The “good” cholesterol “bad” cholesterol myth. That most people with heart disease have perfectly acceptable cholesterol levels, that plaque buildup has little to do with animal fats or cholesterol etc etc etc.
Basically most of the crap that the AHA is putting out and that you posted. That’s what.
A conspiracy for everyone and everyone in a conspiracy.
There is nothing new to the claims and counterclaims regarding cholesterol and I’ve no more reason to take the word of this Kendrick than of anyone else.
Decades ago I gave blood to the Red Cross and then received a letter inviting me to participate in a study by, IIRC, the NYU Medical Center and other groups. That was because my triglycerides, lipid thingys and other nasty stuff was sky high. I wasn’t able to participate and never worried about it.
While there are many animal and human studies that DO show a role for LDL and HDL in atherosclerotic disease, it is a very complicated process with many variables (some of which remain undoubtedly unknown). Further, for certain individuals, LDL levels are likely a minor player in overall cardiovascular risk.
One bit of evidence for this is the lack of effect of a powerful statin (Crestor) on cardiovascular mortality in dialysis patients:
Rosuvastatin and Cardiovascular Events in Patients Undergoing Hemodialysis
New England Journal of Medicine, Volume 360:1395-1407 April 2, 2009 Number 14
Bengt C. Fellström, M.D., Ph.D., Alan G. Jardine, M.D., Roland E. Schmieder, M.D., Hallvard Holdaas, M.D., Ph.D., Kym Bannister, M.D., Jaap Beutler, M.D., Ph.D., Dong-Wan Chae, M.D., Ph.D., Alejandro Chevaile, M.D., Stuart M. Cobbe, M.D., Carola Grönhagen-Riska, M.D., Ph.D., José J. De Lima, M.D., Ph.D., Robert Lins, M.D., Ph.D., Gert Mayer, M.D., Alan W. McMahon, M.D., Hans-Henrik Parving, M.D., D.M.Sc., Giuseppe Remuzzi, M.D., Ola Samuelsson, M.D., Ph.D., Sandor Sonkodi, M.D., Ph.D., D. Sci., Gultekin Süleymanlar, M.D., Dimitrios Tsakiris, M.D., Ph.D., Vladimir Tesar, M.D., Ph.D., Vasil Todorov, M.D., Ph.D., Andrzej Wiecek, M.D., Ph.D., Rudolf P. Wüthrich, M.D., Mattis Gottlow, M.Sc., Eva Johnsson, M.D., Ph.D., Faiez Zannad, M.D., Ph.D., for the AURORA Study Group
ABSTRACT
Background Statins reduce the incidence of cardiovascular events in patients at high cardiovascular risk. However, a benefit of statins in such patients who are undergoing hemodialysis has not been proved.
Methods We conducted an international, multicenter, randomized, double-blind, prospective trial involving 2776 patients, 50 to 80 years of age, who were undergoing maintenance hemodialysis. We randomly assigned patients to receive rosuvastatin, 10 mg daily, or placebo. The combined primary end point was death from cardiovascular causes, nonfatal myocardial infarction, or nonfatal stroke. Secondary end points included death from all causes and individual cardiac and vascular events.
Results After 3 months, the mean reduction in low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels was 43% in patients receiving rosuvastatin, from a mean baseline level of 100 mg per deciliter (2.6 mmol per liter). During a median follow-up period of 3.8 years, 396 patients in the rosuvastatin group and 408 patients in the placebo group reached the primary end point (9.2 and 9.5 events per 100 patient-years, respectively; hazard ratio for the combined end point in the rosuvastatin group vs. the placebo group, 0.96; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.84 to 1.11; P=0.59). Rosuvastatin had no effect on individual components of the primary end point. There was also no significant effect on all-cause mortality (13.5 vs. 14.0 events per 100 patient-years; hazard ratio, 0.96; 95% CI, 0.86 to 1.07; P=0.51).
Conclusions In patients undergoing hemodialysis, the initiation of treatment with rosuvastatin lowered the LDL cholesterol level but had no significant effect on the composite primary end point of death from cardiovascular causes, nonfatal myocardial infarction, or nonfatal stroke. (ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00240331 [ClinicalTrials.gov] .)