Can special spreads lower bad cholesterol?
Use of phytosterol-fortified foods to improve LDL cholesterol levels: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Phytosterols in bread, biscuits, or cereals reduced LDL-C by 0.14 mmol/L less than those in butter or margarine.
Most consumers assume fortified cereals are just as effective as spreads — this shows the food format dramatically changes effectiveness, which contradicts common marketing claims.
Practical Takeaways
Choose margarine, butter, or spreads fortified with phytosterols over cereals or bread if you want to lower LDL cholesterol.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Phytosterols in bread, biscuits, or cereals reduced LDL-C by 0.14 mmol/L less than those in butter or margarine.
Most consumers assume fortified cereals are just as effective as spreads — this shows the food format dramatically changes effectiveness, which contradicts common marketing claims.
Practical Takeaways
Choose margarine, butter, or spreads fortified with phytosterols over cereals or bread if you want to lower LDL cholesterol.
Publication
Journal
Nutrition, metabolism, and cardiovascular diseases : NMCD
Year
2023
Authors
L. Fontané, J. Pedro-botet, S. Garcia-Ribera, E. Climent, Maria D. Muns, S. Ballesta, Pau Satorra, J. F. Flores-Le Roux, D. Benaiges
Related Content
Claims (4)
Eating foods with plant sterols—like fortified margarine or nuts—helps lower your 'bad' cholesterol because they block your gut from absorbing too much cholesterol, so your liver makes more receptors to clean up the leftover cholesterol in your blood.
Eating foods with added plant sterols—like certain margarines or orange juices—can lower your 'bad' cholesterol by about 0.55 mmol/L, which might help reduce your risk of heart disease.
The more phytosterols you eat each day—like in fortified margarine or orange juice—the more your 'bad' cholesterol (LDL) goes down, and this pattern keeps happening as you eat more.
If you eat phytosterols in bread or cereal, they don’t lower your bad cholesterol as much as when you eat them in butter or margarine—by about 0.14 mmol/L less.