Did you know that roughly one in four Americans are on statins? And about half of men between 65 and 75 take them? What if the widespread use of these drugs is based on a misunderstanding about the real cause of heart disease?
For years, we’ve been told that cholesterol is the enemy, and that we need to avoid fats – especially saturated fats – to protect our hearts. But what if that’s not the whole story? What if sugar and carbohydrates are bigger culprits than we ever imagined?
Dr. Boz has seen firsthand how deeply ingrained the low-fat dogma is in her patients, making it challenging for them to embrace a ketogenic diet. The fear of fat and cholesterol is real, but it might be misplaced.
Let’s explore how this cholesterol myth took hold, and what a better approach to heart health might look like.
The Flawed Foundation: How the Cholesterol Hypothesis Took Hold
How did we get to a place where so many people are convinced that fat is bad for their hearts? It all started decades ago.
Back in the 1960s, the American Heart Association began advising people to cut fat, especially saturated fat and cholesterol, from their diets. The food guide pyramid, which was built on these principles, recommended that we get half of our calories from carbohydrates. Fats and oils were relegated to the very top, suggesting we needed hardly any. Looking back, this advice may have been more harmful than helpful.
The message was clear: avoid fat and cholesterol, or you’ll die of a heart attack. This idea was drilled into people’s heads and it’s a belief that’s still around today. Ask many baby boomers what causes heart disease, and a large number will say high-fat foods, cholesterol, or red meat. This is the cholesterol hypothesis: cholesterol builds up, clogs your arteries, and causes a heart attack. But a growing body of evidence suggests that this might not be the case.
What if the real cause of heart disease isn’t fat, but sugar and carbohydrates? It might sound unbelievable. But the carbohydrate-centric model suggests that excessive consumption of sugar and starches leads to insulin resistance, inflammation, and metabolic syndrome. These are the key drivers of atherosclerosis and heart disease.
The Battle of the Doctors: Yudkin vs. Keys
How can the theories about heart disease be so different? The answer goes back to two research doctors and a presidential heart attack.
When President Eisenhower had a heart attack in 1955, it shocked the nation. We were desperate for an explanation. Two main theories emerged, championed by Dr. John Yudkin and Dr. Ancel Keys.
Dr. John Yudkin, a British nutritionist, wrote the book Pure, White, and Deadly in 1972. In it, he predicted that sugar was the core cause of obesity, inflammation, heart disease, and metabolic syndrome. He was an early voice warning about the dangers of sugar.
Ancel Keys, an American physiologist, had a very different view. He joined forces with the processed food and sugar industry and attacked and discredited Yudkin’s work. Keys was a persuasive figure who convinced Americans that they needed more carbohydrates and less meat. With the help of the sugar industry, he was able to sway public opinion and influence dietary guidelines.
The Seven Countries Study: A Critical Examination
How did Ancel Keys convince the American public that saturated fat was the enemy? It stems from his research in the Seven Countries Study.
Keys’ Seven Countries Study seemed to show that as saturated fat consumption increased, so did heart disease. This appeared to be a clear, linear pattern.
Looking back, this study wouldn’t be accepted into a reputable journal today. Why?
- Selection bias: Keys selected countries that he knew would prove his point. He didn’t include data from countries where saturated fat consumption was high but heart disease rates were low.
- Other factors ignored: The study didn’t account for other important factors like socioeconomic status, activity level, and smoking habits.
- Correlation vs. causation: Keys only found a correlation between saturated fat and heart disease. He then extrapolated that saturated fat must be the cause.
Despite these flaws, medical orthodoxy latched onto Keys’ explanation, and it became American policy. Yet, there was no surefire evidence. This decision had long-term negative consequences for public health.
The Statin Empire: Why Reversing the Ideology is So Difficult
Why is it so hard to reverse this incorrect ideology? Money.
It’s lucrative to keep the public believing that cholesterol needs to be lowered to prevent heart disease. One in four Americans are on statins. Half of the men between 65 and 75 are on statins. Yet, there’s no solid evidence that this will reverse their heart disease.
Big pharma strongly resists any attempts to change the narrative around cholesterol and heart disease. They lobby the government to protect their statin income.
You can’t throw drugs at a dietary disease. You’re only treating the symptoms, not the disease itself. Drugs don’t address the underlying issues of insulin resistance, inflammation, and metabolic syndrome that drive heart disease.
