In this interview I had the great pleasure and a lot of fun talking with Ivor Cummins.
Ivor is a Biochemical Engineer who has spent 30 years leading corporate teams in complex problem solving. Following some health challenges that Ivor talks about, he turned his problem-solving skills to decoding the science around the root cause of chronic disease, including heart disease. He has become an influential and well-respected thought leader who presents on these complex topics at prestigious medical conferences in Britain and Ireland. He also a regular speaker at international conferences and has co-authored the book “Eat Rich-Live Long” with Dr Gerber.
Website link: https://thefatemperor.com
Where to find Ivor’s work and book
- Eat Rich, Live Long with Jeffery Garber
- “Extra Time” movie link
- The Cholesterol Conundrum
- The Widowmaker
Links to Ivor’s book and videos we discuss in this chat are on our resources page: https://susanbirch.co.nz/resources/
You will also find Ivor on Twitter – https://twitter.com/FatEmperor
For those interested in Covid-19, Ivor has been using his problem-solving skills to untangle the myths from the facts. You can his thoughts and interviews on Covid and other health topics on his YouTube Channel:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPn4FsiQP15nudug9FDhluA
Part One:
Ivor’s talks about his personal health challenges and how a biochemical engineering complex problem solver, became a world-wide influencer in the role of cholesterol in heart disease. He discusses:
- Why understanding the root cause is so important
- What really causes heart disease
- How our fake food industry got started
- The cause of type-2 diabetes
- How insulin and glucose are the single biggest driver of heart disease, not cholesterol
Part Two:
Ivor delves more into cholesterol, what is measured on our blood tests and what these numbers mean. Including:
- The importance of Total Cholesterol/HDL ratio
- Ideal Triglyceride levels
He talks about - How essential cholesterol is for our health
- What really causes damage to the inside of artery wall and lipoprotein particles
- Why mixing refined carbs and fats together is a problem for our health
Part Three:
Ivor delves more deeply into blood tests:
- Why measuring insulin is the most important marker for metabolic health
- The problem with HbA1c and fasting glucose tests
- Best simple measure is a fasting glucose and insulin: HOMA calculator
He explains how the CAC test is used to help predict heart disease risk.
Part Four:
Ivor talks about food:
- The dangers of seed oils and their high Omega-6 to Omega-3 ratio
- The basis of ultra-processed foods
- 46 different names for sugar
- The healthy food tick
- The health benefits of eating animal fats
- Properly reared lamb is high in Omega-3
Part Five:
I ask Ivor for his thoughts on plant-based Diets and environmental issues. He talks about the
- Eat Lancet report controversies
- 7th Day Adventists influence over nutrition
- Gary Fettke story
Part Six:
Ivor and I discuss the worldwide obesity pandemic including:
- How ultra-processed foods destroy the health of Maori and Pacifica peoples
- Advice on what to eat and how to keep insulin low
- Children’s health; the second order effect
- Vegetable oils in breast milk and baby foods
Part Seven:
We talk about the APOE and evolutionary context for these genes, particularly for carriers of APOE 4. Ivor also discusses the importance of Vitamin D for health and in Covid-19.
Part Eight:
Ivor talks about his Covid-19 research and how to reduce your risk of a bad outcome.
This is the link to the video Ivor mentioned about talking to one of the world’s leading immunologists about Covid-19: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GBRcK-od50Q
Part Nine:
I ask Ivor how low cholesterol correlates with mortality.
- Consistent low cholesterol over 20 years links to health problems;
- The mechanism is not well understood
