The notion that food items could slow or even reverse atherosclerosis of heart arteries, one of the most serious health threats in the Western world, was considered unlikely until demonstrated by the LifeStyle Heart Trial decades ago (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9863851). The emphasis on plant based nutrition has been confirmed as effective for...
Heart disease remains the No. 1 cause of death in the Western world, and efforts to reduce the burden of disease must be pursued constantly to avoid the tragedy of early demise and disability. An initial set of factors related to heart disease were first reported by the Framingham Study in...
Every month is heart month. We need constant reminders that cardiovascular disease is still the #1 cause of death in the Western world. Educating the public on the research showing that up to 80% of heart deaths are preventable by not smoking, eating a plant heavy diet, and obtaining regular...
Can a dietary pattern described in an ancient Biblical text have relevance to the growing issues of obesity, diabetes and heart disease? Can something very old still be new and fresh and provide a roadmap to improving our communal health? With these thoughts in mind, the Book of Daniel may...
Dr. Kahn’s unique practice, the Kahn Center for Cardiac Longevity, in Bingham Farms, Michigan, offers a groundbreaking integrative approach to heart health for our cancer patients. Born with a heart murmur, Dr. Kahn visited pediatric cardiology frequently throughout his childhood. All of the lights and beeping noises piqued his interest. ...
Can one of the hottest treatments to heal the heart be heat itself? Over the last two decades, I've treated patients with advanced heart disease, and I've seen many innovations in medications, surgeries, and devices. But there is still an enormous toll on quality and quantity of life. Background on...
You have heard of the Mediterranean, Keto, Vegan, Paleo and MIND diet but have you heard of the Portfolio Diet? It is actually a “diet without being a diet” as it was designed to work with any healthy food choices to lower cholesterol levels by keeping a focus on 4...
Do you add ground flax seeds to your oatmeal, smoothie or on top of your salad? New data says you should and their are additonal health benefits and seeds in general listed below. The newly published data focused on lignans in the diet and heart outcomes. Lignans are polyphenolic substances...
Whether you're a man or a woman, odds are you know someone who is currently battling or has died from prostate cancer. In fact, it's the second most common form of cancer among American men (http://www.cancer.org/cancer/prostatecancer/detailedguide/prostate-cancer-key-statistics). It is estimated there will be about 250,000 new prostate cancer cases in 2021...
After 40 plus years of choosing a plant-based diet and over 31 years of advising patients to do the same, I still get concerned when I see vegans eating a poor diet, as there are a variety of foods that carry the vegan label but are unlikely to promote health....
The endothelium is a miraculous layer that lines the 50-60,000 miles of arteries and veins that course through our bodies. Just one cell layer thin, our endothelium would cover eight tennis courts in area if it were stretched out and weighs as much as our liver. On top of the...
In the industrial world in which we live we can run but we cannot hide from all toxins that can rob us of our health and vitality. However, armed with adequate scientific information, we can avoid many toxins and strive for optimal health. A group of health stealers are the...
Whole Food Plant Meal Plan: Kahn Center for Cardiac Longevity Drink 3-4 liters of filtered water daily before, during, between meals. 1-2 cups organic black coffee in the AM is an option, paper-filtered grounds You can drink 1-3 cups of herbal teas Herbal tea options are burdock, chamomile, Ceylon cinnamon...
Whole Food Plant Meal Plan: Kahn Center for Cardiac Longevity Drink 3-4 liters of filtered water daily before, during, between meals. Do not use plastic water bottles. Use glass or stainless steel. You can drink 1-3 cups of herbal teas with meals of any kind. 1-2 cups organic black...
Over the last decades many people have elected to eat largely or exclusively plant diets successfully. The momentum and interest in plant foods has grown dramatically in the last few years. Headlines, food industry resources, athletes and actors, and even hospital menus point to a tipping point for diets of...
Over the last decades many people have elected to eat largely or exclusively plant diets successfully. The momentum and interest in plant foods has grown dramatically in the last few years. Headlines, food industry resources, athletes and actors, and even hospital menus point to a tipping point for diets of...
Do you sign the surgical consent form? The decision to pursue or decline a recommended medical or surgical procedure is one of the most difficult situations faced by patients impacting their short and long-term health. I have discussed these decisions with thousands of patients and their families before invasive cardiac...
The scientific pursuit of understanding aging is robust, and significant amounts of money are being spent on researching strategies to delay or reverse the damage aging creates. I have participated in studies where my entire genome has been sequenced as part of a growing database relating our DNA code to...
Are you suffering from ED? Do you know someone who is? If so, that man needs a complete heart work up with advanced labs and heart imaging like the coronary artery calcium CT scan. You might save a life. But what to do about the ED? Eat better? Yes! Exercise?...
