Stephen Sinatra

Stephen T. Sinatra (born 1946) is a board certified cardiologist, nutritionist, and anti-aging specialist specializing in integrative medicine. He has written or contributed to more than a dozen books on cardiovascular health, nutritional supplementation, and nutrition, and he has appeared on national radio and television broadcasts, including CNN’s “Sunday Morning News,” XM Radio’s “America’s Doctor Dr. Mehmet Oz,” and PBS’s “Body & Soul." [ [http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0102/11/sm.05.html CNN Transcript - Sunday Morning News: Women Face Heart Ailments Specific to Their Gender - February 11, 2001 ] ] [ [http://www.pbs.org/bodyandsoul/220/sinatra.htm Body & Soul with Gail Harris ] ] [ [http://www.getactivemagazine.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/page.viewpage/pageid/10760 IHRSA - Speaker - Sinatra ] ] He is also the author of the monthly newsletter "Heart, Health & Nutrition".

Training and Practice

Dr. Sinatra graduated from New York’s Albany Medical College in 1972, and earned his certification in internal medicine from the American Board of Internal Medicine in 1975. He is board-certified by the American College of Cardiology and has been a fellow of the American College of Cardiology since 1977. His additional credentials include certifications from the Massachusetts Society for Bioenergetic Analysis (1992), the American Board of Anti-Aging Medicine (1998), and the Certification Board for Nutrition Specialists (2000). He is also a fellow of the American College of Nutrition.

Dr. Sinatra has been affiliated with Manchester Memorial Hospital (Connecticut) throughout his career, beginning as an attending physician in internal medicine and cardiology. Subsequent positions included terms as the hospital’s Director of Medical Education, Chief of Cardiology, Director of Cardiac Rehabilitation, and Director of the Weight Reducing Program. Sinatra has also had various teaching responsibilities with the University of Connecticut School of Medicine and is a member of theBoard of Scientific Advisors within the American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine (A4M) [ [http://www.worldhealth.net/p/96,337.html American Academy of Anti-Aging Advisory Board ] ] .

Medical Philosophy

In his books, newsletter, and interviews, Dr. Sinatra advocates treatment approaches that combine conventional medical therapies with nutritional and mind-body therapies to enhance the body’s natural bioenergetics and heal the heart. He promotes four specific pillars of cardiac health: (1) an anti-inflammatory diet rich in fresh fruit and vegetables, whole grains, fish, nuts, and healthy oils, similar to the Mediterranean Diet; (2) nutritional supplementation that includes a high-potency multi-nutrient, fish oil, magnesium, vitamin C, and coenzyme Q10; (3) regular exercise; and (4) stress reduction. [Dr. Stephen Sinatra’s "Heart, Health & Nutrition", February 2008]

Dr. Sinatra is particularly aware of the impact one’s emotions have on overall health and the need to resolve emotional blockages as well as physical ones. He has stated that “whenever you confront a person with an illness, you have to involve everything, including the spiritual.…Every illness has a psychological and a physical component.” [ [http://www.pbs.org/bodyandsoul/220/sinatra.htm Body & Soul with Gail Harris ] ] Such interconnectedness can be seen in the relationship between unexpressed negative emotions—anger and sadness, for example—and the development of high blood pressure and heart disease. [ [http://www.pbs.org/bodyandsoul/220/sinatra.htm Body & Soul with Gail Harris ] ] [Sinatra, ST. Heartbreak & Heart Disease: A Mind/Body Prescription for Healing the Heart. Keats Publishing: New Canaan, CT. 1996]

Dr. Sinatra’s 2005 presentation at the American College for the Advancement of Medicine’s Conference on Scientific Integrative Medicine introduced the concept of “metabolic cardiology.” [Stephen A. Feig, James Biddle, Eleanor Hynote, Neal Speight, Kenneth Bock, Allan Magaziner and Joseph E. Rich. Summary of the American College for Advancement in Medicine November 2005 Conference on Scientific Integrative Medicine: Advancing Health Horizons. Evidence-based Compl. and Alt. Medicine. 3(3):385–391. Available online at http://ecam.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/full/3/3/385.] This type of therapy involves giving patients supplemental doses of substances that occur naturally in the body in order to enhance metabolic reactions in cells. Dr. Sinatra believes coenzyme Q10, D-ribose, and L-carnitine to be especially important in this process because of the roles they play in the production and use of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the body’s basic cellular fuel. In this context, he has called coenzyme Q10 a “wonder nutrient,” especially in women, for its ability to help the heart pump more effectively. [ [http://thyroid.about.com/cs/expertinterviews/a/sinatra.htm Heart Sense for Thyroid Patients ] ] [Sinatra, ST. Heartbreak & Heart Disease: A Mind/Body Prescription for Healing the Heart. Keats Publishing: New Canaan, CT. 1996] His ACAM presentation also suggested that low levels of coenzyme Q10 may result in the development of heart disease.

