Today, in the era of the statins (cholesterol lowering drugs), there is no longer any doubt about the value of lowering blood cholesterol levels. The Cholesterol Wars chronicles the controversy that swirled around the 'lipid hypothesis' of atherosclerosis for so many years. In fact, 'the lower the better' is the position of many clinicians. However, getting to this point has been a long uphill battle marked by heated debate and sometimes violent disagreement. The history of this controversy is told here for its own sake and because remembering it may help us avoid similar mistakes in the future. - Dr. Steinberg and his colleagues have published over 400 papers relating to lipid and lipoprotein metabolism and atherosclerosis reflecting the prominence these authors have in the community - Chronicles the miraculous power of the statins to prevent heart attacks and save lives, of great interest to the many manufacturers of these drugs - Discusses new targets for intervention based on a better understanding of the molecular basis of atherosclerosis

Heart disease is the leading cause of death worldwide, and for decades conventional health authorities have pushed that the culprits are fat and cholesterol clogging up coronary arteries. Consequently, lowering cholesterol has become a hugely lucrative business, and cholesterol-lowering Statin drugs are now the most prescribed medication in the world, with clinical data showing one billion people eligible for prescription. However, these cholesterol guidelines have been heavily criticized, and increasingly, doctors and researchers have been questioning the role cholesterol plays in heart disease. We now know that people with heart disease often do not, in fact, have high cholesterol, and even the strongest supporters of the cholesterol hypothesis now admit that no ideal level of cholesterol can be identified. Large-scale studies have proven that statins are not generating the benefits that were predicted, and new research shows that high cholesterol may actually prevent heart disease. Worse still, millions of people in the United States and worldwide are taking statins preventatively, at great cost to their health. A complete reevaluation of the real causes of heart disease is long overdue, not to mention an inquiry into why the pharmaceutical industry continues to overprescribe statins (and market them aggressively to consumers) despite this evidence. Statin Nation offers a new understanding of heart disease, and Justin Smith forges an innovative path away from the outdated cholesterol myth with a viable alternative model to address the real causes of heart disease. Statin Nation provides detailed examinations of nutritional alternatives that are up to six times more effective than statins, and other interventions that have been shown to be up to eleven times more effective than statins. But all of these methods are currently ignored by health authorities. Smith provides a heart disease prevention plan that anyone can use, providing hope for the future of heart-disease treatment with a purpose.

“Only once in a great while does a book come along that really does the job in addressing a major medical issue. When this happens, all can be joyful... Readers will find ALL their favorite dietary puzzlements dealt with... With consummate scholarship, clarity and brevity, Truswell sifts out the chaff and identifies the critical questions, the responsible investigators, and the key studies.” So says Emeritus Professor Henry Blackburn from the University of Minnesota in the foreword to this remarkable concise book on the history of research on diet and heart disease. This was a theme of scientific, medical and public interest in the 20th Century, a century marked by the rise and fall of coronary heart disease as the major cause of death in the first world, followed by the rise of this cause of death in the developing world. There is obviously much to learn, and this book is an excellent starting point, tracing dietary factors and their role in heart disease one by one: fats, sugar, salt, alcohol, coffee, trans-fats, etc. Without an understanding of the role of diet and the changes that have been seen in the North American and NW European diet, the story of the decline in the heart disease death rate may have been very different.

This book provides an overview of statin-associated muscle symptoms (SAMS) from clinical presentation to treatment and possible metabolic causes. It examines the risk factors, presentations, diagnosis and differential diagnosis, clinical management, and financial costs of SAMS. The book also highlights patients’ perspectives on SAMS such as the psychosocial, emotional, and societal factors influencing their perceptions and experiences. Finally, the book presents the results of observational and clinical trials on the prevalence of SAMS, clinical trials for treatments, and potential future research approaches for improving the understanding and treatment of SAMS. A key addition to the Contemporary Cardiology series, Statin-Associated Muscle Symptoms is an essential resource for physicians, medical students, residents, fellows, and allied health professionals in cardiology, endocrinology, pharmacotherapy, primary care, and health promotion and disease prevention.