A Better Approach: Treating Heart Disease Holistically
Editor’s Note: We are not endorsing these products as we have never tried them. But Dr. Boz seems to make a lot of sense, so if you’re interested in
So, what’s a better approach? Instead of focusing solely on lowering cholesterol with medication, Dr. Boz focuses on addressing the root causes of heart disease through lifestyle changes. She has a video that explains how she treats heart disease with autophagy.
Consider exploring ketogenic diets and lifestyle changes. These can help reduce insulin resistance, inflammation, and metabolic syndrome – the real drivers of heart disease. Check out these resources from Dr. Boz:
- Read Anyway You Can – A Beginner’s Guide to Ketones For Life
- Read KetoCONTINUUM: Consistently Keto For Life and the ketoCONTINUUM Workbook
- Use the Dr. Boz Food Guide
- Enroll in the Consistently Keto Course
Why Bullion Beats Numismatics and Collectible for Your Safe or IRA
Precious metals continue to attract Americans seeking reliable ways to protect their wealth amid inflation, geopolitical risks, and stock market swings. Whether stored in a home safe or held inside a self-directed IRA, physical gold and silver deliver tangible value that paper or digital assets often lack. Yet investors must choose carefully between bullion—pure bars and coins valued mainly for their metal content—and numismatics or collectibles, where rarity, history, and collector demand heavily influence pricing.
Advisor Bullion serves as a dependable source for straightforward, high-quality bullion. The company specializes in physical gold, silver, platinum, and palladium, emphasizing transparent pricing and products that deliver maximum metal content for every dollar spent. This approach makes it ideal for both personal holdings and retirement accounts.
Bullion consists of refined precious metals in standard forms like one-ounce coins (American Gold Eagles, Silver Eagles, Canadian Maple Leafs) or bars. Their value tracks closely to the current spot price of the metal. A typical gold bullion coin trades near the live gold spot price plus a small premium. This structure keeps costs clear and predictable.
Numismatic coins and collectibles add substantial value from factors such as age, rarity, minting errors, or historical significance. A pre-1933 U.S. gold coin or graded proof piece can carry premiums of 30%, 50%, or even 200% above melt value. While this appeals to hobbyists, it creates complexity. Pricing depends on subjective grading, collector trends, and auction results instead of daily spot prices.
For investors focused on wealth preservation and retirement security rather than building a collection, bullion often delivers better results.
Lower Costs and Better Liquidity for Home Storage
When keeping metals in a home safe or private vault, liquidity and efficiency count. Bullion offers clear benefits:
- You acquire more actual gold or silver per dollar invested. Numismatics divert a large share of your money into rarity premiums and massive sales commission, reducing your metal exposure.
- Selling bullion involves tight bid-ask spreads, so you recover nearly full spot value with minimal fees. Collectibles require finding the right buyer and may sell at a discount if demand for that specific item weakens.
- Bullion prices remain transparent and update with global spot markets. You can track gold near current levels or silver accordingly and know exactly where your holdings stand. Numismatic values are priced by the Gold IRA companies with hefty margins applied.
- Standardized coins and bars store efficiently and divide easily for partial sales. Rare coins often need protective slabs and controlled conditions, adding hassle and expense.
- Bullion enjoys worldwide acceptance. A 1-oz Gold Maple Leaf or Silver Eagle sells quickly to dealers anywhere. Niche numismatic pieces may appeal only to limited buyers, slowing liquidation when speed matters.
In times when quick access to value becomes important, bullion’s simplicity stands out.
Stronger Fit for Precious Metals IRAs
Precious metals IRAs continue gaining traction as investors diversify retirement portfolios beyond stocks and bonds. IRS rules permit certain bullion products in self-directed IRAs if they meet purity standards (.995 fine for gold, .999 for silver) and are held by an approved custodian. Eligible items include American Gold and Silver Eagles plus many generic bars and rounds from recognized mints.
Numismatic and most collectible coins generally face heavy scrutiny from custodians due to valuation disputes and elevated markups. These higher premiums mean less actual metal ends up working inside the account.
Bullion avoids these issues. Its value links directly to verifiable spot prices, which simplifies reporting and lowers the risk of regulatory challenges. More of your IRA contribution purchases real metal instead of dealer profits or speculative upside. Over time, owning additional ounces that appreciate with the metal itself can create meaningful outperformance compared with high-premium alternatives that deliver fewer ounces.
