Why Medicine Might Be Wrong About Salt, Fat & BMI

Salt and fat kill you early, and your BMI tells you how early. That has been the wisdom for years, but wisdoms have an expiry date, too. Particularly medical wisdoms. Recent research says those three are probably well beyond their use-by date. [tweet this].  

We live in interesting times. Admitted, my view of times is myopic, it's focused on the biomedical. So, I'm obviously not referring to Greece teetering on the economic brink. In biomedicine our Greeks are the cherished wisdoms about salt, fat and BMI. Similarity 1: They are not doing so well. Similarity 2: Their balance sheet screams bankruptcy. Similarity 3: Our authorities won't kick them out for fear of a domino effect.

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Why Risk Screening For Heart Disease Is As Good As Crystal Ball Gazing

If weather forecasts were as reliable as cardiovascular risk prediction tools, meteorologists would miss two thirds of all hurricanes, expect rain for 8 out of 10 sunny days, and fail to see the parallels to fortune telling.    

When you are older than 35 and visit your doctor, there is a good chance he will evaluate your risk of suffering a heart attack or stroke over the next 10 years. The motivation behind this risk scoring is to prevent such an event while you still can. After all, these cardiovascular diseases are the number one causes of disability and death. In Europe alone 1.8 Million people die from it every year. In fact, they die prematurely, which means at an age younger than 75. [tweet this].

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The Death Of Good Cholesterol

Briefly

There were always two types of cholesterol, the good and the bad. Until now. A large new study tells us that good cholesterol might have been an impostor. That's food for the media types. For those who think before they type, the real news is that we are finally getting closer to uncovering the impostors. Thanks to the genetics revolution which seems to be paying off in an unexpected area.  

 

 

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How to survive the health care system.

You have heard about good and bad cholesterol. You have heard that increasing the former and reducing the latter will cut your risk of heart disease. You will now hear what's principally wrong with this strategy of attacking risk factors. And how it prevents us from eradicating the heart disease epidemic sweeping the globe. 

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Guess who is hiding the magic pill to longevity?

Imagine a medicine which protects you against cardiovascular disease, cancers, diabetes, depression and dementia. A medicine which works best when taken regularly and long before any symptoms of any of those diseases appear. A medicine which is cheaper than any supplement or aspirin. Would you take it?

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