The Dr. London Podcast

I'm Dr. Jeremy London, a board-certified cardiovascular surgeon in practice for over 25 years. In this episode I break down five landmark cardiovascular studies, the foundational research that did the heavy lifting to shape how we treat heart disease today.

But this isn't just a history lesson. I walk through each study the same way a physician does: how the study was designed, what it got right, what it got wrong, and whether it held up over time. That framework is the real takeaway, because in an age of overwhelming health information, knowing how to evaluate a study is more valuable than memorizing any single result.

We go from Framingham in 1948, which invented the very idea of a "risk factor," all the way to SPRINT in 2015, which changed the blood pressure number we all aim for. Along the way you'll see exactly how these studies stack on top of each other to answer the next question: Do risk factors exist? Which ones matter most? Is one of them actually causal? And how hard should we push when we treat them?

Medical science isn't stone tablets. It's guidance, and it should be pressure-tested constantly. Strong beliefs, loosely held.

Thank you to our sponsors:

LMNT: Get a free sample pack of eight flavors with any purchase at: https://drinkLMNT.com/london

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CHAPTERS

0:00 – What this episode covers & why foundational studies matter

2:10 – Study #1: The Framingham Heart Study (1948)

4:15 – What Framingham got right: risk factors compound

5:05 – Where Framingham fell short, and how it holds up today

6:05 – Study #2: The 2013 smoking study (200,000 smokers)

7:15 – Quitting before 40 drops your risk by nearly 90%

7:35 – The study's flaws, and why the numbers still hold

9:20 – Sponsor: LMNT

10:45 – Study #3: INTERHEART, 52 countries, 9 risk factors

11:20 – Ranking the risk factors: cholesterol, smoking, stress

12:15 – The weakness of a retrospective study

13:00 – Study #4: Mendelian randomization: is cholesterol causal?

13:40 – Why the "ideal" cholesterol study can't ethically be run

14:20 – Nature's controls: the genetic lottery on both ends

15:55 – Lower is better, earlier is better (the sun exposure analogy)

17:30 – Where it holds up today: apolipoprotein B

18:15 – Sponsor: Function Health

19:40 – Study #5: The SPRINT trial (2015), how low should BP go?

20:35 – Why they stopped the trial early

21:20 – The catch: how blood pressure was actually measured

22:20 – Why 120 became the standard

23:10 – Putting all five together: the decision-making chain

24:20 – How to evaluate any medical study yourself

25:45 – "Strong beliefs, loosely held"

26:15 – Closing thoughts

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*The information in this video is not intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. All content, including text, graphics, images, and information, contained in this video is for general information purposes only and does not replace a consultation with your own doctor/health professional*
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In today's episode, Dr. Jeremy London, board-certified cardiovascular surgeon, breaks down the most common cholesterol question he gets: how do you actually lower your ApoB? He explains why ApoB predicts cardiovascular risk better than LDL-C, why insulin sensitivity is the through line connecting sugar, saturated fat, fiber, muscle, and body weight, and what to do when you've done everything right and your numbers still won't budge.

My Newsletter
https://www.drjeremylondon.com/newsletter

Thank you to our sponsors:

LMNT: Replace what you actually sweat out - FREE 8-flavor sample pack with any purchase → https://www.drinklmnt.com/london

Function Health: 160+ labs, 5x your standard panel, for less than a dollar a day (Use code LONDON25 as your access code and LONDON25 as your gift code at checkout to unlock your $25 credit.) → https://www.functionhealth.com/london

Get access to every episode before YouTube by subscribing for free on Spotify - https://spoti.fi/3FU0S6O or Apple Podcasts - https://apple.co/3DJvyav

My Social Media
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drjeremylondon/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@drjeremylondon
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/drjeremylondonmd

Timestamps:

00:00:00 The #1 Cholesterol Question I Get Asked
00:01:00 Why Nobody Knew What ApoB Was 10 Years Ago
00:01:40 LDL-C vs. ApoB: The Truck Analogy
00:03:20 What Is an "Optimal" ApoB? (90 / 80 / 70)
00:05:00 Why Your Doctor Isn't Testing For This
00:06:20 The Two Foundational Buckets
00:07:20 Diet #1: Sugar, Starch & the Insulin Connection
00:11:20 Diet #2: Saturated Fat and the Substitution Trap
00:13:20 Diet #3: Fiber — Not Sexy, But It Works
00:16:20 Is Dietary Cholesterol Actually the Problem?
00:19:20 Exercise #1: Muscle Is Your Biggest Glucose Sink
00:21:40 Exercise #2: Weight Loss & Visceral Fat
00:24:40 What If You Do Everything and Nothing Changes?
00:26:40 Medications Are NOT a Failure
00:29:00 Statins: The Most Demonized Drug in Medicine
00:32:40 Ezetimibe
00:34:00 PCSK9 Inhibitors & the Genetic Evidence
00:36:40 Bempedoic Acid
00:38:00 Why Medication Alone Is Never Enough
00:39:20 Pulling Every Lever
00:40:40 Thank You For Listening!