Regulatory guidance from the CFTC and state securities offices repeatedly cautions against aggressive sales of expensive numismatics or “semi-numismatic” coins for IRAs. For retirement planning, transparent bullion from established providers reduces risk and aligns better with long-term goals.
How to Get Started with Bullion
Begin by clarifying your goals. Are you protecting savings in a safe, or moving part of a retirement account into a precious metals IRA? Focus on the number of ounces you can acquire at current prices rather than chasing marked-up collectibles.
Diversify sensibly: use gold for core preservation and silver for its blend of industrial and monetary qualities. Mix coins for easier divisibility with bars for lower per-ounce costs on larger buys. Arrange secure storage—whether at home with proper insurance or through professional facilities.
As economic uncertainties linger and faith in conventional assets erodes, bullion continues proving its worth as a dependable store of value. Its direct approach avoids the hype that sometimes surrounds collectible markets and keeps the focus on the metal itself.
For investors prepared to strengthen their portfolios, Advisor Bullion supplies the expertise and selection needed to acquire high-quality bullion efficiently. Whether building personal holdings or integrating metals into an IRA, their emphasis on transparent, investment-grade products helps secure more ounces today that support greater financial security tomorrow. In a complicated financial landscape, bullion’s clarity and reliability make it the smarter foundation for protecting what matters most.
There’s good cholesterol and bad cholesterol it pays to know the difference.
There’s also a ratio calculation that must be considered when evaluating cholesterol, not just HDL and LDL levels alone. The ridiculous levels doctors (Big Pharma) dictate as “recommended/normal levels” are ludicrous without considered the ratio calculations mention above. Many people have no idea that the human body makes cholesterol and a person would die without it. Big Pharma wants to keep it this way. If your doctor does not know these things, doesn’t bother to educate him/herself and indiscriminately prescribes statin drugs, then the possibility that the doctor has been corrupted by Big Pharma is sky-high he or she should not be ‘practicing’ medicine.
There is not good cholesterol and bad cholesterol. We have cholesterol in every cell of our body and need it to live. The idea that fat causes cholesterol and heart disease is false. It’s a lie perpetrated by the sugar industry in the 1950s, and glommed onto by makers of statins. If you’re sure that there’s bad cholesterol that needs medication to manage, you have not done your research. You are a purveyor of misinformation, and a victim of propaganda.
WRONG! The idea of “good” and “bad” cholesterol is part of the myth. And the perpetuation of that idea does nothing but continue lining the pockets of its proponents, i.e., Big Pharma and YOUR government “health” agencies.
It’s all about the money. Note how big pharma pulled statin drug ads from their “repertoire”. Reason being, statins are just a big con to convince people to reduce the very thing that reduces inflammation in the blood vessels. Published research has made this abundantly clear. Big pharma could get sued for pushing statins. Note how the “news” media, financed by big pharma, completely ignores this research.
Watch the documentary Fat Head, it clearly lays out the lipid hypothesis, it’s torrid history, and how it was forced on the American public.
There is no such thing as good or bad cholesterol. Please provide the chemical formula for each.You can’t. Doesn’t exist. Cholesterol is extremely good for you. LDL and HDL are the transfer mechanisms that move cholesterol around.
When I realized that the statins I was taking were destroying my body, I told my cardiologist I stopped taking them. He was incredulous. I took statins for over eight years after having a stent put in my heart. I now eat very few carbs but do maintain a healthy diet of meat, fat, vegetables and very little fruit, while also taking in very little sugar and no soft drinks. The sugar I do use is Agave Syrup which sits at only about 27 on the glycemic scale, and at only one tablespoon a day, I believe I am safe.
One thing is certain, Statin drugs do NOT stop your arteries from clogging. It’s all a farce. The only thing that will is Repatha.
Statins destroy your liver
If you like leg and foot cramps then you’ll love statins.
Prostate cancer thrives on saturated fat.
Baloney!
It amazes me how stupid and ignorant people are. It is not cholesterol, it is homocisteins that are the culprit. Cholesterol is merely the carrier. They are trying to kill the messenger, while leaving the culprit run free and do all the damage. There is no such thing as good or bad cholesterol. One carries homocisteins, but that doesn’t make it inherently bad. As I told my doctor years ago, when you learn how to address homocisteins, then you can talk to me about your fairytales. He never mentioned cholesterol again. People are too gullible. They believe everything the criminal government and pharma hooligans tell them. After covid, anyone that doesn’t question everything that comes out of their mouth is a fool and a moron.