Is LDL cholesterol the best way to measure and predict heart disease?

New research suggests no!

Dave Feldman is an engineer turned citizen scientist who has devoted his life to understanding a phenomenon that some individuals around the world are experiencing: a robust increase in LDL cholesterol while on a ketogenic diet.

Dave’s past research has identified a unique phenotype dubbed Lean Mass Hyper-Responders (LMHRs). LMHRs respond to ketogenic therapy with a metabolic profile that includes elevated LDL-C and ApoB levels with otherwise healthy metabolic markers, including low triglycerides, high HDL, low blood pressure, low insulin resistance, and low BMI.

In Dave’s most recent publication, what most doctors would consider dangerously high LDL levels in LMHRs did not correlate with an increased risk of heart disease.

In this video, Dr. Bret Scher sits down with Dave Feldman to discuss this groundbreaking study and its implications for ketogenic therapy and cardiology.

Key Takeaways:

• LMHRs on a long-term ketogenic diet who show elevated LDL can show robust metabolic health
• LDL-C and ApoB were not linked to plaque progression in LMHRs
• Existing plaque did predict future plaque accumulation in LMHRs
• Individualized approaches to cardiovascular risk assessment are crucial to serve this group better.

🎬 These exciting new findings are featured in Dave Feldman and Jen Isenhart’s  upcoming documentary, The Cholesterol Code, the story of how one engineer’s health experiment sparks a global investigation, exposing myths about cholesterol and reshaping our understanding of heart health. Real stories of healing from disease with ketogenic diets provide a blueprint for using food as powerful medicine.

Visit cholesterolcodemovie.com to learn more about the film and to be the first to hear about private screenings and the general release in the fall.

Expert Featured:

Resources Mentioned:

Coronary Artery Plaque Progression in Asymptomatic Lean Mass Hyper-Responders: A Case Series

• https://www.jacc.org/doi/10.1016/j.jacadv.2025.101686

CMEs Mentioned:

Managing Major Mental Illness with Dietary Change: The New Science of Hope

• https://www.mycme.com/courses/managing-major-mental-illness-with-dietary-change-9616

Brain Energy: The Metabolic Theory of Mental Illness

• https://www.mycme.com/courses/brain-energy-the-metabolic-theory-of-mental-illness-9615

Follow our channel for more information and education from Bret Scher, MD, FACC, including interviews with leading experts in Metabolic Psychiatry.

Learn more about metabolic psychiatry and find helpful resources at https://metabolicmind.org/

About us:Metabolic Mind is a non-profit initiative of Baszucki Group working to transform the study and treatment of mental disorders by exploring the connection between metabolism and brain health. We leverage the science of metabolic psychiatry and personal stories to offer education, community, and hope to people struggling with mental health challenges and those who care for them.

Our channel is for informational purposes only. We are not providing individual or group medical or healthcare advice nor establishing a provider-patient relationship. Many of the interventions we discuss can have dramatic or potentially dangerous effects if done without proper supervision. Consult your healthcare provider before changing your lifestyle or medications.