Why some people don't benefit from cutting butter
Does variation in serum LDL-cholesterol response to dietary fatty acids help explain the controversy over fat quality and cardiovascular disease risk?
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
The lack of consistent link between saturated fat and heart disease in meta-analyses may not be due to bad science—but because half the population doesn’t respond to the dietary change at all.
Most people assume if a meta-analysis finds no link, the food must be harmless. This study flips that: the food might still be harmful, but only to people whose bodies react to it.
Practical Takeaways
If you’ve changed your diet to cut saturated fat but your LDL didn’t drop, don’t assume the diet doesn’t work—ask your doctor about personalized lipid response testing.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
The lack of consistent link between saturated fat and heart disease in meta-analyses may not be due to bad science—but because half the population doesn’t respond to the dietary change at all.
Most people assume if a meta-analysis finds no link, the food must be harmless. This study flips that: the food might still be harmful, but only to people whose bodies react to it.
Practical Takeaways
If you’ve changed your diet to cut saturated fat but your LDL didn’t drop, don’t assume the diet doesn’t work—ask your doctor about personalized lipid response testing.
Publication
Journal
Atherosclerosis
Year
2021
Authors
B. Griffin, R. Mensink, J. Lovegrove
Related Content
Claims (7)
Eating more saturated fats, like those in butter and red meat, raises the bad cholesterol in your blood, which can build up as gunk in your arteries over time.
Eating more saturated fats, like those in butter and red meat, raises the bad cholesterol in your blood, which can build up as gunk in your arteries over time.
If swapping butter for olive oil doesn’t lower your ‘bad’ cholesterol much, then maybe this common diet advice won’t help you either.
If scientists find a simple test that shows who will lower their 'bad' cholesterol a lot when they eat more saturated fat, doctors could give personalized diet advice to help people keep their hearts healthy.
If scientists could find a simple test—like a blood check—that tells who’s likely to have bad cholesterol rise when they eat fatty foods, then doctors could give personalized diet advice to help protect hearts.