Quercetin and quinoa may be tied for the two toughest words to pronounce in the health world. Unlike quinoa, which is a food, quercetin is found in foods but is not a food itself. It can be pronounced either as “quer-sit-in” or “quer-see-tin”. Focusing on a quercetin rich diet or...
Feel any stress in 2021? We all are. Understanding and coping with stress in healthy ways is the key talent to have. I use Inner Balance by HeartMath, a phone-based program that connects to your earlobe by a clip and gives biofeedback you can learn in minutes. HeartMatch is backed...
Dr. Kahn’s Approach to Men's Sexual Health and Microcirculation Evaluate: Vascular Risk Factors Top 3 Lifestyle factors: Diet Exercise Sleep Inherited/Family History: Lipoprotein(a) Familial hyperlipidemia MTHFR with homocysteine elevation Lab Measurements: hs-CRP Lp(a) Nt-proBNP hs-CRP “Check their heart health, because erectile dysfunction is the canary in the coal mine.”...
While today’s “to do” list might have completion of a corporate project, picking up the dry cleaning, and making an evening Pilates class, I suggest you add one more item: taking steps to live long and well. Indeed, the possibility of living longer than our parents without the chronic diseases,...
The observation that diet and health are related can be traced back at least to Maimonides a 1,000 years ago and Hippocrates over 2,000 years ago. With advances in public health measures and medical care, the average lifespan has been dramatically extended. Unfortunately, many of the extra years...
We owe fitness guru and TV host of The Biggest Loser series, Bob Harper, much gratitude for educating the public about his near-death experience in early 2017 from closure of his “widowmaker” heart artery while exercising. His efforts to highlight his missed warning signs, his recovery in cardiac rehabilitation classes,...
To be a good student of the human body and health, it is important to understand a process in our bodies called inflammation. Although a mouthful of a word, the root is the word flame like a fire that destroys your tissues that comes from the Latin “I ignite ....
As a preventive cardiologist, I work with patients who want to improve their health and lengthen their lives. Many of them have major risk factors for heart disease; others already have full-blown heart disease or have experienced major cardiac events such as heart attack, angina, or bypass surgery. These people...
I was taught in medical school that coronary artery disease (CAD), or the blockages that can choke off blood flow to the heart, progresses from minor “streaks” in youth, to visible plaques young adulthood, and on to complicated plaques and major problems later in life. During my training the arrow...
Your chest slowly begins to tighten up and you feel it in your throat and left shoulder. It is not a pain but a dull and scary pressure. Your breathing heavy and your skin is moist. You feel slightly dizzy and cannot figure out what is happening. It has been...
The Amazing Path From Your Mouth To Your Heart The 1998 Nobel Prize in Medicine was awarded to 3 researchers who identified that Nitric Oxide (NO) is a gas produced by arteries to promote health. The more NO is manufactured, the lower the blood pressure and the cleaner are our...
I see it in their faces in my office. Concern, worry, even distress. When they roll on their left side in bed, or when they are sitting quietly reading, or perhaps before a business presentation, they can feel their heart beat stronger, or faster, or with an irregularity or thud...
Trainer Bob Harper had a big following on the TV show The Biggest Loser, where he led obese contestants through a program of eating healthy and working out diligently. Harper appeared very fit which is why the show’s followers were shocked when Harper collapsed at a gym in cardiac arrest...
Many years ago I heard a quote that struck me as profound but until recently I did not know its origins. The quote was “You're the same today as you'll be in five years except for the people you meet and the books you read.” I now know that this wisdom...
In my preventive cardiology practice, the goal is to identify components of altered lifestyles that can be modified to restore health naturally. The big 4 are better sleep, nutrition, stress management, and movement including standing (which I am doing now as I write this). There are many steps to improved...
The observation that diet and health are related can be traced back at least to Maimonides a 1,000 years ago and Hippocrates over 2,000 years ago. With advances in public health measures and medical care, the average lifespan has been dramatically extended. Unfortunately, many of the extra years are burdened...
The wellness movement and its message of health, fcusing on unprocessed food, clean water, upgraded personal care products, regular fitness, meaningful relationships and stress management is as important to men as to women. But men just aren't as well-versed in self-care. The challenge of balancing career and family is not...
I spent at least 50% of my time this week in my preventive cardiology clinic answering one of 2 questions from patients across the USA. The two questions are: 1) Why have I never been told that I could improve my health by changing my diet?” 20 It’s OK I...
Cardiovascular disease (of heart and blood vessels) is still one of the leading causes of death and disability in the United States. What are the risk factors for heart attack or stroke? In what way can we quantify or measure these risk factors? What are the testing methods that are...
