Cardiologists not associated with the White House claim President Donald Trump's cholesterol levels, which were made public last week, indicate the president is not in "excellent health" and may be at risk for suffering a heart attack while in office, according to The New York Times.
Rear Adm. Ronny Jackson, MD, official physician to the president, held a press conference Jan. 16 discussing the results of President Trump's physical exam, which took place Jan. 12. In a statement just after the exam, Dr. Jackson said President Trump was in "excellent health."
However, several physicians unaffiliated with the White House claim the president's health is anything but excellent after Dr. Jackson's report said President Trump maintains LDL cholesterol levels of 143 — significantly higher than the desired level of 100 or less, according to the report.
Here are three comments health experts who spoke with The New York Times made about President Trump's health.
1. David Maron, MD, a professor and director of preventive cardiology at Stanford (Calif.) University School of Medicine, said Jan. 17 he would "definitely" be worried about President Trump's risk of suffering a heart attack while in office.
2. Eric Topol, MD, the Gary and Mary West endowed chair of innovative medicine in the department of molecular medicine at the La Jolla, Calif.-based Scripps Research Institute, said the president's LDL levels are "really high. We're talking about a 70-plus-year-old man who is obese and doesn't exercise. Just looking at the lab value, you would raise a big red flag."
Dr. Topol also told The New York Times he would "never use the words 'excellent health.' How you could take these indices and say excellent health? That is completely contradicted."
3. Cardiologists surveyed by the publication agreed with Dr. Jackson's desire to press President Trump to eat better and include more exercise in his daily activities.
To read the full New York Times report, click here.