$100 Heart Scan Could Save Your Life

The high cholesterol myth is the biggest hoax in modern history.

It was invented by drug companies to sell statins, not to save lives.

Just think about it… millions of Americans are taking these drugs right now, and research has PROVEN that using statins for primary heart attack prevention only adds days to your life.

If cholesterol was really the problem… and statins were really the answer… the results would be A LOT better than that.

If you’re thinking there has to be a better way to determine your heart attack risk, you’re right, there is.

While the medical mainstream has been focusing on cholesterol numbers, I’ve been recommending a relatively unknown test that can spot actual arterial damage.

This test can reveal your REAL heart risk, long before symptoms appear.

The leading cause of heart attacks is atherosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries. It occurs when fatty deposits build up inside the walls of your arteries.

This silent process doesn’t usually cause symptoms until it’s too late. When the plaque finally ruptures, you’re staring down the barrel of a potentially deadly heart attack or stroke.

While cholesterol numbers can indicate if you might develop atherosclerosis, there’s another test that shows you if you already have it.

A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association evaluated numerous markers of heart health to see which one was the best at predicting a future cardiac event in adults with no heart disease symptoms.

The test that outperformed all the rest? It’s called coronary artery calcium testing, or CAC, and it’s one of the most powerful tools that exists for heart attack prevention.

It blows all of the most popular tests—cholesterol, C-reactive protein, even carotid ultrasound—out of the water.

In the study, participants with a high CAC score are more than TWICE as likely to suffer from a major cardiovascular event, compared to those with low CAC scores.

This remained the case even after accounting for factors like cholesterol, blood pressure, age, diabetes, and smoking.

What makes this particular test so powerful? It gives you a picture of precisely what’s going on in your arteries because it shows actual plaque buildup.

The test utilizes a low-radiation CT scan that detects calcium in the artery walls. It’s a measure of calcified plaque, which is cholesterol that has become hardened.

The score is an indicator of the amount of plaque buildup:

• 0 means no plaque
• 1-99 is mild plaque, which indicates early heart disease
• 100-399 is moderate plaque, a definite indicator of heart disease
• 400+ is severe plaque, which indicates a high risk of heart attack

Despite its accuracy, the medical establishment ignores this test, while pushing cholesterol-lowering drugs that target the WRONG problem.

I’m sure there are plenty of reasons why, but the biggest is that insurance rarely covers it.

The good news is that for $100 or less, you don’t need to rely on insurance to utilize this powerful heart attack prevention tool.

Ask your doctor to write an order to your local imaging center for a coronary artery calcium score. If the test shows you’re at risk, you can talk with your doctor about your options.

Regardless of what you find out, there are several steps you can take (besides diet and exercise) that will support healthier arteries:

• Slash stress levels. Chronic stress is terrible for your arteries. It notoriously increases the big three—cortisol, inflammation, and blood pressure—all of which speed up plaque formation. I recommend meditation—a practice I use myself. I simply focus on my breathing and turn off any outside thoughts I have for half an hour daily.
• Get better sleep. Sleep is critical for nitric oxide production, which is vital for flexible arteries. Improve your sleep quality by getting early morning sun exposure and switching off screens and artificial lights at night.

• Consider targeted nutrition. CoQ10 (look for the more bioavailable ubiquinol form), omega-3s, magnesium, and curcumin are good options for arterial support. In addition to magnesium and curcumin, because of my own past heart issues, I also take vitamin K and K2. My favorite way to get omega-3s is through fatty fish such as salmon and anchovies. If you’re not a fish fan, a high-quality supplement from a reputable source, such as Life Extension, is your next best option.

The CAC test is fast, it’s affordable, and it’s one of the best steps you can take to see if heart disease is silently knocking on your door.

P.S. They got it all WRONG about this delicious heart-healthy food.

View Sources

Glynn P, Khan SS, Greenland P. Cardiac CT Calcium Score. JAMA. 2025;333(16):1447–1448. doi:10.1001/jama.2025.0610