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Authors: MD John McDougall
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the treadmill test at that time, and I could barely get my heart rate up to 85 percent of the predicted maximum for my age of 62. My doctor recommended medication, an angiogram, and a type of heart surgery called angioplasty. Hoping to avoid the surgery and additional harm, I put myself on Dr. McDougall’s low-fat, starch-based diet after reading about it on the Internet.
From almost the first day, I ceased having chest pain, even when I exercised. A year later I am off my cholesterol meds and my total cholesterol went from 294 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) to 160 mg/dL and my “bad” LDL cholesterol has dropped from 212 to 60 mg/dL.I’m also off my blood pressure medications, and at the doctor’s office my blood pressure was perfectly normal at 110/75 millimeters of mercury (mmHg). I stopped my diabetes medications, too, and my last hemoglobin A1C—a blood sugar test for the long-term control of diabetes—was normal at around 6 percent. I have lost more than 60 pounds over this past year, as well.
It’s a huge relief to have my numbers back under control and to be off those drugs. My newfound energy and sense of lightness have made me feel a decade younger. Still, I was nervous about my follow-up test.
During my second heart scan I had no pain on the treadmill, even though I got my heart rate all the way up to 160 beats per minute, beyond the highest the doctor expected I could go. When I stopped I still felt like I had more in me. The large areas in my heart that had not been receiving sufficient blood were almost completely functional now, leaving behind only a small deficiency my cardiologist called minor. He didn’t go so far as to say the results were perfectly normal, but he did say they had improved dramatically and were now only mildly abnormal. I think he was afraid if he told me I was altogether normal I would stop the dietary changes that got me well. He needn’t have worried. I see clearly now that what happened had everything to do with what I was eating. I would like to add that after almost 4 years, I have maintained my gains. My total cholesterol is now 139. I am another 5 pounds lighter and have had no further health problems or required any medications.
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S PONTANEOUS H EALING FROM H EART D ISEASE
Followers of the McDougall Diet are often eager to inspire others by sharing their success stories. The case studies presented over the following pages look at successes battling heart disease, inflammatory arthritis, and cancer. Other examples throughout the book illustrate specific challenges my patients and followers have faced and overcome. You will find many more inspiring stories of weight loss and healing, as well as photographs and video interviews, at the Star McDougaller section of my Web site ( www.drmcdougall.com/star.html ). As you read these stories, you will notice not only our bodies’ astounding ability to heal from the gravest diseases, but also the great pride that comes from taking an active role in self-healing.
Robert, whom you met on page 48 , ate meat, poultry, and dairy foods over six decades which caused his disease. Those foods prompted the formation of little pimplelike sores covering the interior walls of his arteries. Some of these pimples ruptured, causing blood clots to form. The scar tissue that formed around the sores and ruptures as they healed added to the blockages in the arteries, reducing the flow of blood through his heart. Before his tests, he didn’t know this was the reason his chest hurt when he exercised. What he did know was that his cholesterol, blood pressure, and blood sugar levels were rising. His cardiologist worried about his risk for heart attack and stroke.
Robert saw profound changes after he replaced animal foods with starches, vegetables, and fruits. His cholesterol, blood pressure, and blood sugar returned to normal. He could exercise more vigorously without feeling chest pains. He also got off the drugs
From almost the first day, I ceased having chest pain, even when I exercised. A year later I am off my cholesterol meds and my total cholesterol went from 294 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) to 160 mg/dL and my “bad” LDL cholesterol has dropped from 212 to 60 mg/dL.I’m also off my blood pressure medications, and at the doctor’s office my blood pressure was perfectly normal at 110/75 millimeters of mercury (mmHg). I stopped my diabetes medications, too, and my last hemoglobin A1C—a blood sugar test for the long-term control of diabetes—was normal at around 6 percent. I have lost more than 60 pounds over this past year, as well.
It’s a huge relief to have my numbers back under control and to be off those drugs. My newfound energy and sense of lightness have made me feel a decade younger. Still, I was nervous about my follow-up test.
During my second heart scan I had no pain on the treadmill, even though I got my heart rate all the way up to 160 beats per minute, beyond the highest the doctor expected I could go. When I stopped I still felt like I had more in me. The large areas in my heart that had not been receiving sufficient blood were almost completely functional now, leaving behind only a small deficiency my cardiologist called minor. He didn’t go so far as to say the results were perfectly normal, but he did say they had improved dramatically and were now only mildly abnormal. I think he was afraid if he told me I was altogether normal I would stop the dietary changes that got me well. He needn’t have worried. I see clearly now that what happened had everything to do with what I was eating. I would like to add that after almost 4 years, I have maintained my gains. My total cholesterol is now 139. I am another 5 pounds lighter and have had no further health problems or required any medications.
----
S PONTANEOUS H EALING FROM H EART D ISEASE
Followers of the McDougall Diet are often eager to inspire others by sharing their success stories. The case studies presented over the following pages look at successes battling heart disease, inflammatory arthritis, and cancer. Other examples throughout the book illustrate specific challenges my patients and followers have faced and overcome. You will find many more inspiring stories of weight loss and healing, as well as photographs and video interviews, at the Star McDougaller section of my Web site ( www.drmcdougall.com/star.html ). As you read these stories, you will notice not only our bodies’ astounding ability to heal from the gravest diseases, but also the great pride that comes from taking an active role in self-healing.
Robert, whom you met on page 48 , ate meat, poultry, and dairy foods over six decades which caused his disease. Those foods prompted the formation of little pimplelike sores covering the interior walls of his arteries. Some of these pimples ruptured, causing blood clots to form. The scar tissue that formed around the sores and ruptures as they healed added to the blockages in the arteries, reducing the flow of blood through his heart. Before his tests, he didn’t know this was the reason his chest hurt when he exercised. What he did know was that his cholesterol, blood pressure, and blood sugar levels were rising. His cardiologist worried about his risk for heart attack and stroke.
Robert saw profound changes after he replaced animal foods with starches, vegetables, and fruits. His cholesterol, blood pressure, and blood sugar returned to normal. He could exercise more vigorously without feeling chest pains. He also got off the drugs
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