Better Fat, Less Clogged Arteries
Replacing Saturated Fat With Unsaturated Fat in Western Diet Reduces Foamy Monocytes and Atherosclerosis in Male Ldlr-/- Mice.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Plasma MDA (oxidative stress marker) increased in mice eating olive oil and nuts, even though they had 25.6% less plaque.
Most assume that heart-healthy diets reduce oxidative stress. This shows a dissociation: you can have less disease but more molecular damage—suggesting oxidative stress isn’t always the direct cause of plaque.
Practical Takeaways
Replace butter, cheese, and fatty meats with extra-virgin olive oil, walnuts, almonds, and hazelnuts at least 3–4 times per week.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Plasma MDA (oxidative stress marker) increased in mice eating olive oil and nuts, even though they had 25.6% less plaque.
Most assume that heart-healthy diets reduce oxidative stress. This shows a dissociation: you can have less disease but more molecular damage—suggesting oxidative stress isn’t always the direct cause of plaque.
Practical Takeaways
Replace butter, cheese, and fatty meats with extra-virgin olive oil, walnuts, almonds, and hazelnuts at least 3–4 times per week.
Publication
Journal
Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, & Vascular Biology
Year
2019
Authors
Ze-qin Lian, X. Perrard, Xueying Peng, J. Raya, Alfredo A Hernandez, Collin G. Johnson, W. Lagor, H. Pownall, R. Hoogeveen, S. Simon, F. Sacks, C. Ballantyne, Huaizhu Wu
Related Content
Claims (10)
Mice that ate olive oil and nuts instead of butter had less cholesterol and fat in their blood, which might help keep their arteries from getting clogged.
The immune cells in mice eating olive oil and nuts had fewer 'danger signals' on their surface than those eating a fatty Western diet, making them less likely to trigger inflammation.
When immune cells from mice eating olive oil and nuts were tested in a dish, they absorbed less of the bad cholesterol that clogs arteries than cells from mice eating butter.
Immune cells from mice eating olive oil and nuts stuck less to the inside of blood vessels in a lab test, meaning they were less likely to start building artery plaques.
Mice eating olive oil and nuts had more of the good fats (like olive oil and nuts) and less of the bad fats (like butter) in their blood than mice eating a typical fatty diet.