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Dr. Mercola
October 13 2007
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Here`s How Cholesterol Damages Your Heart

High blood cholesterol is known to contribute to atherosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries, which in turn increases your risk of heart attack and stroke. Now, researchers from the Saint Louis School of Medicine have found out how it does this.

The researchers found, using an animal model, that cholesterol limits the activity of transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta), a key protective protein that protects your heart’s aorta and other vessels from damage caused by hypertension, high cholesterol, and other factors.

Cholesterol suppresses the responsiveness of cardiovascular cells to TGF-beta, which allows atherosclerosis to develop.

Atherosclerosis damages and narrows arteries of your heart and other tissues, which prevents blood from pumping through properly. This increases your risk of heart attack and stroke.

The findings also suggest a possible mechanism by which people with high cholesterol are at an increased risk for other diseases such as cancer. TGF-beta is a known tumor suppressor, and when its protective effects become limited by high cholesterol, it could increase your risk of certain cancers.

The researchers hope their findings will lead to the development of new drug therapies to treat or prevent atherosclerosis.

Journal of Cell Science September 18, 2007

Science Daily September 21, 2007



Dr. MercolaDr. Mercola's Comments:
Heart disease is one of the leading causes of death in the United States, and high cholesterol has been singled out as the primary cause, at least according to conventional medicine.

The researchers in the above study have made an interesting connection between cholesterol and a protective protein in your body, but this is merely another ruse to use “science” to justify yet another unnecessary, expensive, and dangerous drug to solve a non-problem.

Already, statin drugs are being prescribed like candy for millions of people. Why? To lower your cholesterol to a set level that was determined by a biased panel of doctors; eight of the nine doctors on the panel that developed the new cholesterol guidelines for the United States had been making money from the drug companies that manufacture statin drugs.

Before 2004, a 130-milligram LDL (bad) cholesterol level was considered healthy. The updated guidelines, however, recommended levels of less than 100, or even less than 70 for patients at very high risk.

But did anyone actually know whether the very low cholesterol levels recommended by the panel were beneficial?

No. In fact, there is no evidence to support their low target numbers, and, what's more, the combination of two or three statin drugs that patients can be prescribed to hit those targets will invariably do far more harm than good in the long run.

Even if the lower cholesterol numbers were beneficial, one must look at the overall effect of the drug, which lowers an important liver enzyme, coenzyme Q10. Since most rarely receive this as a supplement when they are on statin drugs, you can actually have an increase in cardiac risk as a result of this drug-induced vitamin deficiency.

Does High Cholesterol Even Cause Heart Disease?

Cholesterol is only an innocent bystander to the problem of heart disease. You can read this informative article by expert Ron Rosedale, MD to find out the details on why cholesterol is NOT the cause of heart disease.

The causes of heart disease are much more complex, and rather than going out and getting your cholesterol tested, there are four, much more powerful, blood tests to indicate your heart disease risk.

They are:
  • HDL/Total Cholesterol Ratio: HDL percentage is a very potent heart disease risk factor. Just divide your HDL level by your cholesterol. That percentage should be above 24%.
  • Triglycerides/HDL Ratio: Divide your triglyceride level by your HDL level. That percentage should be below 2.
  • Fasting Insulin: Normalizing your fasting insulin level is a powerful and effective way to not only reduce your risk of heart disease, but also cancer. Your level should be below 5.
  • Ferritin Levels: High iron levels will cause serious free radical damage, and are a FAR more important risk factor for heart disease than cholesterol levels. A simple blood test that measures ferritin levels can determine if your iron levels are dangerously elevated.
To lower your risk of heart disease, you need not focus solely on lowering your cholesterol. What you need to do is address the foundational causes, and some of the most effective ways to do this include:
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Community Comments ( 29 )
 Comment on this Article
  
  
Health Man
 [ Joined on 06/07 ] [ Posted on September 26, 2007 ]
31 Points        
   
 
Apprentice User
OK, and how does this supposedly important information explain the high cholesterol levels found in Milan, Italy (apo A-1 Milano phenotype) yet they have virtually no heart disease but eat a healthy diet rich in nutritious foods?

Tomorrows headlines will be some new drug that targets this protein.  Next years headlines will be how people have died because they didn't realize this protein had such far-reaching effects outside of cholesterol metabolism.  We all know that a drug will be developed long before the proteins role is fully understood.

