Controlling Cholesterol: Dr. Kenneth H. Cooper's Preventative Medicine Program

Cooper (Aerobics, etc.) directs a fitness center in Dallas, and this authoritative, no-nonsense, first volume in his projected ""Preventive Medicine Program'' series may motivate underexercised, overstressed readers to change their lifestyles. Cooper is blunt about the risks of smoking and obesity, and presents considerable evidence that diet and lifestyle changes, which lower total cholesterol levels and control the various fats in the blood, can help protect individuals from heart disease. There is an admirably lucid explanation of the significance of low- and high-density lipoproteins and total cholesterol levels; an entire chapter is devoted to Q & A's on cholesterol tests; and comprehensible charts calculate cardiovascular disease risk. Cooper sorts out the mountains of often contradictory information on what's helpful and harmful, presenting up-to-date research findings and their practical implications. As a basic preventive prescription, Cooper advocates a ``relatively moderate but disciplined approach to diet and exercise,'' which he demonstrates in a short section on aerobics and in two weeks' worth of cholesterol-controlling menus. Illustrations not seen by PW. Author tour. (February)