A Heart-Healthy Diet and Medication Cut His Heart Disease Risk

A few years ago, I changed primary care physicians. The new doctor requested a series of lab tests, including a cholesterol panel. We learned my total cholesterol was as high as 298! My doctor told me that I was at risk for heart disease. Not lowering it could lead to heart attack, death, and other bad stuff.

I’ve always had high cholesterol, and I tried to get it down with diet and exercise. But as I’ve gotten older, I've put on weight. I travel a lot for work, and what I really dislike about business travel is that it disrupts my life. Not every hotel has an exercise room, and unless you’re very fortunate, you’re not in a place where healthy food is plentiful. Sometimes a family-style chain restaurant is the best place to eat, and you can’t find anything healthy on the menu there unless you eat salad every day.

I think the quality of food is important for your health. My wife is pretty focused on healthy eating. We don’t eat a lot of fried foods. We try to buy organic fruits and vegetables, though that’s something that’s not available to everybody. But I hope I don’t sabotage that entirely with some of my unhealthy food practices. I’m kind of a chocoholic and I love bread and baked goods. I love the street pretzels in San Francisco.