Customer Reviews

The Heart of the Matter: The Three Key Breakthroughs to Preventing Heart Attacks

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It's fascinating to me 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.

You don't need a medical background to know that a healthy lifestyle will prevent heart disease and help reverse it if you already have it. One of the reviewers praised this book because it doesn't focus on diet, but having a healthy diet is good for the heart. I am always supicious of "quick-fix" approaches to complicated problems and this book falls into that category. I think we are far too quick to rush to instant solutions instead of doing the hard work we need to do in order to maintain our health and correct our problems. Who knows what information will come out about statin drugs in the future, just like doctors are now worried about resistance to antibiotics because antibiotics have been so overused. Old-fashioned approaches like diet and exercise should be the foundation of a heart program. Then if that doesn't work, maybe you need medicine.

This book is deeply problematic. The authors recommend a cardiac care program consisting essentially of three components--statins, aspirin and chlamydia testing. There is increasing evidence that statin drugs are linked to muscle wasting conditions, fatigue, memory loss and other problematic symptoms, even when liver enzymes are normal. Too many people who complain of these symptoms to physicians are told that these are just "normal signs of aging." That's not true! There are excellent, responsible, integrative methods that can reduce cholesterol and cardiac inflammation without such dangerous means. At least they should be tried, before statin treatment is initiated. Exercise, dietary changes, stress reduction and other means are de-emphasized in this book, and these should form the mainstays of a good cardiac care program. As a medical social worker who deals with cardiac patients, I work with many physicians, including cardiologists, who were appalled.

I found "The Heart of the Matter" extremely interesting, thought provoking and hightly believable because it was so well documented with a bibliography with listed source materials from respected national journals less than four or five years old! I'm a little uncomfortable with the need for antibiotics but - since heart disease is an infectious disease our options are limited. The book was easy to read and understand. What do I plan to do with the information - don't know yet - I'm still thinking Wow!

I was lucky to stumble across an advance reading copy of Peter Salgo's book "The Heart of the Matter," written with Joe Layden. I love Joe Layden's books, he is an expert at every kind of expository writing, and he's very good at translating the language of public figures into a sturdy prose tailored to each figure he's ghosting for. He's the one who wrote the Rock's autobiography. But now that he has worked with Peter Salgo he has actually done something of a public service.

Salgo's three-pronged prescription may be controversial--and indeed so simple that you could condense the message of this book into 10 words or less, like an old time telegram--but I feel confident that he is on the right track. And so does my own cardiologist. Maybe in the future we will all be learning a pattern of dependence on statins as a daily thing, the way we learn to brush our teeth. And keeping chlamydia at bay is bound to be a good thing in the long run. Good work, Salgo and Layden.

This book is an easy read and very informative. The information in The Heart of The Matter is real breakthrough knowledge on curing heart disease and heart attack. This is not just another useless diet book. Dr. Peter Salgo works in an intensive care unit and sees first hand what's going on with hearts. He knows that merely eating lettuce is not going to lower cholesterol and cure heart attack the way the statins and the three step plan he outlines in this book will. This is an important read for everyone, especially those with a history of family heart disease. This book could save your life. I highly recommend it!

All I can say is how great this book is.
It is written in a simple to understand language.
It made me think about my own life and how I live it.
I made an appointment to see my doctor after reading this book.
And, I'm bringing Dr. Salgo's book with me.
I reccomend this book highly.