Bayan, Matthew J. 1951-

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BAYAN, Matthew J. 1951-

PERSONAL:

Born 1951; married.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Reno, NV. Agent—Margret McBride Literary Agency, 7744 Fay Ave., Ste. 201, La Jolla, CA 92037. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Manager of public and private nutrition and health programs; author.

AWARDS, HONORS:

Med411 Medical Award, 2000, for HeartSavers Web site.

WRITINGS:

Eat Fat, Be Healthy: Understanding the Heartstopper Gene and When a Low-Fat Diet Can Kill You, Scribner (New York, NY), 2000.

Contributor to Online Journal of Issues in Nursing.

SIDELIGHTS:

Matthew J. Bayan thought he was practicing a healthy lifestyle by exercising, not smoking, and eating a low-fat diet. Healthy, he thought, until he had a massive heart attack at the age of forty-five and had to be revived over seventy times. Although he made a full recovery, Bayan learned that he has a gene, ApoB, which is present in some twenty percent of the population and which causes the body to produce excessive LDL—bad—cholesterol when a low-fat diet is consumed. Bayan claims that many people, including physicians, are unaware of this potential problem, and he has made it his goal to inform the general public of the danger those with this condition face by consuming too little fat. In an interview with Palm Beach Post contributor Carolyn Susman, Bayan stated, "I am on a mission. After the experience I had, I came to the conclusion I could save lives by getting this information out there." He also shared some good news: "This is very treatable, much more treatable than regular heart disease. If you know you have it, you can pretty much neutralize it."

In his book Eat Fat, Be Healthy: Understanding the Heartstopper Gene and When a Low-Fat Diet Can Kill You Bayan recounts his attack and shares information on how to identify the presence of the gene and the steps affected individuals can take for treatment. A reviewer for Publishers Weekly wrote that although "Parts of the memoir are overwritten …Bayan does a fine job translating medical terminology and, with a keen sense of humor, explaining how people can integrate healthy behavior into everyday life."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Austin American-Statesman, February 12, 2001, Kristi Kingston, review of Eat Fat, Be Healthy: Understanding the Heartstopper Gene and When a Low-Fat Diet Can Kill You, p. E8.

Palm Beach Post, April 21, 2000, Carolyn Susman, review of Eat Fat, Be Healthy, p. E3.

Publishers Weekly, January 3, 2000, review of Eat Fat, Be Healthy, p. 72.