Episode Details

Most people think the cholesterol number on their lab report tells them whether their heart is at risk. But former National Lipid Association President Dr. Kevin Maki explains that LDL is just one piece of a much bigger picture and focusing on it alone can mean missing the markers that matter most.

In this episode, Dr. Gabrielle Lyon sits down with Dr. Kevin Maki, former President of the National Lipid Association and co-editor-in-chief of the Journal of Clinical Lipidology, to discuss:

• Why ApoB and Lp(a) are better predictors of heart risk than LDL and why only about 2% of people ever get Lp(a) tested
• What a beef-vs-chicken feeding study revealed about red meat and cholesterol (the LDL results came back identical at 112 mg/dL)
• The evidence behind the seed oil debate, including why higher linoleic acid levels tracked with lower inflammation markers across a 2,000-person dataset
• Why the balance of cholesterol-raising and cholesterol-lowering foods matters more than saturated fat alone
• The simple "ABCs" framework: A1c, blood pressure, cholesterol - for actually lowering long-term cardiovascular risk

By the end, you'll know which numbers actually predict heart risk, which tests to ask your doctor for, and how to cut through the conflicting noise around fat so you can make evidence-based decisions for the long haul.

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Find Dr. Kevin Maki at:

• Midwest Biomedical Research: https://www.mbclinicalresearch.com/
• LinkedIn: / kevin-c-maki-phd-497ba34

Connect with Dr. Gabrielle Lyon:

• Instagram: