Dr MaryAnne Demasi: Catalyst presenter.

Dr MaryAnne Demasi: Catalyst presenter.
The ABC's health specialist has launched an extraordinary attack on the ABC TV Catalystprogram, saying a program broadcast last week about cholesterol and heart attacks might cause people to die.
The take from the audience - at least anecdotally - was that cholesterol is not a risk factor at all. 
"People will die as a result of the Catalyst program unless people understand at heart what the issues are," Dr Norman Swan told an ABC radio audience.
Appearing twice on ABC Radio National to attack the program, both at breakfast and in his own Health Report program, Dr Norman Swan said what made him "really angry" was the effect it might have on indigenous Australians, who are especially likely to suffer from high cholesterol.
"If you were an Aboriginal person watching that program you would think: I don’t need to be on cholesterol lowering medication, I don’t need to worry about it," he said.
"Cholesterol reduction is one of the few things that you can do for Aboriginal people safely, through statins which will save their lives, even though they have not had a stroke, because they are at high absolute risk."
The program was attacked ahead of last Thursday’s broadcast by health experts including the ANU’s professor Emily Banks who begged the ABC not to show it.
The ABC denied news organisations including Fairfax Media the usual preview copies.
"The take from the audience - at least anecdotally - was that cholesterol is not a risk factor at all: I can go back to the way I was, and that statins are evil drugs sold by the evil empire of the pharmaceutical industry,” Dr Swan told the ABC audience.
"My wife was sitting next to a very clever investment banker on a plane from Canberra who has got  familial hypercholesterolemia, which means he stands a good chance of dying from heart disease. He has thrown away the statins and was back on eating the cream cheese."
"Let’s be clear. When you reduce cholesterol, regardless of how you do it - whether it’s by statins, by other drugs or by diet - if you reduce your cholesterol you reduce the rate of coronary heart disease, of heart attacks and strokes and death."
"The evidence is absolutely clear."
ABC management declined to comment on the Catalyst program. Calls to the Catalystproduction office went unanswered.