how to improve their lipid pattern. Dietary interventions to lower the risk of heart disease commonly aim at reducing blood levels of cholesterol, LDL cholesterol in particular. This is … Read more

Low-Carb Diet to Treat Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease – Does It Make Sense?

Approximately 30 percent of people in the United States have a disease that is characterized by abnormal deposits of fat in the liver. The disease is not contagious, and unlike many other disorders of the liver, it is not caused by overconsumption of alcohol. It is called non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and has become the leading cause of chronic liver disease … Read more