Browse evidence-based analysis of health-related claims and assertions
Log in to see full claim details, scientific mechanisms, and cited studies.
Almost half of adults in Finland have buildup in their neck arteries that gets much more common as people get older — by age 70, nearly everyone has it, but kids don’t have it at all.
Really low 'bad' cholesterol might actually be a sign your body is doing a great job cleaning it out — not something to worry about.
Your body gets rid of cholesterol mainly through a cleanup system in the liver—since cells can't break cholesterol down, they send it to the liver to be removed.
People who take cholesterol-lowering drugs and get their bad cholesterol really low don’t seem to have more side effects than those who don’t get it as low.
Having really low 'bad' cholesterol thanks to how your body naturally processes it doesn’t seem to cause health problems, even over many years.
Ezetimibe helps lower bad cholesterol by stopping your gut from absorbing it, and even though it works well and doesn't cost much, doctors don't use it as much as they could.
Even if you feel fine, your arteries might start building up plaque when your 'bad' cholesterol (LDL) hits around 50 to 60 mg/dL, and the more LDL you have, the more plaque builds up — steadily and...
If you've had heart problems before, aiming to get your 'bad' cholesterol really low—below 55—cuts your risk of another heart issue by about a third compared to keeping it just under 70.
Taking a drug called evolocumab can lower the chance of having a first major heart problem by 25% in people at high risk who’ve never had a heart attack or stroke before.
Adding a drug called evolocumab to cholesterol-lowering statins can lower the chances of serious heart problems by 20% in people who already have heart disease.
Adding PCSK9 drugs to cholesterol-lowering statins can slash bad cholesterol by as much as 81% in people with high cholesterol.
Blocking a protein called PCSK9 with certain drugs helps your body remove bad cholesterol from your blood more effectively.
A protein called PCSK9 causes the liver to break down fewer 'bad' cholesterol carriers, which means more of it stays in your blood.
People with certain genetic changes that turn down a protein called PCSK9 tend to have lower 'bad' cholesterol their whole lives and are much less likely to get heart disease.
Can someone be perfectly healthy even if their 'bad' cholesterol is super low—like 14 mg/dL?
For adults with a genetic cholesterol problem who are already taking cholesterol pills, adding a daily 20 mg pill called enlicitide for 6 months cuts a harmful type of blood fat (lipoprotein(a)) by...
For adults with a genetic cholesterol problem who are already on cholesterol meds, taking a pill called enlicitide every day for 6 months might drastically lower a key heart disease risk protein in...
For adults with a genetic cholesterol problem and already taking statins, adding a pill called enlicitide every day for 6 months slashed bad cholesterol levels by over half, while a fake pill barely...
For people with a genetic cholesterol problem who are already on cholesterol meds, taking a pill called enlicitide every day for a year keeps their bad cholesterol way down — cutting it by more than...
For people with a genetic cholesterol problem who are already on cholesterol pills, taking a new drug called enlicitide every day for 6 months might slash their bad cholesterol way more than just the...
Taking ezetimibe doesn’t seem to raise your chances of getting cancer, diabetes, broken bones, or brain-related issues, based on a big review of studies that looked at thousands of people over time.
For people with kidney disease, taking simvastatin and ezetimibe together cuts their risk of heart attacks and strokes by 17% without causing more muscle or cancer problems.
If you have high cholesterol and can't take statins, taking a drug called ezetimibe by itself might lower your 'bad' cholesterol by about 18.6%—and it’s just as safe and easy to handle as a sugar...
For people who've had a recent heart problem, taking ezetimibe with their cholesterol medicine (a statin) helps prevent heart attacks and strokes over 7 years — and doesn't seem to cause extra cancer...