The best-selling book on heart disease, updated with the latest research and clinical findings on high-fat/ketogenic diets, sugar, genetics, and other factors. Heart disease is the #1 killer. However, traditional heart disease protocols—with their emphasis on lowering cholesterol—have it all wrong. Emerging science is showing that cholesterol levels are a poor predictor of heart disease and that standard prescriptions for lowering it, such as ineffective low-fat/high-carb diets and serious, side-effect-causing statin drugs, obscure the real causes of heart disease. Even doctors at leading institutions have been misled for years based on creative reporting of research results from pharmaceutical companies intent on supporting the $31-billion-a-year cholesterol-lowering drug industry. The Great Cholesterol Myth reveals the real culprits of heart disease, including: inflammation, fibrinogen, triglycerides, homocysteine, belly fat, triglyceride to HDL ratios, and high glycemic levels. Best-selling health authors Jonny Bowden, PhD, and Stephen Sinatra, MD, give readers a four-part strategy based on the latest studies and clinical findings for effectively preventing, managing, and reversing heart disease, focusing on diet, exercise, supplements, and stress and anger management. Myths vs. Facts Myth: High cholesterol is the cause of heart disease. Fact: Cholesterol is only a minor player in the cascade of inflammation which is a cause of heart disease. Myth: Saturated fat is dangerous. Fact: Saturated fats are not dangerous. The killer fats are the transfats from partially hydrogenated oils. â?? Myth: The higher the cholesterol, the shorter the lifespan. Fact: Higher cholesterol protects you from gastrointestinal disease, pulmonary disease, and hemorrhagic stroke. Myth: High cholesterol is a predictor of heart attack. Fact: There is no correlation between cholesterol and heart attacks. Myth: Lowering cholesterol with statin drugs will prolong your life. Fact: There is no data to show that statins have a significant impact on longevity. Myth: Statin drugs are safe. Fact: Statin drugs can be extremely toxic including causing death. Myth: Statin drugs are useful in men, women, and the elderly. Fact: Statin drugs do the best job in middle-aged men with coronary disease. Myth: Statin drugs are useful in middle-aged men with coronary artery disease because of its impact on cholesterol. Fact: Statin drugs reduce inflammation and improve blood viscosity (thinning blood). Statins are extremely helpful in men with low HDL and coronary artery disease.

When you wish upon a star', 'Whistle While You Work', 'The Happiest Place on Earth' - these are lyrics indelibly linked to Disney, one of the most admired and best-known companies in the world. So when Roy Disney, chairman of Disney animation, abruptly resigned in November 2003 and declared war on chairman and chief executive Michael Eisner, he sent shock waves throughout the world. DISNEYWAR is the dramatic inside story of what drove this iconic entertainment company to civil war, told by one of America's most acclaimed journalists. Drawing on unprecedented access to both Eisner and Roy Disney, current and former Disney executives and board members, as well as hundreds of pages of never-before-seen letters and memos, James B. Stewart gets to the bottom of mysteries that have enveloped Disney for years. In riveting detail, Stewart also lays bare the creative process that lies at the heart of Disney. Even as the executive suite has been engulfed in turmoil, Disney has worked - and sometimes clashed - with a glittering array of Hollywood players, many of who tell their stories here for the first time.

In announcing that he had stopped serving the fattened livers of force-fed ducks and geese at his world-renowned restaurant, influential chef Charlie Trotter heaved a grenade into a simmering food fight, and the Foie Gras Wars erupted. He said his morally minded menu revision was meant merely to raise consciousness, but what was he thinking when he also suggested -- to Chicago Tribune reporter Mark Caro -- that a rival four-star chef 's liver be eaten as "a little treat"? The reaction to Caro's subsequent front-page story was explosive, as Trotter's sizable hometown moved to ban the ancient delicacy known as foie gras while an international array of activists, farmers, chefs and politicians clashed forcefully and sometimes violently over whether fattening birds for the sake of scrumptious livers amounts to ethical agriculture or torture. "Take a dish with a funny French name, add ducks, top it all off with celebrity chefs eating each other's livers, and that's entertainment," Caro writes. Yet as absurd as battling over bloated waterfowl organs might seem, the controversy struck a serious chord even among those who had never tasted the stuff. Reporting from the front lines of this passionate dining debate, Caro explores the questions we too often avoid: What is an acceptable amount of suffering for an animal that winds up on our plate? Is a duck that lives comfortably for twelve weeks before enduring a few weeks of periodic force-feedings worse off than a supermarket broiler chicken that never sees the light of day over its six to seven weeks on earth? Why is the animal-rights movement picking on such a rarefied dish when so many more chickens, pigs and cows are being processed on factory farms? Then again, how could the treatment of other animals possibly justify the practice of feeding a duck through a metal tube down its throat? In his relentless yet good-humored pursuit of clarity, Caro takes us to the streets where activists use bullhorns, spray paint, Superglue and/or lawsuits as their weapons; the government chambers where politicians weigh the ducks' interests against their own; the restaurants and outlaw dining clubs where haute cuisine preparations coexist with Foie-lipops; and the U.S. and French farms whose operators maintain that they are honoring tradition, not abusing animals. Can foie gras survive after 5,000 years? Are we on the verge of a more enlightened era of eating? Can both answers be yes? Our appetites hang in the balance.