Dr. Sinatra has often been critical of the over-emphasis on cholesterol as an independent risk factor for heart disease and of what he considers the over-prescription of statin drugs. [Dr. Stephen Sinatra’s "Heart, Health & Nutrition", February 2008.] Most statin drugs, which block an enzyme pathway necessary for the body to produce cholesterol, also block the enzyme pathway by which the body naturally produces coenzyme Q10. Sinatra acknowledges that these drugs accomplish their goal of reducing cholesterol, but maintains that they also deprive the heart and other muscles of a vital nutrient and thereby set the stage for potential heart failure.

Dr. Sinatra is also critical of refined sugar, which he has called “public enemy number one when it comes to heart disease, not cholesterol.” [ [http://www2.oprah.com/xm/moz/200703/moz_20070321.jhtml?_loopback=1 Dr. Mehmet Oz: 'Sugar Shock' ] ] He believes the surges of insulin that occur when too much sugar is consumed create a “yo-yo effect” that, over time, damages the inner lining of the blood vessels. He also believes that sugar is linked to the proliferation of cancer cells. [Dr. Stephen Sinatra’s "Heart, Health & Nutrition", November 2006.]

Commercial Interests

Dr. Sinatra formulates and sells nutritional supplements under the brand name "Advanced BioSolutions". Products are available at his web site, [http://www.drsinatra.com drsinatra.com] .

Books and Publications

Dr Sinatra is the author of the monthly newsletter Heart, Health & Nutrition (ISSN 1554-2467), and has written or contributed to the following books:

• "Sugar Shock! How Sweets and Simple Carbs Can Derail Your Life—And How You Can Get Back on Track" (Berkley Trade, 2006)

• "Reverse Heart Disease Now: Stop Deadly Cardiovascular Plaque Before Its Too Late" (Wiley, 2006)

• "The Fast Food Diet—Lose Weight and Feel Great Even If You’re Too Busy to Eat Right" (Wiley, 2006)

• "The Sinatra Solution: New Hope for Preventing and Treating Heart Disease" (Basic Health, 2005)

• "Spa Medicine: Your Gateway to the Ageless Zone" (Basic Health, 2004)

• "Lower Your Blood Pressure in Eight Weeks" (Ballantine, 2003)

• "Heart Sense for Women" (Plume, 2001)

• "Tocotrienols and Vitamin E" (Keats, 2000)

• "Heartbreak & Heart Disease: A Mind/Body Prescription for Healing the Heart" (IBS Books, 1999)

• "Optimum Health: A Natural Lifesaving Prescription for Your Body and Mind" (Bantam, 1998)

• "L-Carnitine and the Heart" (McGraw-Hill, 1999)

• "Coenzyme Q10 and the Heart" (McGraw-Hill, 1999)

• "The Coenzyme Q10 Phenomenon" (McGraw-Hill, 1999)

• "Lose to Win: A Cardiologist’s Guide to Weight Loss and Nutritional Healing" (Lincoln Bradley Publishing, 1992)

References

External links

* [http://www.drsinatra.com Dr. Stephen Sinatra, Official Website]
* [http://www.oprah.com/xm/moz/200703/moz_20070321.jhtml Oprah and Friends Interview with Dr. Oz]
* [http://thyroid.about.com/cs/expertinterviews/a/sinatra.htm Heart Sense for Thyroid Patients]
* [http://www.thyroid-info.com/articles/heartdrsinatra.htm Interview on Increased Risk of Heart Disease in Women with Thyroid Disease]
* [http://lauralee.com/sinatra.htm Are You At Risk for a Heart Attack?]
* [http://www.pbs.org/bodyandsoul/220/sinatra.htm East/West Medicine]
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJ_8y2uFwL0&feature=related Expo West 2008]