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January 1, 1967

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An “almost embarrassingly high number of researchers boarded the ‘cholesterol bandwagon,’ ” lamented the editors of the Journal of the American Medical Association

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The dissenting voices were fading. An “almost embarrassingly high number of researchers boarded the ‘cholesterol bandwagon,’ ” lamented the editors of the Journal of the American Medical Association in 1967, referring to the narrow, “fervent embrace of cholesterol” to the “exclusion” of other biochemical processes that might cause heart disease. In the pages of sympathetic scientific journals, Ahrens and Mann, plus their handful of like-minded colleagues, continually sent up futile cries against the relentless march of the diet-heart hypothesis, but they were powerless in the face of the elite. As George Mann wrote at the end of his career in 1978, a “heart Mafia” had “supported the dogma” and hoarded research funds. “For a generation, research on heart disease has been more political than scientific,” he declared.

-Nina Teicholz - Page 70

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	Heart Disease	Heart disease, also known as cardiovascular disease, refers to a range of conditions that affect the heart and blood vessels. It is a broad term that encompasses various conditions, including coronary artery disease, heart failure, arrhythmias, and valvular heart diseases, among others. Heart disease is a leading cause of death worldwide.
	Diet-Heart Hypothesis	The diet-heart hypothesis, also known as the lipid hypothesis, proposes that there is a direct relationship between dietary fat intake, particularly saturated fat and cholesterol, and the development of heart disease. It suggests that consuming high amounts of these fats leads to an increase in blood cholesterol levels, specifically low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, which in turn contributes to the formation of atherosclerotic plaques in the arteries. Some consider this hypothesis nothing more than wishful thinking.
	Cholesterol	Cholesterol is an animal based molecule that forms cell membranes. It's a lipid known as a sterol. Cholesterol is found in all animal foods and is healthy to eat, despite the opinions set forth by the diet-heart hypothesis. Lipoproteins carry cholesterol as well as other lipids.