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Title: The Cholesterol Myths : Exposing the Fallacy that Saturated Fat and Cholesterol Cause Heart Disease by Uffe Ravnskov ISBN: 0-9670897-0-0 Publisher: NewTrends Publishing, Inc. Pub. Date: 01 October, 2000 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $20.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.89 (9 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Great book -to share with your doctor
Comment: The high ratings from the other reviewers already show that this is a very important book; a reality check for those with fear of fresh cholesterol foods, or with concerns about cholesterol levels.
With cholesterol lowering drugs about $1000/year one can see the pressures to prescribe them from their makers, as a friend cardiologist was just offered $5000 simply to provide names for a cholesterol study -he called it a bribe and moved on.
The TV and print ads suggest dire consequences from cholesterol and it is easy to see that most people and doctors fear the stuff. Busy doctors may -out of fear of law suits or lack of time to read the studies- follow guidelines that in the U.S. and Canada were overwhelmingly written by those receiving payment from the drug companies [that alone is a scandal by itself].
This book shows the science and reveals the fact that lowering cholesterol by any means does not reduce mortality rates, that there are peoples with high cholesterol without heart disease and that, at the very least, the science for lowering cholesterol in virtually anybody is rotten.
The largest North American cholesterol lowering trial ever [2002 ALLHAT] and the largest trial in the world with the #1 selling cholesterol-lowering drug Lipitor [2003 ASCOT] showed mortality after 3 or 6 years that was totally identical, while a trial in elderly [2002 PROSPER] showed increased cancer and also nobody saved. The science in women is even worse than in men.
An early trial, EXCEL, was stopped at 11 months at a 2.75x greater mortality from the drug -but for the next 5 years we have publications as to how well the stuff [Mevacor] is tolerated [nobody keels over instantly] and how well it reduces "bad" cholesterol. I bet your doctor would like to know that.
I've seen Dr. Ravnskov give talks to three large U.S. medical audiences and you could feel the collective relief that here we have a widely published fellow doctor who has analyzed the science and found cholesterol not to be a cardiovascular boogie man -which, in their hearts they knew but may have doubted.
I suggest that if you are concerned about cholesterol you read this book, AND then give it to your doctor or cardiologist.
Other reviewers pointed out that the book gives few tips for heart disease prevention -that is not the book's purpose- and for that McCully's "The Heart Revolution" book [ISBN 0060929731] is probably best. In fact, get both books and take turns with your doctor reading them. A fine book. Eddie Vos www.health-heart.org E-mail: [email protected]
Rating: 5
Summary: Can't Wait to Confront My Cardiologist
Comment: This book should be read by everyone, especially doctors and especially those who specialize in cardiology. My own heart doctor has been trying to push statins on me for two years, despite the fact that my heart "epsiode" (a very minor infarction) took place 20 years ago, my total cholesterol is just 210, and high cholesterol (250+) with *zero* heart disease runs in my family. You should see him shudder at the abnormality of that figure, warning me that yet another drop in "normal" limits is on the AHA and NHLBI horizon. In his opinion, my total cholesterol should be 160 -- or dire consequences could result!
As its subtitle states, The Cholesterol Myths exposes the fallacy that saturated fat and cholesterol cause heart disease. Dr. Ravnskov is no "wacko"; his book is well-annotated and examines many of the major relevant studies over the past 50 years. I've checked a few of the references myself and have found them accurate. I've checked literature available on the AHA and NHLBI websites and seen for myself how they distort the truth.
In one example, the NHLBI states flatly that "international studies find that CHD is uncommon in cultures with low levels of serum cholesterol, even when... hypertension and cigarette smoking is relatively high." A check of the footnotes cited the "Seven Countries" study and "MONICA" project, both taken to task in Dr. Ravnskov's book. What the NHLBI did was choose only a few of the datapoints from these studies (Japan, China), where their statement was indeed true -- but they conveniently ignored all 25 or so other datapoints which clearly showed that overall there was no correlation between countries' cholesterol levels and CHD whatsoever!
