I have previously posted on this topic several times over the past few years – you can read my prior posts by clicking here, here, and here. Having mentioned his film and the screening it will be having in the area (April 13th at the AMC 11 in Dartmouth – click here if you’d like to reserve tickets), I’d like now to come back to this research and discuss my latest thoughts on it.
I’m pleased to announce that on April 13th, at the AMC Dartmouth Mall 11 theater (Dartmouth Massachusetts, that is), there will be a screening of the new documentary, “The Cholesterol Code.” Tickets are on sale now for the price of $22, and can be purchased by clicking here.
Beware – the theater only seats 100, so tickets may sell out soon.
For full disclosure: I am involved in promoting the film, but make no money off of it. My involvement is simply as a labor of love, because I wish to further the interesting research behind the film.
I’ve discussed this research a bit on this blog in the past, and will have more to say on it in the future, but to summarize briefly: what happens to people who go on a low-carb diet, lose weight, dramatically improve all of their metabolic markers (such as blood glucose, blood pressure, insulin levels, and inflammatory markers) but see their cholesterol rise? Does their risk for a heart attack go up, down, or stay the same? The conventional wisdom is that high cholesterol is bad, full stop, and therefore the message from mainstream medicine has frequently been that low-carb diets are dangerous due to the rise in cholesterol that some experience. However, even accepting that high cholesterol is a risk factor for heart disease, it is a much weaker one than high blood pressure, diabetes, or about a dozen other factors, so I believe the question of whether or not low-carb diets increase cardiovascular risk is a serious question and one worthy of study. The Cholesterol Code film documents research into this fascinating area and why – even in those individuals who experience an astronomical rise in cholesterol on a low-carb diet – the effects on risk for cardiovascular disease may be a lot more nuanced than we would otherwise be led to believe.
A few key points:
The film will be shown at 7:00 pm on Monday, April 13, 2026 at the AMC Dartmouth 11 theater
The film will only be shown if a critical mass of people buy tickets (65, to be precise). If you reserve tickets and we don’t hit this critical mass, you will not be charged anything, so there is no risk to reserving tickets now
Again, I have no incentive in promoting the film other than being interested in the topic. I do not make even one penny from the proceeds.
Hope to see you there. Click below to watch the trailer.
In recent years, High Intensity Interval Training (aka HIIT) has become quite popular. If you aren’t familiar with the concept, HIIT involves alternating brief rounds of very intense cardiovascular exercise with lighter activity. For example, instead of going for a light jog for 30 minutes, a person engaging in HIIT might sprint as hard as they can for one minute, then walk for one minute, and repeat the process five times for a total ten minute workout.
There are many, many, different HIIT protocols, with perhaps the most famously brief one being a “Tabata”, in which a person does intense exercise (say pedalling as fast as possible on a stationary bike) for 20 seconds, pauses for 10 seconds to catch their breath, and then repeats the process eight times for a total four minute workout.
The advantages of this type of exercise are obvious to the time-crunched person, and I indeed frequently recommend doing a “Tabata” a few times per week to the patient who tells me they have no time for exercise. There is also a psychological appeal to HIIT training for the person who doesn’t feel like they are getting a good workout unless they leave the gym soaked in sweat. Crossfit for example has long incorporated a lot of HIIT work into their programs, and if you know any Crossfitters you will be aware these are not the type of people who are content to just go for a light walk or a gentle yoga class. (That’s not a knock on CrossFit nor the people who enjoy doing it by the way – the world contains many different personality types, and it’s great to have different fitness modalities that cater to these differences. It has simply been my experience that CrossFit tends to attract the “type A” personalities of the fitness world, people who really enjoy a workout that pushes them to the absolute brink of what they are physically capable of on a regular basis).
