DR. ARTHUR AGATSTON, M.D.
Arthur Agatston, M.D., is the Medical Director of Wellness and Prevention for Baptist Health South Florida. A pioneer in cardiac disease prevention, Dr. Agatston worked with Dr. Warren Janowitz to formulate the Agatston Score, a method of screening for coronary calcium as an indicator of atherosclerosis that is used at medical centers throughout the world and considered by most experts to be the best single predictor of a future heart attack. Dr. Agatston is a clinical professor of medicine at Florida International University Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine and an associate professor of medicine at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. His cardiology practice in Miami Beach is focused on preventing heart attacks in high-risk patients.
Known as the author of the internationally best-selling book, The South Beach Diet, his first nonacademic work, Dr. Agatston created his balanced approach to healthy eating to help his patients improve their blood chemistries and lose weight. Today, the South Beach Diet is the trusted choice of millions and there are more than 23 million copies of The South Beach Diet and its companion books in print worldwide. The lifestyle program has grown to include Web-based materials and a family of healthy and convenient foods, including delicious and nutritionally balanced bars and snacks, as well as a popular online program, SouthBeachDiet.com. Dr. Agatston’s most recent books, The South Beach Diet Gluten Solution and The South Beach Diet Gluten Solution Cookbook, were published in 2013.
Dr. Agatston has published more than 100 scientific articles and abstracts in medical journals and is a frequent lecturer across the U.S. and around the world on diet, cardiac imaging, and the prevention of heart disease. In recognition of his contributions to cardiac prevention, the Society of Cardiovascular Computed Tomography (SCCT) created the prestigious Arthur S. Agatston Cardiovascular Disease Prevention Award in 2011, which is given annually to pioneers in cardiac prevention. Among his many television appearances, Dr. Agatston was featured along with President Bill Clinton on Sanjay Gupta’s 2011 CNN special, “The Last Heart Attack.”
Dr. Agatston can be found on the Web at SouthBeachDiet.com and EverdayHealth.com and he is also an advisor on heart health for Prevention magazine. He lives in Miami Beach, Florida.