I can give all this a definite maybe.
My mom had elevated cholesterol which eventually killed her at age 75. Both my dad's parents died of heart attacks before reaching 70. I nearly died of a massive heart attack at age 52 (I escaped just before it happened). It's hereditary, alright. I don't break down cholesterol.
I noticed my symptoms in time and sought out a cardiologist on pure suspicion. He freaked out and sent me up to one of Germany's best cardiac clinics within hours. The head professor confirmed the cardiologist's suspicions, put me on the table immediately, put in two stents, and told me I was the luckiest guy in Europe that day. He then summoned my wife and told her all the things I was not to eat any more: mostly stuff I loved. Eggs, ice cream, butter, shellfish, cheese, coconuts, red meat---all on the taboo list. The cardiologist's classic admonition: "If it tastes good, SPIT IT OUT!!" Now, it's fish, leafy greens, fruits and grains, and sinning only on special occasions (got my LDL down way under 100 and HDL up to 50% of the LDL count).
I was put on medication, dropped all the good (i.e. bad) stuff from my diet, and my wife and I learned to cook with olive oil instead of butter. I did have the good fortune to be married to a master chef, so she makes stuff taste good even if it's OK for me to eat. I didn't have a heart attack until 2 years ago, when a surgeon told me to go off blood thinners for ten days before a minor procedure. WRONG. In those ten days, one of my stents clogged right back up, and within an hour of being released, I was on my way to the emergency room in Dallas with my very first heart attack. Luckily, it was very mild and left no muscle damage. Angioplasty blew out the blockage, and I was warned never to go off the blood thinners ever again.
So, it's no guarantee that diet alone will save anyone. It's no guarantee that medication alone will save anyone. But what's for sure is that anyone who knows they're in a danger group CAN do something about it. Mother Nature had me scheduled to check out permanently on or about April 29th, 2004. But I beat the reaper (apologies to those who remember the Firesign Theater). I intend to press my luck for a few decades longer if I can get away with it. If not, well, my demise is already nine years behind schedule.
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