When will these scientists finally learn that the body can heal itself if you feed it the right foods?  Drugs are largely unecessary if you eat correctly.
 [ Reply ]
Mercola
  
KAC
 		[ Joined on 06/06 ]  [ Posted on October 15, 2007]
2 Points        
   
Savvy User
  Mercola

I believe a more accurate marker of heart disease is elevated CRP (C-Reactive Protein) levels than cholesterol.  CRP is a protein that is a marker of inflammation in the body.  Also high homocysteine levels can contribute to heart disease which can be controlled by folic acid.  

Unlike cholesterol, CRP is not found in foods. However, its levels in the body are strongly influenced by diet. A recent study by Simin Liu, MD, PhD, of the Harvard Medical School found that women who ate large amounts of high-glycemic (diabetes promoting) carbohydrates, including potatoes, breakfast cereals, white bread, muffins, and white rice, had very high CRP levels. Women who ate a lot of these foods and were also overweight had the highest and most dangerous CRP levels.

Dietary fats also influence inflammation. Most omega-6 fats, found in margarine and corn and safflower oils, are the basic building blocks of arachidonic acid and prostaglandin E2, two of several key inflammation-causing substances in the body. In contrast, omega-3 fats, found in fish, fish oils, and vegetables, have an inflammation-suppressing effect.

My father had a heart attack at age 46 and his mother died of a heart attack at age 36.  In our family we know to watch our CRP and homocysteine levels and eat properly...which means to eat the proper fat, EFAs, pasture-fed meats, raw milk, raw butter, fruits and vegetables.
Mercola
  
Katrien
 		[ Joined on 10/06 ]  [ Posted on October 15, 2007]
3 Points        
   
Novice User
  Mercola

It is extremely dangerous to lower cholesterol with statins!!!

For people in Belgium or the Netherlands:

read the book "De Cholesterolleugen" (the cholesterol lie), written by a doctor (cardiologist, surgeon) which name I don't recall.  This book explains the function of cholesterol in the human body, and why it is dangerous to lower it with "medicines".
  
  
Katee Roux
 [ Joined on 07/07 ] [ Posted on September 25, 2007 ]
25 Points        
   
 
Savvy User
Sounds like junk science, again , to me.

Human bodies are incredibly complex.  Which is why lowering cholesterol alone does not make a significant difference to actual mortality rates.  It upsets the balance in the body & problems form in other areas.  I'm shocked this article would state that statins lower cancer rates, when the truth is statins increase cancer rates by supplying new capillaries to the tumors.

The fact that this study discovered that transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta)   contributes to hearth health means very little as we still have only grasped one piece of the puzzle.  Our science has a history of finding two puzzle pieces & find they "fit" (or force them two) & state they've "solved" the puzzle of heart disease or cancer, overlooking that the puzzle has another 498 pieces!  

We are much more complex than this.  And, as Dr. Mercola's nutritional types indicate:  there is not just one way to eat that works for everyone.  In the same way, i don't believe there is just one set of cholesterol numbers that tell the story for every person.  (Come to think of it, neither do the drug companies, as they keep lowering the numbers for diabetes.)  What may be healthy for someone at a cholesterol of 220, may be terribly unhealthy for someone else.  This is opinion, but i believe it has to do with one's lifestyle, food choices, exercise, & other decisions, as well as family history for cardiovascular disease & cancer are factors as well.  
 [ Reply ]
Mercola
  
Patty D
 		[ Joined on 06/07 ]  [ Posted on September 25, 2007]
9 Points        
   
Savvy User
  Mercola
Excellent points Katee.  Balance is the key and what science doesn't know about the human body right now is more than what it does know.  I agree, everyone is different and has to find what works for them.  With diet alone in 3 months I had lowered my overall cholesterol from 300 to 190 and this was after meds hadn't worked.
Mercola
  
Russ Bianchi
 		[ Joined on 09/06 ]  [ Posted on September 25, 2007]
7 Points        
   
Savvy User
  Mercola
LDL formation is greatly enhanced by the consumption of HFCS (also triglycerides and brown adipose tissue are increased through the KREBS Cycle), which was zero pounds per capita per year in 1971, in the American food and beverage chain, and is today 84 pounds per year per person, 36 years later.