** The information in this video is not intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. All content, including text, graphics, images, and information, contained in this video is for general information purposes only and does not replace a consultation with your own doctor/health professional **
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In today's episode, Dr. Jeremy London, board-certified cardiovascular surgeon, breaks down everything you need to know about stroke. He explains the different types of stroke, the warning signs your body gives you before one happens, who's most at risk, and the critical steps you can take right now to protect yourself and the people you love.

My Newsletter: https://www.drjeremylondon.com/newsletter

Thank you to our sponsors:

LMNT: https://www.drinklmnt.com/london

Rho Nutrition: https://www.rhonutrition.com/london

Get access to every episode before YouTube by subscribing for free on Spotify - https://spoti.fi/3FU0S6O or Apple Podcasts - https://apple.co/3DJvyav

My Social Media:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drjeremylondon/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@drjeremylondon

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/drjeremylondonmd

Timestamps:

00:00:00 What Is a Stroke?

00:03:00 Ischemic vs. Hemorrhagic Stroke

00:07:00 Warning Signs Everyone Should Recognize

00:11:00 Who's Really at Risk?

00:15:00 The Link Between Heart Disease and Stroke

00:20:00 What You Can Control Starting Today

00:25:00 When Every Minute Counts

00:30:00 Thank You For Listening!

** The information in this video is not intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. All content, including text, graphics, images, and information, contained in this video is for general information purposes only and does not replace a consultation with your own doctor/health professional **
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In today's episode, Dr. Jeremy London, board-certified cardiovascular surgeon, uncovers how healthy people are still having heart attacks. He explains how LDL-C isn't the only blood test that predicts heart disease, the genetic risk factors everyone should know about, and which factors you can control to prevent a heart attack in the future.

My Newsletter

https://www.drjeremylondon.com/newsletter

Thank you to our sponsors

Function Health: https://www.functionhealth.com/london

Rorra: https://www.rorra.com/london

My Social Media

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drjeremylondon/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@drjeremylondon

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/drjeremylondonmd

Timestamps:

00:00:00 How "Healthy" People Still Have Heart Attacks

00:01:20 Two Patient Scenarios. One Problem

00:05:20 LDL-C vs. ApoB

00:07:40 Lp(a): The Hidden Genetic Risk Factor

00:09:28 Normal Does NOT Equal Optimal

00:10:00 What Happens Inside Your Arteries?

00:12:41 The INTERHEART Study: Preventable Risk Factors for Heart Attacks

00:17:40 Genetics: Your Heart is Your Heart

00:21:53 Thank You For Listening!

** The information in this video is not intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. All content, including text, graphics, images, and information, contained in this video is for general information purposes only and does not replace a consultation with your own doctor/health professional **
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In today's podcast episode, Dr. Jeremy London, board-certified cardiovascular surgeon, unpacks 3 ways alcohol affects your heart. He breaks down how alcohol raises blood pressure, increases the risk of arrhythmias like atrial fibrillation, and how heavy alcohol consumption can lead to heart failure.

My Newsletter

https://www.drjeremylondon.com/newsletter

Thank you to our sponsors

Rho Nutrition: https://www.rhonutrition.com/london

LMNT: https://www.drinklmnt.com/london

My Social Media

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drjeremylondon/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@drjeremylondon

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/drjeremylondonmd

Timestamps:

00:00:00 How Drinking Alcohol Affects Your Heart Health

00:02:29 Alcohol Metabolism & The Dangers of Acetaldehyde on Your Heart

00:05:51 High Blood Pressure, AFib, and Heart Failure

00:12:51 Is Low to Moderate Alcohol Consumption Safe? Red Wine?

00:21:35 The Good News: Reducing/Quitting Alcohol Makes A Difference

00:24:00 No Safe Amount of Alcohol Consumption

00:26:51 My Challenge to You

00:27:48 Thank you for listening!

** The information in this video is not intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. All content, including text, graphics, images, and information, contained in this video is for general information purposes only and does not replace a consultation with your own doctor/health professional **
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices