Todays blog entry comes from http://justinsmith.squarespace.com/.
A new study confirms that we are having the ‘wool pulled over our eyes’ about ‘bad’ cholesterol.
We are constantly told that high levels of ‘bad’ cholesterol will lead to an early grave. This message has been drummed into us for years. The main action of cholesterol-lowering statin drugs is to lower ‘bad’ cholesterol (LDLs). These drugs are taken by 13 million Americans, 4 million Brits and a further 8 million people in the rest of the World.
Millions of people take statins and millions more are concerned about their LDL levels. This is because higher LDL levels are supposed to cause heart disease. Considering the amount of attention that is given to LDLs, and the US$29 billion that is spent on lowering LDLs each year, it is surprising to find that average LDL levels are very often not reported. Only a small number of studies actually show average LDL levels for people who have heart disease.
One such study was published at the beginning of this year in the American Heart Journal. The results of this study should have resulted in the discontinuation of cholesterol-lowering drugs for the majority of people; however, the study has been largely unreported.
The study included 136,905 people admitted into hospital with coronary artery disease (CAD). All of these people had their LDL level measured within 24 hours of arrival in hospital. The average LDL level for this large group of people, who were admitted across 541 hospitals, was 105 mg/dL.
The most significant finding of this study was that the average LDL level for this group of people with CAD was actually lower than the average level for the general population. The average for the general population, around the same time, was 123 mg/dL.
If people with CAD have lower LDL levels than the general population, then surely, it is simply impossible for higher LDL levels to cause heart disease?
Americans are told that the ideal LDL level is below 100 mg/dL, people in the UK are given a target of around 120 mg/dL. However, this study found that almost half of the people admitted to hospital with CAD had a LDL level below 100 mg/dL and around three quarters had an LDL level below 120 mg/dL.
We are led to believe that there is a linear progression in heart disease risk as LDLs increase; however this study shows that this is not the case.
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This is a very informative and revealing blog and I look forward to reading his new book ‘$29 million reasons to lie about cholesterol’.
Cholesterol is much maligned, but is essential for health. A few of its roles and functions are formation of cell membranes, acting as an antioxidant, digesting fat, and absorbing fat soluble vitamins A,D,E,K. It is also the precursor of Vit D, and steroid hormones – cortisol, progesterone, estrogen, and testosterone. We need to include it in our diet, but it is actually made in the body, in the liver, intestines, adrenal glands, and reproductive organs.
The first recorded heart attack in the USA was in 1941, just 6 decades later it is a huge issue, and a lot of the problem lies with our love of processed fast food and the hydrogenated oils they contain, and the governments advice to avoid saturated fat.
References
Smith, J “$29 Billion Reasons to Lie about Cholesterol” Troubador, Leicester
Sachdeva, A et al “Lipid Levels in Patients Hospitalized with Coronary Artery Disease: An analysis of 136,905 Hospitalizations in Get with the Guidelines” American Heart Journal 2009; 157:111-117
Carroll, MD et al “Trends in Serum Lipids and Lipoproteins of Adults, 1960-2002” Journal of the American Medical Association 2005; 294:1773-1781
Conversion of Cholesterol Units
Cholesterol can be expressed in both mg/dL and mmol/L. To convert mg/dL to mmol/L, divide by 39. For example 100 mg/dL is 2.56 mmol/L and 120 mg/L is 3.1 mmol/L
Chek,P ‘Under The veil of deception’
great lesson