Before It Happens To You: A Breakthrough Program For Reversing Or Preventing Heart Disease [Hardcover]

Jonathan Sackner Bernstein (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 6, 2004

You hear about it all too often: an otherwise completely healthy person struck down by heart attack in the prime of life. The result of hidden heart disease--the first symptoms of which are slightly high cholesterol or blood pressure-this is the kind of tragedy that sends us running to the doctor for a physical. But today's medical guidelines don't indicate treatment for most; based on the cost-effectiveness of treatment for society, lifesaving medications are withheld for high-risk patients. It doesn't have to be this way.Under the Don't Die Young! plan, concerned readers are screened for heart disease with a few doctor-ordered blood tests and, depending on the findings, treated with up to four medications: an aspirin, an ACE-inhibitor, a statin, and a beta-blocker. The scientific evidence for this strategy is overwhelming: The medications work, they stave off heart disease, and bring heart health back. Their use cuts an individual's risk of heart attack in half-even without starting an exercise program, or cutting back on saturated fats.Explaining the science as well as how to talk to doctors about their necessary involvement, Don't Die Young! will help more people identify and treat their heart problems. Providing both a pound of prevention and treatment advice for those who already know they have heart disease, it will save lives.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

If, in the last 10 years, drugs have come to the fore as the first line of attack against depression, a similar revolution may be happening with cardiovascular care. Bernstein, director of clinical research and of the heart failure prevention program at Long Island's Northshore Hospital, recommends a battery of drugs even before problems start to emerge, since studies show that "if you start treatment before you develop any symptoms of heart disease, you'll live longer." Writing with commercial health writer Kelly, Bernstein outlines a "Before It Happens Plan" based on the regular use of "statins" like Lipitor and Zocor to lower cholesterol, aspirin to prevent stroke, as well as "ACE inhibitors" and "Beta-Blockers" to discourage high blood pressure. Bernstein thinks that people are more likely to stick to the daily use of drugs than to an exercise regimen, and that in many cases the drugs should be used even if one works out regularly and eats carefully. While Bernstein's voice doesn't really come through on this project, his message does, as do his practical and very specific suggestions for who should seek treatment and when. He tutors readers on how to discuss the issue with doctors, how to understand test results, and how to use the drugs safely. The needs of diabetics, people with HIV, smokers, people with high cholesterol and people who are overweight are considered in separate chapters, as are the differing needs of men and women. Periodically, Bernstein marshals shock statistics to keep one convinced: "Each year, more than half of all deaths in America are caused by heart disease. That's more than all forms of cancer combined." For many readers, a more vivid depiction of the situation will be unnecessary.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

"Details a plan of action to stop heart disease in its tracks." -- Curled Up with a Good Book February 2004

"Filled with excellent advice...Anyone with a reasonable concern for their health will benefit from reading this book." -- Bookviews.com February 2004

"Practical and very specific suggestions for who should seek treatment and when." -- PublishersWeekly.com 02/16/04

"Tells you how to lower your high cholesterol and blood pressure-early signs of heart disease." -- Miami Herald 03/23/04

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Da Capo Press (January 6, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 073820918X
• ISBN-13: 978-0738209180
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,219,282 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Arguably a lifesaver -- but bound to be controversial, February 15, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Before It Happens To You: A Breakthrough Program For Reversing Or Preventing Heart Disease (Hardcover)

I find it fascinating that two respected and reputable New York cardiologists, Peter Salgo in "The Heart of the Matter" and Jonathan Sackner Bernstein in "Before It Happens to You," have come out in the same month with books espousing the unusual, rather heretical view that most Americans, even those regarded as healthy, would benefit from taking the popular cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins. The two books differ in several ways -- Salgo also focuses on aspirin and an infection that many Americans may harbor, Bernstein on the benefits of ACE inhibitors, etc. -- and I think the Bernstein book is a little more repetitive than the Salgo book and perhaps written on a slightly more casual level. But what's remarkable, to me at least, is that these books agree on the usefulness of statins, in fact on the crucial NEED for them: that is, the need to take them NOW instead of waiting till you've suffered a heart attack (when these drugs are generally prescribed). The two physicians are bluntly dismissive of the conventional wisdom that one should attempt to control cholesterol primarily by exercising more and altering one's diet. They don't say that these are bad choices, simply that they don't help very much; exercise and diet are relatively ineffective because 80 percent of one's cholesterol level is genetically determined and is not amenable to lifestyle changes. Salgo and Bernstein are, I think, rather courageous in advocating a solution so unfashionable; indeed, they are "thinking the unthinkable" -- that there IS a sort of pharmacological "quick fix" that happens to be safe and inexpensive; that swallowing some pills every day will actually lengthen our lives; and no doubt there are many well-meaning souls who will try to shout them down. I suspect, though, having read both books and having found them both persuasive, that Americans might well live significantly longer if they followed these doctors' advice.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential reading for anyone over 40, January 13, 2004

By 

Seth Godin "Seth Godin" (Irvington, NY USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Before It Happens To You: A Breakthrough Program For Reversing Or Preventing Heart Disease (Hardcover)

This is the book that the medical establishment didn't have the guts to write.

Sackner Bernstein outlines in crystal clear language how a few common, proven prescription drugs can dramatically decrease your chances of dying from a heart attack (the #1 cause of death in the USA).

This is a calm, focused, thoughtful book, with no hype, no vague promises and plenty of data. The author encourages you to share it with your doctor--the two of you should figure out if this is really for you.

Forget about Atkins. If you really and truly want to be around for your grandkid's wedding, this is the book you need to read, and you need to read it now.

Seth Godin

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Understandable, Essential and Lifesaving, January 22, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Before It Happens To You: A Breakthrough Program For Reversing Or Preventing Heart Disease (Hardcover)

Thank you Dr. Sackner Bernstein for writing such a clear and concise guide to prevention of heart disease. I saw myself in the pages of this book over and over, and have made changes that will help me see my children's children. If ten stars were available, this book would deserve them. I am buying a copy for everyone I love and want to stay healthy. A masterful medical mind has developed a program that any one of us could follow.