The Claim

In overweight postmenopausal women, a diet high in cheese increases fecal fat excretion by 1.8 grams per day compared to a high-carbohydrate diet and by 0.9 grams per day compared to a high-meat diet, indicating incomplete fat absorption.

Source: Diets with high-fat cheese, high-fat meat, or carbohydrate on cardiovascular risk markers in overweight postmenopausal women: a randomized crossover trial.

What the research says

Supports is higher

Support is ahead, but a single strong opposing study can change this.

Supports
60score
Challenges
0score

These are independent scores, not a percentage. Higher-grade studies count more, so a single strong opposing study can outweigh several weaker ones.

Quantitative
1 study reviewed
In plain English

In overweight women after menopause, eating a lot of cheese results in 1.8 more grams of fat in the stool per day than eating a high-carbohydrate diet and 0.9 more grams than eating a high-meat diet, showing that not all dietary fat is absorbed.

See the scientific wording

In overweight postmenopausal women, consuming a diet high in cheese increases fecal fat excretion by 1.8 g/day compared to a high-carbohydrate diet and by 0.9 g/day compared to a high-meat diet, indicating incomplete fat absorption.

Why this might work

When cheese is eaten, the calcium and fat in it travel to the lower gut, where calcium binds to the fat and turns it into a solid soap that the body cannot absorb. This soap passes out in the stool, so more fat leaves the body instead of being used for energy.

Verified mechanismbased on 1 study

What the research says

1 study
  1. Study: Diets with high-fat cheese, high-fat meat, or carbohydrate on cardiovascular risk markers in overweight postmenopausal women: a randomized crossover trial.

    When overweight postmenopausal women ate a lot of cheese, more fat showed up in their poop than when they ate carbs or meat, meaning their bodies didn’t absorb all the fat from the cheese.

Score breakdown, mechanism chain, raw evidence, ideal studies needed & 1 supporting studies

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