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International experts at the 1968 Makarska Conference on Preventive Trials, recommended needed studies of heart attack prevention.

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The first meeting of the Advisory Heart Council for the new National Heart Institute met on September 8, 1948, presided over by cardiologist Dr. Paul Dudley White, with members who had lobbied successfully for the National Heart Act of 1948.

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In The Seven Countries Study, men of Crete in the 1960s had the lowest heart attack rate while they had among the higher diet-fat intakes, primarily as olive oil.

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Boston cardiologist, Paul Dudley White, lectured in Moscow in September 1961 in a concerted initiative to advance the science of heart attack prevention and a medical diplomacy of collaboration and World Peace.

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The cover story of Time Magazine in January 13, 1961 was about the work of Ancel Keys, Ph.D, Minnesota physiologist and pioneer in cardiovascular disease epidemiology.

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“THE WORLD WAS OUR LABORATORY!”

Z.Fejfar, first director, WHO Cardiovascular Disease Unit, Geneva

This website explores research on the causes and prevention of heart attack conducted among whole populations during a period when little was known and all was new, from the mid-1940s to mid-1970s. It presents a brief historical overview of cardiovascular disease (CVD) epidemiology and a wealth of original material for scholars and students of medicine, public health, and history.

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History Overview

A sketch of the origins and early evolution of research on heart attack prevention among populations.

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The Research

Summaries of pioneering epidemiological observations and experiments on coronary disease and its prevention from the mid-1940s to the mid-1970s.

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People

Biographies and oral histories of pioneer reserachers in heart attack prevention who made contributions prior to the mid-1970s.

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Essays

Historic and Current Reflections on the nature, causes, course, control, and prevention of cardiovascular diseases.

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Multimedia

The archival collections of the University of Minnesota School of Public Health and its Division of Epidemiology are the source of these voices and pictures of early CVD research and researchers among populations.

Our multimedia offerings include:

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