A major contribution of Myths is its explanation of the way pro-cholesterol myth "scientists" and the drug companies use the "relative reduction" method of presenting their "wonder drugs'" value. If I, for example, take no drugs, my chances of a cadiac event might be 6% over the next 10 years. If I take statins for ten years, this might go down to 3%, which the drug companies present as a reduction of 50%! Sounds good, but the more sensible view would be to say that if I take no drugs, there's a 94% chance that nothing will happen to me, and if I take statins, there's a 97% chance -- wow, a whopping 3% gain! Would *you* take a drug (that can screw up your liver and muscles) for the rest of your life to go from 94% to 97%? Not me! This expose of statins is another fantastic contribution to medical common sense, and there are many more.
The Cholesterol Myths is simply a must-read.
Rating: 5
Summary: Who is afraid of a little cholesterol?
Comment: Every year millions of Americans are badgered by their physicians into taking a class of cholesterol lowering drugs called "statins". Doctors have become so obsessed with the dangers of high cholesterol that it has become difficult to get treated for anything else. The National Heart Lung and Blood Institute has issued guidelines that urge that even more Americans be put on statins. The large pharmacutical companies earn billions annually on the sale of statins. If these drugs were merely innocuous and expensive, the situation wouldn't be so bad, but statins can have many dangerous side effects. If you are doubtful about the wisdom of taking statins, Uffe Ravnskov's book can provide you with the ammunition you need to resist your doctor's urging to take these drugs.
What makes this book compelling is Ravnskov's careful avoidance of accusations and ad-hominem attacks, and his heavy reliance on facts. Quoting one clinical study after another, he quietly demolishes the myth that cholesterol is dangerous. He then presents a detailed analysis of the various clinical trials involving statins, explaining the difference between relative risk and absolute risk. Drug companies love to tout the benefits of a drug in terms of relative risk, and minimize the side effects in terms of absolute risk. If you dig into Ravnskov's data, you can find some intriguing bits of information. Two trials involving Lovastatin actually showed higher overall mortality rates in the treatment group. One study of Pravastatin, which included women, showed a 1300% increase in breast cancer. The most successful statin trial showed a 42% reduction in fatal heart attacks, but only a 27% reduction in total mortality. Hmmm.
If Ravnskov's book has a flaw, it is his lack of alternatives to taking statins. Studies not mentioned in the book have shown that eating moderate amounts of fatty fish, or taking a fish oil supplement, can be just as beneficial as taking statins. Avoiding trans fats can give you a similar reduction in risk. Still it is an excellent book and well worth reading.
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Title: Know Your Fats : The Complete Primer for Understanding the Nutrition of Fats, Oils and Cholesterol by Mary G. Enig ISBN: 0967812607 Publisher: Bethesda Press Pub. Date: 14 May, 2000 List Price(USD): $29.95 |
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Title: Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook that Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and the Diet Dictocrats by Sally Fallon, Mary G. Enig PhD. ISBN: 0967089735 Publisher: NewTrends Publishing, Inc. Pub. Date: 01 October, 1999 List Price(USD): $25.00 |
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Title: The Heart Revolution : The Extraordinary Discovery That Finally Laid the Cholesterol Myth to Rest by Kilmer McCully, Martha McCully ISBN: 0060929731 Publisher: Perennial Pub. Date: 01 March, 2000 List Price(USD): $13.00 |
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Title: Nutrition and Physical Degeneration by Weston A. Price ISBN: 0879838167 Publisher: McGraw Hill - NTC Pub. Date: June, 2003 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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Title: The Homocysteine Revolution by Kilmer S. McCully, Andrew Weil ISBN: 0879839759 Publisher: McGraw-Hill/Contemporary Books Pub. Date: 01 February, 1999 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
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