The Hidden Cholesterol Killing Millions: What You Must Know About LP(a) | Dr. Akil Taher

The Exam Room by the Physicians Committee

Physicians Committee

Carroll, Health & Fitness, Diabetes, Science, Nutrition, Vegan, Pcrm, Barnard, Weightloss, Food, Health, Recipes, Medicine, Diet

4.9 • 3.3K Ratings

🗓️ 4 November 2025

⏱️ 35 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In this powerful episode, Dr. Akil Taher, a heart-attack survivor turned marathon runner, reveals the life-saving truth about lipoprotein(a) which is a genetically inherited form of cholesterol that most people don't even know they have. Despite living a healthy lifestyle, Dr. Taher discovered his LP(a) levels were dangerously high, placing him at extreme risk for heart disease and stroke.

He joins Chuck Carroll on The Exam Room Podcast to explain:

- What LP(a) is and why standard cholesterol tests don't detect it

- How 1 in 5 people have elevated LP(a) and most never know it

- Why South Asians, Black Americans, and Middle Eastern populations face increased genetic risk

- The role of a whole-food, plant-based diet in lowering LP(a) levels by up to 16 %—and which foods can cut levels by 40 %

- The immense cholesterol lowering benefit of amla or Indian gooseberries

- New LP(a)-targeting drugs in clinical trials that could reduce levels by up to 98 %

- How lifestyle habits—from nutrition and sleep to stress management—help strengthen arteries and protect your heart

📘 Learn more about Dr. Taher's inspiring journey in his book Open Heart: https://amzn.to/491ujAJ

💻 Visit his website: https://www.akiltaher.com

🌱 Start your journey to better health today!

Work with the expert doctors and dietitians at the Barnard Medical Center: https://www.BarnardMedical.org

If you feel like you've raised your health IQ, please leave a 5-star rating and nice review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Today on the exam room.
0:04.0	Should we test my LPA?
0:07.0	And he sort of was a little reluctant, but he says,
0:10.0	okay, let's get it done.
0:11.0	And my results was sky high, 300.
0:14.0	And the normal is less than 30,
0:18.0	even if you have a high cholesterol,
0:20.0	and it's not coming down. I always tell people even if you have a high cholesterol and it's not coming down I always tell people that if
0:24.3	you eat a whole food plant-based diet you're obviously strengthening your inner lining of your
0:30.8	coronary arteries endothelium and therefore it is producing the nitric oxide irrespective of your
0:37.0	cholesterol that keeps the artery dilated keeps the blood flowing smoothly Therefore, it is producing the nitric oxide irrespective of your cholesterol.
0:38.1	That keeps the artery dilated, keeps the blood flowing smoothly, and strengthens your arterial
0:43.9	walls so that it does not get stiff and get high blood pressure.
0:52.9	Welcome to the exam room podcast, brought to you by the Physicians Committee.
0:57.1	Hi, I'm Chuck Carroll, raising health IQs coast to coast and around the world.
1:02.4	Hi to the exam room.
1:03.2	He's listening in Tucson, Arizona, Grand Rapids, Michigan, and Warsaw, Poland.
1:09.5	Wherever you are, we appreciate you helping to make the world
1:12.1	a healthier place. This is episode 87 of season 8, number 686 overall. And today we are talking
1:20.6	about a hidden health risk that too few people and even too few doctors really know about. It's something called LP.
1:29.8	L.P.L.A. or Lipoprotein A. And this is a genetic form of cholesterol that doesn't necessarily
1:37.3	show up on standard blood tests. But according to the American Heart Association, about
	...

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