Look at the actuarial increase in cardio vascular disease (and spikes in unexplained deaths among baby boomers related to LDL in their bodies) during this same period, as smoking and other potential causes have been reduced, and there is more than a smoking gun, but also bullets and bodies piled very high, as to causal connections through dietary intake, as well as lack of exercise, poor and lack of absorbable nutrient intake, etc.

But do not believe the numbers, follow the money! 

Life insurance underwriters are scrambling to exclude policy holders with high cholesterol numbers now, or up their premiums, to compensate for the increased, or accelerated, probability of mortality.

Total refined saccharide consumption per capita per annum in the USA is now reported (heavily sand-bagged politically at ERS and USDA) at 154 pounds per year. 

In point of fact, hard insider industry numbers place this consumption number at much closer to 183 pounds per year per capita in the USA, when TOTAL (and mostly unrefined) saccharide intake was less than 6 pounds per year in 1905. 

Why the higher real numbers?  Few, if any, of the refined sugars in foodservice and take out food or beverage is counted, and 2/3rd of all meals in the USA are eaten outside the home now (typically unlabeled).
  
  
qtface
 [ Joined on 06/06 ] [ Posted on September 26, 2007 ]
21 Points        
   
 
Apprentice User
What garbage. Cholesterol rises because of inflammation. Reduce the body's inflammation and cholesterol levels drop. I won't take that statin drug poison. I dropped my cholesterol by walking, fish oil, and greatly reducing grains & processed food in my diet. What if elevated cholesterol is a misunderstood  protective mechanism in our bodies? My father-in-law died at 89 of Alzhiemers. His cholesterol levels were below 160 and the doctors still told him to "watch your fats". I'd rather die of a heart attack than die of Alzhiemers, it's torture.
 [ Reply ]
Mercola
  
slack
 		[ Joined on 06/06 ]  [ Posted on September 26, 2007]
9 Points        
   
Novice User
  Mercola
My cholesterol is "high"...all my markers of inflammation are very low.


  
  
Blobby
 [ Joined on 11/06 ] [ Posted on September 27, 2007 ]
20 Points        
   
 
Savvy User
Cholesterol repairs damage in the arterial walls.
The biggest cause of raised cholesterol,therefore arterial damage,is stress and inflammation.
Reduce the stress and inflammation and cholesterol will drop.
Low cholesterol causes all sorts of diseases including cancer.
Ingested cholesterol ,in foods such as eggs, has NO effect on blood cholesterol levels whatsoever.
Conclusion: Statin Drugs are one of the biggest scams ever.
 [ Reply ]
  
  
Rivkah
 [ Joined on 06/06 ] [ Posted on September 26, 2007 ]
16 Points        
   
 
Apprentice User
I'm pleased to announce that after following the protein type diet with liberal amounts of coconut oil (a physician family friend said I was "killing" myself) for six months, my cholesterol at my last physical was 210 and my HDL was 66. My Dr. was impressed.
 [ Reply ]
  
  
Russ G.
 [ Joined on 01/07 ] [ Posted on October 13, 2007 ]
10 Points        
   
 
Novice User

Man, am I glad this site exists!  And we should point our loved ones and friends here for all of their health related questions and issues - BEFORE they start jamming synthetic chemicals down their throats for every little physical complaint.  

Dr. Mercola's mention of Dr. Rosedale (not the first time) is quite reassuring to me.  I've read Dr. Rosedale's book, "The Rosedale Diet" (possibly at Dr. M's recommendation) and found it to be very enlightening.

He focuses on two key systemic indicators for health and disease - leptin and insulin.  He touches a little on leptin's counterpart, ghrelin, which causes us to feel hungry.  

But mainly, he breaks down in detail (and in terms we all can understand) the relationship between leptin and insulin and how an imbalance in one tends to lead to an imbalance in the other.  And how they work together to self-perpetuate either health or lack of health.  

Not so much a diet book as a "life" book, after reading it you'll know for certain why America and other Westernized countries are experiencing such an epidemic of obesity and diabetes - starting with younger and younger people each year.  Do yourself a favor and read it!

I don't know about you, but lately when I'm watching the tube, I mute all the commercials.  Between the overly-loud (how did "they" ever get permission to jack-up the volume on ads?) car commercials and the plethora of over-hyped drug ads, I'm just fed up.

Have you ever stopped to count how many drug ads are FED to you during every hour of TV you watch?  And the types of drugs in relation to the type of show being aired?  And the presentational techniques being used - male/female, cartoon, music, length of ad, etc.?  If you haven't consciously done it yet, you should.  

