The Truth About Heart Disease & Cholesterol

Show summary:

Author and researcher Dr Malcolm Kendrick joins us to challenge some of the most widely held beliefs about heart disease. We explore what really lies behind heart attacks and strokes, looking beyond the traditional cholesterol narrative to examine the roles of arterial damage, inflammation and blood clotting. Dr Kendrick unpacks the science of cholesterol and lipoproteins, how statins work and where common assumptions fall short. This episode offers a thought-provoking perspective on cardiovascular health, helping you better understand risk factors and what truly matters when it comes to protecting your heart.

What you’ll learn:

What’s really happening in the arteries during a heart attack or stroke.
The key factors that contribute to arterial damage over time.
What cholesterol is, the role it plays in the body, and how it is transported in lipoproteins.
How cholesterol became central to heart disease prevention and the limitations of this model.
The relationship between saturated fat, cholesterol and cardiovascular risk.
How statins work, who they are prescribed for, and important considerations such as CoQ10 depletion.
The role of blood clotting in heart attacks and why clotting may be a critical missing piece of the puzzle.
Factors that increase the risk of abnormal clotting and why this differs between individuals.
The most important dietary and lifestyle factors for supporting artery and heart health.
Simple, practical steps you can take to reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease.

Listen to the podcast

Guest Bio:

Dr Malcolm Kendrick graduated in medicine from Aberdeen University in Scotland and has worked as a primary care physician for many years. His long-standing interest in cardiovascular disease began when he graduated, at a time when Scotland had the highest rates of CVD in the world. Questioning the widely accepted explanations, he began exploring alternative hypotheses.

He has published numerous papers and written several books, including The Great Cholesterol Con, Doctoring Data and A Statin Nation. His most recent book, The Clot Thickens, explores a different model for understanding how cardiovascular disease develops, drawing on research dating back to nineteenth-century Vienna.

Dr Kendrick was also the subject of a long-running libel case after being accused by the Mail on Sunday of spreading harmful misinformation about CVD. After more than five years, he successfully won the case. Through his research and writing, he aims to help people gain a deeper understanding of cardiovascular disease and how to reduce their risk.

Resources:

Dr Malcolm Kendrick

Malcolm’s books: