Dr. Valentín Fuster
The Resilient Heart is a documentary focusing on Valentin Fuster, MD, and his interest in heart health. He has spent his entire career dedicated to solving the mystery of heart disease and heart health. Dr. Fuster is the Director of Mount Sinai Heart Institute, and Physician-in-Chief at Mount Sinai Hospital. “The Resilient Heart” is directed by Oscar®-nominee and Grammy® winning director, Susan Froemke.
This is a straight-up documentary, offering lots of information, clear objectives, and a clean story arch. The film is successful in communicating Dr. Valentín Fuster’s intent — to demonstrate how pivotal diet and lifestyle is to good heart health. Dr. Valentín Fuster knew if he started with a tainted pool of adults already set in their dietary ways, it would be hard to prove the role diet and lifestyle choices play in good heart health and longevity. Dr. Fuster knew it was essential to catch children at a very early age to teach them a healthier perspective on diet and exercise in order to prove his point. His first study group was in Bogota, Columbia. From here, Dr. Fuster finds other ways of expending his experiment around the globe, in some cases he piggy-backs on other projects. Eldoret, Kenya was one of those circumstances where he utilized the area’s AIDS prevention and education to introduce his study.
The film follows Dr. Fuster and his team as they travel to Kenya, Bogota, Grenada, Madrid and Harlem. Dr. Fuster’s study follows all of these groups of youths through a 15-year period to establish the long-term health benefits of his dietary plan. His ideas are formulated to cut across cultures and traditions.
“The Resilient Heart” explores the keys to preventing heart disease with a vision for worldwide implementation. Through Dr. Fuster’s exploration of the heart at the molecular level, he discovers that the real answer to defeating chronic disease lies in a much larger place: early education and implementation of diets conducive to good heart health. By highlighting scientific contributions ranging from basic science to translational research, the film addresses the improvement of both clinical and surgical care to promote lifestyles that prevent or slow the progression of heart disease. The goal is to eradicate the negative heart and health issues that modern diets have birthed on a world-wide scale.
Ultimately, this film shows how the intersection of science, medicine, research, education and compassion can bring about changes that are not only important, but also replicable by physicians and patients throughout the world. It teaches a lot about this fascinating topic in a very engaging way. “The Resilient Heart” is an insightful and meaningful portrayal of Dr. Fuster’s life, and his mission, which is both scientific and humanitarian. You can now stream it on Amazon to connect with Dr. Fuster’s scientific mission and the passion that drives his search for a healthier world.
