For decades, the mainstream medical explanation for heart attacks and strokes has rested on a simple premise: arteries become blocked with cholesterol-laden plaque, blood flow is cut off, and tissue dies. Treatments have followed this model—statins to lower cholesterol, stents to open blockages, and bypass surgeries to reroute blood flow.
But what if this premise
is flawed? What if blockages are not the primary cause of heart attacks, and
strokes are not simply the inevitable result of clogged pipes? Dr. Tom Cowan, a
physician known for challenging conventional assumptions, argues that the
dominant model is not just incomplete but fundamentally wrong. In a sweeping
critique, he reframes cardiovascular disease as an energetic and metabolic
failure, not a plumbing problem.
The Problem with the Blockage Theory
According to Cowan, the
blockage theory collapses under scrutiny. He points to several observations:
- Other organs don’t have “attacks.” The spleen, liver, and kidneys share the same blood and arteries as the heart, yet no one suffers “spleen attacks” or “kidney attacks.” The heart and brain appear uniquely vulnerable, suggesting the cause lies in the organs themselves rather than in blocked blood vessels.
- Patients with severe blockages
function normally. Cowan
recalls patients told they had 94% arterial blockages yet still managed to
hike mountains. If blood flow were really limited to six percent of
normal, such exertion would be impossible.
- Autopsies don’t match the theory. Studies from the mid-20th century and the long-term work of pathologist Giorgio Baroldi showed that many people who died of heart attacks had no arterial blockage in the affected region. In fact, only about 18% of cases showed pre-existing blockages. In many others, the blockages appeared after the heart attack, likely as debris accumulated from tissue damage
These findings led Cowan
to a stark conclusion: clogged arteries are not the real culprit.
An Alternative Explanation: Energy Failure, Not Plumbing Failure
If blockages don’t
explain heart attacks, what does? Cowan proposes a model rooted in metabolic and energetic
breakdown:
- The role of glycolysis. When the heart can’t efficiently burn fuel, it
shifts into glycolysis—a primitive, less efficient form of energy
production. This creates a buildup of lactic acid, much like the cramp
that forms when a muscle is overexerted. Unlike leg muscles, which can rest
and flush out acid, the heart and brain cannot stop. Acid accumulates,
tissue breaks down, and a heart attack or stroke occurs.
- Why only the heart and brain? Both organs are energy-intensive and operate
continuously. They cannot pause to recover, making them uniquely
vulnerable to this cycle of metabolic collapse.
- Collateral circulation. The body naturally grows new vessels to bypass
obstructions. This adaptation undermines the narrative that blocked
arteries doom heart tissue.
In Cowan’s framework, a
heart attack is not a sudden failure of plumbing but a slow collapse of the
heart’s metabolic resilience.
Plaque as the Body’s Intelligent Strategy
One of Cowan’s most
provocative claims is that plaque is not the enemy. Instead, it is the body’s protective response
to weakened arterial walls:
- Structured water and the gel layer. Within arteries, a gel-like protective layer forms where proteins meet water. This layer, part of what biophysicist Gerald Pollack calls the “fourth phase of water,” helps maintain flow and protect vessels. Sunlight, grounding, positive emotions, and healthy living strengthen this layer. By contrast, toxins, EMFs, poor diet, and stress weaken it.
- Plaque as patchwork. When the gel layer is compromised, the body
applies plaque like cement to shore up fragile spots. While this reduces
flow somewhat, it prevents vessel rupture.
- The danger of medical
intervention. Removing plaque with
stents or surgery, Cowan warns, is like chiseling away cement from a
cracked pipe: the structure may burst. In this view, plaque is an
intelligent adaptation, not a deadly mistake.
High Blood Pressure Reconsidered
Cowan applies the same
logic to hypertension. Instead of treating it as a disease, he sees it as
another adaptive mechanism:
- A weak “pump” (the body’s energetic and
structured-water system) fails to maintain flow.
- To compensate, the body narrows vessels, increasing
pressure to sustain circulation.
- Drugs that dilate vessels undermine this strategy,
leading to fatigue, dizziness, and sexual dysfunction.
High blood pressure,
Cowan argues, is not a pathology to be suppressed but a signal that the
underlying energetic system needs repair.
The Heart Is Not a Pump
Perhaps Cowan’s most
radical claim is that the heart is not a mechanical pump at all. He rejects the
idea of the heart as a “pressure-propulsion device” that pushes blood through
10,000 miles of vessels. Instead, he describes it as:
- A hydraulic ram and vortex
generator. The heart receives blood,
halts it momentarily, and creates a spiral motion. This vortex interacts
with structured water to facilitate circulation.
- Evidence from physics. Blood moves fastest as it enters and exits the
heart but slows and shimmies in the capillaries—behavior inconsistent with
simple mechanical pumping.
- Energetic dimensions. The heart generates a measurable toroidal
electromagnetic field extending six feet around the body. This field,
Cowan suggests, is central to human connection and vitality, and its
collapse precedes heart failure
From this vantage point, the heart is not the driver of circulation but the regulator and spiritual center of life.
Symptoms as Adaptive ResponsesCowan broadens his critique beyond cardiology. He frames many so-called “diseases” as the body’s intelligent responses to stress or injury:
- Fever liquefies structured water to flush toxins.
- Pus and inflammation expel splinters and debris.
- Tumors package toxic waste the body cannot otherwise
eliminate.
By suppressing these
responses with drugs, Cowan argues, modern medicine often interferes with the
body’s natural healing strategies.
Water, Structure, and Health
Central to Cowan’s
theory is structured water—sometimes called “EZ water” or the fourth phase of water. He
contends that health depends on maintaining this gel-like state inside cells
and vessels:
- When structured water is
strong, energy flows, vessels are
protected, and tissues thrive.
- When it collapses, water pools as edema, joints swell, and
circulation falters.
- Sunlight, grounding, minerals,
and positive emotions enhance
structured water, while pollutants and electromagnetic fields degrade it.
Cowan’s practical advice
includes seeking spring water, mineralizing it with natural salts, and
energizing it through vortexing or special devices. He personally drinks little
plain water, relying instead on fermentation drinks like beet kvass, believing
the body produces much of its own “signature water” through metabolism.
The Four True Causes of Illness
In place of conventional
diagnoses, Cowan reduces illness to four fundamental causes:
1.
Injury (physical trauma).
2.
Starvation (lack
of food, water, love, or security).
3.
Poisoning (from
pharmaceuticals, vaccines, toxins, EMFs).
4.
Delusion (false beliefs
that lead to destructive choices).
He sees the
last—delusion—as the most dangerous. Believing in false models, such as
“viruses” or “cholesterol blockages,” leads patients to accept harmful
treatments that worsen health.
Strengths of Cowan’s Perspective
- Provocative critique. Cowan forces readers to reconsider assumptions
and recognize inconsistencies in mainstream explanations.
- Holistic integration. He connects cardiovascular health with diet,
emotions, relationships, and environment.
- Emphasis on adaptation. His reframing of symptoms as intelligent
responses encourages respect for the body’s wisdom.
A Call to Think Differently
Tom Cowan’s ideas are
bold, controversial, and unsettling. By challenging the blockage theory of
heart attacks, the pump theory of the heart, and the disease model of medicine
itself, he invites both practitioners and patients to think differently.
Whether one accepts his
conclusions or not, his critique underscores an important truth: medicine must
remain open to questioning its assumptions. Cardiovascular disease remains the
leading cause of death worldwide. If our dominant paradigm has blind spots—as
history suggests all paradigms eventually do—then asking hard questions is not
just an intellectual exercise but a moral necessity.
