Gordon Fox • October 14, 2021
Weight loss improves HCM patients’ heart health

Weight management is a challenge for many. Losing weight is a challenge for nearly everyone who tries it. It can be more difficult for many HCM patients because we often take drugs that slow us down. It’s also hard to study: researchers can assign different groups to different diets, but how can they tell who follows the diet closely, loosely, or not at all? How can they know how much exercise people really get?  This problem is more challenging because we also know that weight loss is important for many people, especially those with HCM.

A recent pilot study (20 subjects all with BMI greater than 30, which is labeled “obese”) by a group in Italy, the UK, and the US, though, provides some initial evidence of beneficial effects on the heart from a weight loss and exercise program. Participants used the Mediterranean diet plus an exercise program. Before the study, and at 12 and 24 months, they were examined using echocardiograms , electrocardiography , Holter monitor , CPET , cardiac MRI , and some blood tests. Participants also were given questionnaires asking how well they followed the diet and exercise protocols.

Not surprisingly, some participants lost a lot of weight while others lost less. Regardless of how much they lost, though, there was a significant pattern: the more weight lost, the better the results were for a reduction in several measurements related to the risk of developing atrial fibrillation, increasing their ability to exercise, and in the pressure in the pulmonary artery.

This small pilot study will hopefully lead to more extensive research. But in any case, it should help give us some of the motivation we need to lose some of that extra weight!

Source: Heart Failure Clinics , 17: 303-313. doi://10.1016/j.hfc.2021.01.003

Many readers may not be able to access this article without paying a fee. Some of the authors also published a popular article about this research.

HCMA Blog

Lisa's Letter - July Newsletter

By Lisa Salberg • July 3, 2025
Summer, greetings to all our big-hearted friends As July approaches, our focus is already on the fall and preparing for some major events, including our annual meeting coming up in October. July will also find us on the west coast in Seattle conducting a regional patient education meeting as part of our big-hearted warrior tour. We have been following the generic drug quality issue in the United States very closely and encourage you to watch the series starting with our Hill briefing in April and following with the additional webinars with our partners at Medshadow and the People's Pharmacy, and of course the ProPublica series of articles. See them all here . We are happy to have a new team member on board - we welcome Pam as our coordinator of both our All Hearts Collaborative and Hearts and Minds project. Over the next few months, you're going to be learning more about these two amazing initiatives and how we are working to provide better services for big hearts regardless of where you live, so we are meeting all of our big-hearted friends where they are. Please stay tuned for updates from these projects coming soon. We are also creating new volunteer opportunities and engagements that we hope will make it easier for you to participate in spreading the message of the importance of diagnosis, the importance of community readiness related to CPR and AED use and, of course, helping patients get to their ultimate diagnosis and getting them on the proper treatment pathways. This July I would like to recognize all of the special birthdays in my family, including HCMA Center of Excellence coordinator, Stacey Titus-brown and my daughter Rebecca Salberg. It's a milestone birthday for Becca - it’s hard to believe I have a 30-year-old child. Wishing you all a happy and healthy summer. Go build some memories!
An official seal in black & red with white letters that say HCMS Recognized Centers of Excellence

July's Topic is COE Care at the HCMA

By Sabrina Cuddy • July 3, 2025
Getting HCM care at a HCMA Recognized Center of Excellence has a positive impact on patient's outcomes. Find out why in the post by Health Educator Sabrina Cuddy

Pro Publica Releases Results of FDA Investigation

By Erica Friedman • June 26, 2025
Investigative journalists Debbie Cenziper, Megan Rose, Brandon Roberts and Irena Hwang from Pro Publica and NPR have concluded a 14-month long investigation into the quality of generic drugs coming into the United States from overseas. Among the many voices that spoke up for American patients was HCMA Founder and CEO, Lisa Salberg who has felt the effects of low-quality drugs personally. Salberg believes that fixing this problem is something we can do, even in this time, when even health care is highly politicized. Read the key takeaways from ProPublica’s 14-month investigation into the FDA’s oversight of foreign drugmakers in Threat in Your Medicine Cabinet: The FDA’s Gamble on America’s Drugs .
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