EAT FAT, BE HEALTHY:
Understanding the Heart-Stopper
Gene* and When a Low-Fat Diet
Can Kill You
By: Matthew J. Bayan
(Scribner: $23.00) Previous Columns
Read the title of this book and shiver. My first thought was, Everyone knows eating too much fat is not healthy. Eating too much of anything isn't healthy. Matthew J. Bayan brings a message I'd never read before about the "Heart-Stopper Gene."
Yes, I wonder why when I hear about a young person dropping dead while jogging or playing basketball or even sitting comfortably in his or her easy chair, but a heart stopper gene? Really? The ‘final answer' is Yes, really. Doctors call it the *Small-particle LDL Syndrome.
Matt Bayan exercised daily, ate a low-fat diet, never smoked, and successfully avoided excess stress. But in the early hours of May 6, 1996, at the age of 45 years, he was jolted awake by a massive, unexpected heart attack.
Bayan walks readers through his attack in language easily understood. He shows you the terror, no, the absolute horror, of actually experiencing a life threatening heart attack. This is accomplished in a narrative that reads like a thriller, but this is not fiction. This is the true story of one man's miraculous survival of a sudden, massive heart attack and the cutting-edge research on a little-known killer gene — research that could save thousands of lives each year.
In an informative Foreword, cardiologist Frank Carrea, M.D. explains the nature of the killer gene, what it is and isn't. At first Carrea was concerned Bayan's message might be misinterpreted by the majority of patients, for whom a low-fat diet is essential. After reading the book, the good doctor's fears were allayed. ". . . after reading the book, I think "Eat Fat, Be Healthy" does an admirable job of illuminating the differences between these two groups."
In his prologue, Bayan asks, "Have you survived America's greatest killer? Or do you fear you'll someday meet this grim reaper?" Then, he launches into some statistics that will make you put your jelly doughnuts back in the box and lock up the Virginia honey-baked ham you planned for dinner. The upshot is yes, with the killer-gene, you may eat fat, but it better be the right kind of fat, and Bayan tells you the right kinds and how they might be mixed with their more lethal brothers to keep you healthy.
He doesn't stop with just the information on this killer-gene, but explains how those who do not have it can help themselves to be healthier and lessen their fears of having that first heart attack. Bayan explains why a simple lipid panel run by your family physician may not be sufficient to reveal the true condition of your blood chemistry. He offers suggestions that seem realistic and necessary whether you are one of those with or without the deadly gene.
The author says, "My purpose in this book is to shed light on a little-known, but deadly genetic condition that strikes down seemingly healthy people. It is a stealthy killer with one purpose; to destroy your heart. Current health screenings frequently overlook the effects of this disease, mistaking it for the more straightforward coronary problems found in the majority of heart disease patients."
Bayan certainly fulfills his purpose and more. You receive a dramatic story written as well as any modern-day novelist, plus — you receive documented knowledge largely unknown in the medical community, even among cardiologists. This book is an exhortation to all of us to become better informed and more involved in our own care. The life we save will be our own.
Matthew J. Bayan has more than 25-years experience managing nutrition and health programs in the public and private sectors. Since his massive coronary, he has been at the forefront of experimental treatment for the genetic defect he has named "the HeartStopper effect."
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(Jones is a published writer & literary critic)
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