Even though people in the past ate more butter and meat, their bad cholesterol was probably higher than ours today—yet they didn’t get heart disease.

Scientific Claim

Historical human populations consuming diets high in saturated fat from animal sources likely had higher circulating LDL cholesterol levels than contemporary populations, yet exhibited negligible rates of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.

Original Statement

“Seed oils have actually been shown to lower LDL levels. So, it's very likely that these people from 1909 and prior who ate primarily saturated fat from animal products actually had higher LDL levels than the average person does nowadays.”

From video:Why Are These Carnivores Getting HEART DISEASE?byMax German

Context Details

Domain

cardiology

Population

human

Subject

pre-1909 human populations consuming animal-based saturated fats

Action

had

Target

higher LDL cholesterol levels than modern populations with lower CVD incidence

Intervention Details

Type: diet

Duration: pre-1909

Evidence from Studies

Supporting (0)

No supporting evidence found

Contradicting (2)

Replacing Saturated Fat With Unsaturated Fat in Western Diet Reduces Foamy Monocytes and Atherosclerosis in Male Ldlr-/- Mice.

Cohort Study

Animal

2020 Jan

This study found that eating more butter and less olive oil made mice more likely to get clogged arteries — so it doesn't support the idea that eating lots of saturated fat is harmless even if cholesterol is high.

Dietary polyunsaturated fat modifies low-density lipoproteins and reduces atherosclerosis of nonhuman primates with high and low diet responsiveness.

Cohort Study

Animal

1995 Aug

This study found that monkeys eating lots of saturated fat got more bad cholesterol and more artery clogging than those eating healthier fats, so it doesn't support the idea that high saturated fat diets never caused heart disease in ancient humans.

Similar Assertions

Prior to the widespread consumption of industrial seed oils and refined carbohydrates in the early 20th century, clinical cases of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease were exceptionally rare in human populations consuming diets high in animal fats.

83%

The emergence of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease as a leading cause of death occurred only in the 20th century, despite consistent human consumption of animal-based diets throughout evolutionary history.

74%

Eating less saturated fat, like from butter and red meat, tends to go along with lower levels of 'bad' cholesterol in the blood.

74%

Eating more cholesterol from foods like eggs or liver is linked to higher bad cholesterol levels in people eating strictly controlled diets.

71%

Eating more saturated fat — like in butter or red meat — doesn't appear to raise the chance of dying from heart disease, based on long-term studies of nearly 90,000 people.

71%