Why do people get heart attacks?
New research shows that medical treatment with cholesterol-lowering medications (statins) that are used to lower cholesterol values may not always be good to use.
Research shows that the large LDL cholesterol particles that we get from the fat is not the reason for heart attack but rather the smaller LDL cholesterol particles that we get from carbohydrates/suger. Also inflammation is causing heart attack. The large LDL particles from fat are so large that they float and do not get stuck in the damaged cell wall. Small particles from carbohydrates on the other hand does not flow and the small size makes them easily clog.
How can you prevent strokes?
An appropriate treatment is low carb food with balanced fat balance between omega 3 and omega 6. Ie. cut back on sweets and carbs, eat lots of oily fish or omega 3 supplements and drive careful regular cardio as your doctor’s recommendation. Also make sure you get enough vitamin D through supplements during the dark part of the year. According to Robert H. Lustig, UCSF Professor, it’s the wrong dietary advice that was released in 1982 that has caused the large increase in metabolic diseases such as heart attack.
To measure total LDL cholesterol gives a misleading picture because it is only the small LDL particles that are dangerous. Instead, the TG / HDL ratio should be measured.
Low TG and high HDL is evidence of large LDL, which is harmless. This is what you get from fat.
High TG and low HDL is a sign of dangerous small LDL that leads to heart / vascular diseases. This can be obtained from carbohydrates especially from fructose.
People with inherited deficiency of LDL receptors could get higher levels of LDL. This increases the risk of heart attack and then you need to be extra careful with sugar.
Key to abbreviations
HDL – high-density lipoprotein – HDL can remove cholesterol from plaque formation in the arteries and transport it back to the liver for excretion from the body or for reuse. This is the main reason why HDL-bound cholesterol is sometimes called “good cholesterol”. A high level of HDL cholesterol seems to protect against cardiovascular disease.
LDL – low-density lipoprotein – transports cholesterol from the liver and intestines to the cells and tissues via blood circulation. They carry cholesterol from the cells that have a surplus to the cells and tissues that take up cholesterol. Commonly called “bad cholesterol”. Scientists have now discovered that it is the small LDL particles that we get from carbohydrates that are dangerous and not the large LDL particles that we get from fat.
TG – Triglycerides – Most common fats in the blood. Low carb cost and cardio has been found to give good TG levels in the blood.
Sources
- Statins provide more harm than good: http://www.unt.se/debatt/statiner-gor-mer-skada-an-nytta-1653445.aspx
- Low fat food provides hazardous small LDL particles: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7625363
- Low carbohydrate diet beneficial effects in atherosclerosis: http://circ.ahajournals.org/content/121/10/1200.abstrac
- Low-fat diet worsens heart / vascular disease: http://jama.ama-assn.org/content/295/6/655.abstract
- American heart surgeon:
- Study on diet and prevention of heart disease, demonstrating that simple carbs are dangerous: http://archinte.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/short/169/7/659
- Sugar dangerous for the heart: http://www.dn.se/nyheter/vetenskap/socker-okar-risk-for-hjartsjukdomar