Every year roughly 610,000 Americans die of heart disease, which is the leading cause of death in the United States for both sexes. Yet research shows little shifts in diet and lifestyle can significantly boost your heart health. Big bonus: Several require little or no effort. Here are 12 to...
It would seem obvious that examining the health of the approximate 50,000 miles of arteries in the body would provide key information on vascular and overall aging. As Thomas Sydenham, MD said in the 1600’s in England, “a man is as old as his arteries”. This, of course, is true...
Heart failure (HF) is a syndrome of cardiac dysfunction in which the heart can no longer pump enough blood around the body to support its organs and systems. Identified risk factors for HF include conditions that damage the heart, such as hypertension, coronary heart disease, heart attack, chronic alcohol abuse,...
Without a doubt it would be easy to answer the question: what was the top medical story of 2020? Obviously, it was the pandemic. However, there were some major advances in research that focused on cardiology, nutrition, and plant diets. Without diminishing the importance of COVID-19, here are some that...
After 31 plus years of cardiology practice, I can conservatively estimate I have consulted on over 5,000 cases of a common heart ailment, atrial fibrillation (AF). The normal heart beat is called normal sinus rhythm (NSR) which starts 60-100 times a minute in the upper chamber of the heart (right...
Step 4. Do I Need a Heart Catheterization (angiogram)? There are differences of practice If your CACS returns at a very high score (e.g. >1000) even if you have no symptoms. Some cardiologists recommend an invasive cardiac catheterization as described in a recent media article. I have performed cardiac catheterization...
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure is wise counsel. Although not as lofty a goal, early detection of existing heart disease is worth at least half a pound of cure, agreed? Why Get a Heart CT Scan? The introduction of a simple, inexpensive, and safe screening test...
Do you have a high cholesterol? Maybe you already know of some form of atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries) from a prior heart attack, stroke, bypass operation or stent procedure. Most people learn of a high cholesterol from their primary care provider. Often a Rx medication is offered without further...
10 Holiday Gifts I Love! The holidays are right around the corner and most of us are spending lots of extra hours as home. I experiment with many home or personal use items. Some I love, some I don’t. This is a list of some of my favorites you...
High blood pressure, or hypertension, has earned the name “silent killer.” What Can High Blood Pressure Do? Heart disease, sexual dysfunction, stroke, kidney failure, and aneurysms can all result from elevated blood pressure. And with 1 out of every 3 Americans suffering from this malady, its impact is huge. Of course, there...
Heart disease can strike unexpectedly at any moment causing illness or death. There's nothing pretty about lying in a cardiac care unit bed on a ventilator after a major heart attack, so here's straight talk about a plan to know you are young inside and out and NOT DROPPING DEAD. ...
I spent at least 50% of my time this week in my preventive cardiology clinic answering one of 2 questions from patients across the USA. The first question was “why have I never been told that I could improve my health by changing my diet?” and the second one was...
Understanding heart diseases, particularly the risk of heart attack, strokes, valvular diseases requiring stents or cardiac surgery, is a dynamic field. Heart diseases, particularly coronary heart disease (CHD), remain the #1 risk of disability and death in western countries in both men and women. The traditional risk factors for early...
In medical school nearly 40 years ago I was taught that heart disease is mainly due to smoking, hypertension, diabetes, cholesterol disorders, and a family history of early heart events (Framingham risk factors). Most patients are still evaluated by obtaining information regarding these 5 factors. Missing from this approach are...
Eat your vegetables and fruits, get seven to nine hours of sleep, don’t smoke, walk 30 minutes a day, stand more, stress less, be more mindful. It can be quite an undertaking to arrange and maintain a schedule that promotes health and longevity. And interestingly, the one activity you may not be...
Some people are drawn to the plant-based lifestyle for the impact it makes on protecting the environment and some to avoid harming animals. Most of us hope that we also may derive some health benefits from skipping animal products, even if it is occasionally hard on holidays and travel to...
Odds are you’ve heard about fasting. Defined as “abstinence from eating,” it is something you may have tried now and then. The potential medical benefits have increasingly been substantiated in animal and medical research projects and now extend to boosting brain power. I have been using a form of periodic fasting called...
You’ve decided to avoid animal products and jump into the world of plant-based eating but you’re wondering what your three meals a day and snacks are going to look like. How will you order at restaurants? What do you need to stock up on at home? I’ve discussed this process...
Preventing heart disease in patients is my main goal, but early detection is the next best thing if you cannot totally block its development. Changes in lifestyle and medical therapies can delay or deny the onset of a heart attack and almost 80 percent of heart disease is preventable with...