In 1978, a pathologist performing a routine autopsy made a remarkable discovery — A 76 year old woman without any sign of atherosclerosis.
What’s so remarkable about this?
Write Your Own Last Act
I’d like to approach my end with tranquility and dignity, to exert my will up until my last breath, to leave a legacy of strength and pride rather than fear and self-pity.
I am doubtful that if I were faced with my own mortality at this moment that I would live up to such grand expectations, which is why I wanted to highlight two inspiring stories that were in the news this week.
What is LDL-Cholesterol?
The oversimplification of cardiovascular disease risk assessment—in which LDL-cholesterol is often the primary diagnostic, prognostic, and therapeutic target—leads to effective treatment of some people, but the ineffective treatment of others.
No Time to Die From an MI
For this reason, though it’s very hard to do, I believe we should try to avoid applying guidelines without attention to the particularities of each individual patient.
Covid-19 Vaccine Boosters – A Methodology for Deciding
Read this article to see how I’m thinking about Covid-19 vaccine boosters.
COVID-19 Vaccine Effectiveness in the Age of Delta and What Else We Can Do
Vaccines are working — they are very effective at preventing severe Covid-19. What else can we do?
Lessons from the Miami Condo Collapse
It’s possible to envision a future version of ourselves as a more robust, vigorous, and resilient person, and then to bring that person into reality.
Case Report: The Metabolic Effects of Losing 30 Pounds
This is the case of a 31 year old woman who decided to lose weight and improve her health by restricting her diet to whole foods and by restricting her carbohydrate intake. The article follows her weight and blood work for roughly one year.
Get the Blood Work You Want Without a Doctor’s Order
My opinion is that the proper role for physicians in diagnostic testing is to make professional recommendations, not to be gatekeepers. Fortunately, you’re no longer dependent upon physicians to order lab work. Direct-to-consumer labs are available at affordable prices, and there is an increasing array of options.
The Story of Jeff Henigson
Jeff Henigson was diagnosed with brain cancer at the age of fifteen. He was told the cancer would kill him within a few years. Thirty-five years later, Jeff’s miraculous and fascinating survival story was published online. After his story became public, he was contacted by a neuropathologist.
How to Communicate With Your Doctor to Get a Timely and Accurate Diagnosis
This article takes you behind the scenes of the medical interview.
When you’re done reading, you’ll know why your doctor asks certain questions, what sort of answers they’re looking for, and what they’re thinking about while you’re talking. Once you know all of this, you can learn to communicate more effectively with your doctor.
Efficient and effective communication will improve your rapport, save time, and improve the chances of your doctor making early and accurate diagnoses.
Create a Helpful Food Environment
Instead of being faced with hard decisions every day to resist tempting foods, we can make one good decision to surround ourselves only with the foods we wish we would eat more often.