Ignore the Awkward.: How the Cholesterol Myths Are Kept Alive [Paperback]

Uffe Ravnskov (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 10, 2010 | ISBN-10: 1453759409 | ISBN-13: 978-1453759400

The cholesterol campaign is the greatest medical scandal in modern time. If you have read the author's previous books ´The Cholesteol Myths´ (out of print) or 'Fat and Cholesterol are GOOD for You', you should know that for certain. For instance, according to more than 25 scientific studies old people with high cholesterol live the longest. Another shocking fact is that the authors of a recent American study of more than 130,000 patients with acute myocardial infarction found that on average, their cholesterol was lower than normally. Their finding has already been confirmed by others. What they also found was that three years later, mortality was twice as high among those whose cholesterol was the lowest. Their conclusion? We must lower cholesterol even more! But there is much, much more. The author's aim with this book is to show how prominent scientists have turned white into black by ignoring all conflicting observations; by twisting and exaggerating trivial findings; by citing studies with opposing results in a way to make them look supportive; and by ignoring or scorning the work of critical scientists. Those who have not read his previous books may not quite understand the width of these misleading processes. He has therefore included a short and simplified review of the most obvious contradictions to the cholesterol hypothesis. At the end he presents what he and his colleague Kilmer McCully think is the real cause, here told in a more simple way than in his previous book.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

The author is a Swedish MD and an experienced scientist himself. He has published more than 100 scientific papers about cholesterol and fats, and has received two international awards for his 'Original Contributions in the Field of Medical Scepticism' and for 'Independent Thinking in Natural Sciences and Medicine'. He is a member of the editorial board of Cholesterol and of Journal of Lipids, and is the founder and spokesman for THINCS, The International Network of Cholesterol Skeptics, an organization that includes about one hundred doctors and scientist from all over the world.

Product Details

• Paperback: 154 pages
• Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (January 10, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1453759409
• ISBN-13: 978-1453759400
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 9 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #33,413 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #49 in Books > Medical Books > Research

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

49 of 49 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential for Intelligent Readers Questioning Cholesterol Fear November 7, 2010

By eddie vos

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

The book is the latest by a doctor who has done more than anyone else in the world to show the fallacy of Cholesterol Phobia.

He hi-lights the fact that there are no studies showing that avoiding saturated fat and cholesterol is beneficial. In fact, there are many studies showing that dietary replacements may make health worse. Interestingly, people in the low blood-cholesterol groups in most studies die first, and often from diseases with long periods of suffering.

He makes an irrefutable case that that many with drug, food, research or other financial interests ignore and suppress the global evidence.

He shreds the cholesterol-lowering statin studies and illustrates the soft science, the soft endpoints and the conflicts of interests that are the rule in these trials. Give this book to your doctor if he/she wants to put you on a drug to lower your cholesterol. A worthwhile investment especially if you read the book first.

37 of 37 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Cholesterol, the biggest misinformation in the history of health March 8, 2011

By Gert Bo Thorgersen

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

If I should meet a person, that by doctors have been told to take pills against too high Cholesterol number, I will advice the person to read this, the latest book, from Uffe Ravnskov. Because this book is the newest concerning the biggest failure in medicine history, and contains nearly all about Cholesterol, compressed down into a small book.

In February 2 years ago, on my initiative, I and my wife went to the expensive RAM hospital, here I Chiang Mai, where all foreigners come, just to have a control of our health, most by measuring the blood. The result showed that my wife, here from Thailand, had the total of Cholesterol on 279, and mine only 196. And for that the doctor wanted my wife to start on pills, something like Statin, and besides other treatments in the hospital, to get the Cholesterol down under 200. And this treatment was started.

When I was in high school, back in the start of sixties, we in the news read and heard more and more about that it was bad to eat fat or eggs, and that this and having a Cholesterol number higher than 200 was the reason to that too many people died by heart attack. First years later we were told how the distribution between the god and the bad parts of the Cholesterol should be, I se that when looking in my old hospital journals.

But in Denmark, especially after my engineering education, I've received much science writings about, among other, that Asia is the place on Earth where people take most pills, and besides that the more pills that are taken the sooner the bacteria will chance, so that the pills by time will be ineffective. And besides nearly all pills have side effect, some very dad. So I started buying books concerning Cholesterol, and already after 2 month I advised my wife to stop taking these pills and going to the doctor, and telling why.

I've bought 10 books especially about Cholesterol (own more than 200 books concerning health, body, biology and so on) and January last year, as number 9, I bought Ravnskovs "Fat and Cholesterol are GOOD for you". After having read about it in the Danish news, where it came after the book was translated to Danish. I bought it, in English, and it was so good so that when Amazon in January this year informed me about the existence of the new book from Ravnskov, "Ignore the Awkward!" I immediately ordered it.

This book is so new and up to date concerning Cholesterol, and written by a person that in many years, as a neutral person, like a research person shall be, especially by reading reports, have been studying Cholesterol. And by that we get the most correct information concerning Cholesterol, and hereby learn that in nearly all cases having high Cholesterol is good. For example women having highest Cholesterol lives the longest. Quit opposite to what the doctors told my wife.

And besides one interesting thing mentioned, which I did not know, that I 1985 two persons got Nobel price for something concerning Cholesterol witch later turned out to be wrong..

And in the book Ravnskov also writes about Duane Gravelines story told in the book "Statin Drugs Side Effects", a good book that I bought last year.

And on the last side Ravnskov tells about the B (B12), C and D vitamins. Good information to the readers about these 3 vitamins which science trough time go on finding more and more necessary. In Denmark they talk about maybe this year to start putting D in the food, because 80 % of persons living I Denmark get to little sunshine, and thereby D vitamin.

And by Ravnskovs mention of the C vitamin I started thinking about Linus Paulings: "Vitamin C the Common Cold and the Flu", which I bought in 1981, I remember how the medical industry, after that book, went against Linus Pauling, and even told people that they could die by getting too much C vitamin. Of course because the industry could not make patent on the C vitamin, and thereby earn much money. And this is exactly the same which is going on concerning Cholesterol, for which they earn billions of dollars each year, and don't want to loose the customers. Not taking care fore that people die by taking pills against Cholesterols.

49 of 51 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A must read for folks with high cholesterol !!! November 7, 2010

By Lorraine M. Mcglynn

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I have read Dr Ravnskov's other books "The Cholesterol Myths" and "Fat and Cholesterol are good for you" which are OUTSTANDING and this one is also.He does a very good job explaining how we are mislead by the medical community into believing we are sick and need to be treated just because we have elevated cholesterol.It is astonishing to me that after reading this very well organized book how anyone could believe in the cholesterol theory but the medical community sure does.He adds a little humor from time to time also.This book is not Dr Ravnskov's opinion but a careful and lengthy summary of many scientific articles the author has taken the time to read and sort through.This process alone must have taken years to perform.He presents all the evidence much like a court prosecutor and lets you the jury decide if cholesterol is guilty of causing heart attacks.I know I would decide not guilty.It is very important for people like Ravnskov,Kendrick,McCully and THINCS to keep the pressure on the medical community and try to expose the many fallacies and falsehoods that are kept alive by drug companies and the medical community as a whole.The message is being heard because my doctor just retired and his replacement tried to statinize me and when I told him no he said there is a lot of negative publicity about statins these days but don't believe them, people who take statins live longer than people who do not.More and more articles are being written about the hazards of statins and I think things will change.This is a must read book with new information not contained in his last book.I highly recommend it!!!!!