My recent most-hated commercial is the Dr. Robert Jarvik Lipitor spot.  What a SELLOUT, is all I can think of that guy.  Yeah, maybe he dedicated his life to the study of the heart way back when, but apparently not anymore...

Be well,

 [ Reply ]
Mercola
  
Lynn46
 		[ Joined on 12/06 ]  [ Posted on October 14, 2007]
2 Points        
   
Savvy User
  Mercola

Russ G,

I am nodding my head--yes, yes. I don't watch very much network TV any more, but I have noticed the same very irritating trend that you mentioned--drug ads during every show! Also, every single local news broadcast on the network channels has a "health" segment, which is always just a bunch of lies, half-truths, and outright deceptions that really originate from Big Pharma, Big Food Manufacturing, and Big Medicine. I do the same as you for all of this c**p, I hit the mute button. Also, I agree that the Dr. Jarvik ad for Lipitor is one of the most irritating (and too long) of all the drug ads. I have to wonder, is Jarvik really that money-hungry, or is he really that clueless about how dangerous statin drugs are? Well, if either one or both of these questions is true, how pathetic has Jarvik's medical career become?

Lynn
  
  
Phantom O' Banjo
 [ Joined on 09/06 ] [ Posted on September 25, 2007 ]
10 Points        
   
 
Savvy User
I wonder what they consider to be high.  200 is considered high since they have drugs for it now.  I have heard people talk about doctors say oh thats great your cholesterol is 160.
 [ Reply ]
  
  
SugaRant
 [ Joined on 04/07 ] [ Posted on October 13, 2007 ]
8 Points        
   
 
Apprentice User

Further to 12PSTreet & others' wondering about cholesterol, I'd say it isn't necessary or useful to make levels a prime cause for concern. Cholesterol's needed by the body, which will actually be forced to MAKE it if you don't eat enough! The only effective way to lower it is to use statin drugs (like the infamous Lipitor) - but since your brain's partly made of cholesterol & uses it to function, statin drugs have very nasty effects on your memory, & also cause muscle damage (& isn't the heart 1 big muscle?). If you haven't heard of Dr Duane Graveline, a former NASA astronaut, I'd highly recommend his book "Lipitor: Thief of Memory"

Cholesterol tests aren't reliably accurate; shown by two reporters (Trump & Dearsly) for the UK newspaper "The Sunday Times", who on 6-Mar-2005 published a story telling how over a 2 day period they each had 3 or 4 tests and got mmol/Litre cholesterol readings of 4.77, 5.42, 5.02 & 6.44; the second reporter's results were 3.8, 4.1 and 6.1. This is ridiculous - doctors are making drug prescriptions in relation to something they cannot even measure accurately!

Here are some of the best books on understanding cholesterol, that the food, medical and drug industries would rather you don't read:

* "The Great Cholesterol Con" by Dr Malcom Kendrick (2007) - easy to read and humourously written: a great introduction to the subject

* "Cholesterol and the French Paradox" by Frank A Cooper (2006) - written by a man with Familial Hypercholesterolaemia (his body can't regulate cholesterol levels, which are very high indeed - yet he's in perfect health and has had relatives with the same genetic complaint live into their mid 80s.

* "The Great Cholesterol Con" by Anthony Colpo (2006) - has over 1400 medical references, & shows the flaws in cholesterol research & examines alternative medical studies on what causes heart disease.

* "The Cholesterol Myth" by Prof Uffe Ravnskov, MD, PhD (2000) - examines the start of the fraud in the 1950s.

 [ Reply ]
Mercola
  
Lynn46
 		[ Joined on 12/06 ]  [ Posted on October 14, 2007]
1 Points        
   
Savvy User
  Mercola

SugaRant,

These books are great recommendations. I tried to order "The Cholesterol Myth" by Uffe Ravnskov from Amazon.com a few months ago, and they no longer have new copies available (only from their used book partners at very high prices, for some unexplainable reason). I checked Barnesandnoble.com about two weeks ago and they do have this book (new, not used), but the lead time to get this book is about 3 weeks, so I hope to receive it in about a week. BTW, the author of this book is not English-speaking, so the book had to be translated into English. From the reviews that I have read about this book, it is quite ground-breaking, but I don't quite understand why it is so hard to obtain a new copy.

Lynn