A Change of Heart: How the People of Framingham, Massachusetts, Helped Unravel the Mysteries of Cardiovascular Disease [Hardcover]

Daniel Levy (Author), Susan Brink (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 2005

The findings of the Framingham Heart Study–begun in 1948–have been nothing short of revolutionary. Over the years, they have provided conclusive evidence that cardiovascular disease is largely the result of measurable and modifiable risk factors, and that individuals can gain control over their heart health by looking carefully at their diet and lifestyle and changing their intake of saturated fat, cholesterol, and tobacco smoke; losing weight or becoming physically active; and regulating their levels of stress and blood pressure. It is principally because of the Heart Study that this understanding of what was once deemed a “silent killer” today seems intuitive.

The Framingham Heart Study was launched not long after Franklin Delano Roosevelt succumbed to a massive stroke, the result of runaway blood pressure, at a time when cardiologists in the United States numbered fewer than 400 and heart disease was the nation’s number- one cause of death. The study asked 5,209 citizens of Framingham, Massachusetts–who overate, smoked, and suffered heart attacks and strokes to the same extent as the rest of the United States–to undergo biennial physicals, blood tests, and detailed interviews concerning their behavior. The results changed the course of medical history.

Written by the Study’s current director and a national health reporter, A Change of Heart is the first account of this heroic cooperation between the U.S. Public Health Service and the people of Framingham. It is a fascinating, clear-eyed assessment of the achievements and challenges of the Framingham Heart Study to date, and of its continuing importance.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

When a cerebral hemorrhage killed President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1945, so little was known about heart disease that high blood pressure was considered benign. Three years later, some 5,000 Framingham, Massachusetts, citizens began having their blood pressure and other cardiovascular indicators regularly checked. They neither paid nor were paid for this monitoring; if cause for concern arose, personal physicians were notified. Increasingly, causes of concern did arise, for the data gathered were correlated with the volunteers' health and longevity to ascertain the conditions of heart disease. Eventually, the Framingham study, by freely sharing its data with clinical researchers, sped identification of the causes of heart disease and the development of effective prophylaxis and treatment. Some of the best chapters of this book, which faintly exudes authorized-history propriety (Levy is the study's current director, Brink a journalist and perhaps responsible for the book's high readability), are about that facilitated research. The study, now conducted with the original volunteers' children and grandchildren, is probably the most important research achievement in medical history. Ray Olson
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About the Author

Daniel Levy, M.D., is the director of the Framingham Heart Study.

Susan Brink is a senior writers for U.S. News & World Report.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Knopf; 1 edition (February 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0375412751
• ISBN-13: 978-0375412752
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,452,708 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The people of Framingham have indeed made a difference, March 23, 2005

By 

Paul Tognetti "The real world is so much more... (Cranston, RI USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A Change of Heart: How the People of Framingham, Massachusetts, Helped Unravel the Mysteries of Cardiovascular Disease (Hardcover)

Americans everywhere owe a huge debt of gratitude to the citizens of Framingham, Massachusetts who for more than 50 years have voluntarily participated in the groundbreaking Framingham Heart Study. When the study was conceived back in 1948 very little was known about cardiovascular disease. "A Change of Heart: How The People of Framingham, Massachusetts Helped Unravel the Mysteries of Cardiovascular Disease" examines the history of the Framingham Heart Study, its methodology and most importantly introduces the reader to some of those who were directly involved in the program both as administrators and as participants. It is a story worth telling.

Back in 1948, the average American ate red meat nearly every day. Medical science was not yet aware that high blood pressure was a dangerous contributor to heart attack and stroke. No one thought much about their cholesterol levels, and smoking was far more predominant in the adult populuation than it is today. Middle aged men were dropping like flies and no one understood why. The federal government decided that is was time to conduct a study to look for the root causes of heart disease. Framingham Mass. seemed to be the perfect place for the study and so the government dispatched a physician named Gilkin Meadors and nurse Nell McKeever to Framingham to set up a 20 year study. Meadors and McKeevor enlisted the efforts of a number of community leaders to sell the program to the townspeople. Soon more than 5000 residents had signed up. The requirements were quite simple really. Each participant agreed to submit to a rigorous physical examination every two years and to answer a detailed questionaire about their eating, smoking and exercise habits. Most folks understood that the chief beneficiaries of this study would not be themselves but future generations of Americans. Another unselfish gesture from "The Greatest Generation".

Well, the program has been extended a number of times and here we are more than 50 years later and the Framingham Heart Study has proven to be worth its weight in gold. Americans have taken to heart much of what has been learned so far. But as you will learn in "A Change of Heart" there is still considerable room for improvement and so much more to be discovered. Hats off to the people of Framingham for their commitment to this study and to authors Daniel Levy M.D. (the current director of the program)and Susan Brink for a most interesting and informative book. Highly recommended!

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent backstage story of a monumental study, July 5, 2005

By 

Sreeram Ramakrishnan (Lynnfield, MA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A Change of Heart: How the People of Framingham, Massachusetts, Helped Unravel the Mysteries of Cardiovascular Disease (Hardcover)

In a well-narrated, affectionate account of the Framingham study, its current director and a medical journalist, present the study's origins, crises, and ambitious agenda. The book starts off on a fairly dramatic note with a fast-paced account of FDR's final days, which sets the background of the rest of the book. Then, in crisp chapters, the authors present various aspects of the early stages of the study. The chapters dealing with the impact of cholestrol on heart diseases and that of blood pressure on cardiac health are perhaps the best written. The book is a little marred by the sudden shift in the narration style in the last few chapters where the author (probably refering to the lead author alone) use first person account for narration, rather than the third person reporting employed for the earlier chapters. The strong sections of the book will make a reader wish that the authors had explored a bit more in detail about where the future would lead in these trials. The book captures the lead "actors" of the study, since its inception, the loyalty and enthusiasm of the volunteers very inspiringly. One can also see how developments in technology, and analytical methods changed the direction of the study making for a very interesting read. A must read!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Framingham boredom, May 12, 2009

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A. Sivertsen (Cambridge, MA, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A Change of Heart: How the People of Framingham, Massachusetts, Helped Unravel the Mysteries of Cardiovascular Disease (Hardcover)

The book describes the large and very important Framingham study, that has provided much of the detailed knowledge we now have about the connection between lifestyle and heart and circulatory disease.
The topic itself is an interesting one. The results of the study are so ingrained in everyday knowledge that most people are not aware that there is actually a source of this information. But there was a time where the connection between bacon and heart attacks came as a complete surprise.

Unfortunately, this book is very poorly written, and does not do the topic justice. Most chapters consist of endless namedropping and neverending tales of internal battles in the administration of the study. Only a very small part of the book deals with the study, its results, and the further implications.