If you're at risk for metabolic problems, swapping butter or fatty meats for olive oil or avocados doesn't drop your 'good' cholesterol as much as swapping them for bread or sugar.

If you swap out butter or fatty meats for bread or pasta, your bad cholesterol goes up more than if you swap them out for olive oil or avocado — and the difference is pretty small, but it’s there.

If you swap out butter and fatty meats for foods like olive oil and avocados instead of swapping them for bread or sugar, your blood fat levels drop more — and that’s especially true if you already have health risks like high cholesterol or insulin resistance.

If you swap out butter and fatty meats for bread, pasta, or olive oil, your blood might show higher levels of a type of fat particle called lipoprotein(a), which could be a concern for heart health — carbs raise it more than olive oil.

Switching from foods high in saturated fats (like butter) to foods high in refined carbs (like white bread or sugar) doesn’t change your good-to-bad cholesterol balance or lower your risk of heart disease.

If swapping butter for olive oil doesn’t lower your ‘bad’ cholesterol much, then maybe this common diet advice won’t help you either.