A Review of Studies Listed on the Forum (to 2002) re - Fat, Diet, and Cholesterol

[Voyajer]

A Review of Diet, Fat, and Cholesterol Research: 25 Points.

Introduction:
Those who have heart disease generally but not always have high blood cholesterol. It is therefore theorized that high cholesterol causes heart disease. This is called a correlation. A correlation is an observation where when something increases, something else increases (a positive correlation) or when something increases, something else decreases (a negative correlation).
An example of how correlations don't necessarily prove anything is: In the last 100 years there has been an increase in global warming. And in the last 100 years women's shoe sizes have gotten bigger.
Does this show that global warming causes women's feet to get bigger?
So does high cholesterol cause heart disease? Just because many people have high cholesterol that also have heart disease doesn't prove this. Heart disease could cause high cholesterol. Or else high cholesterol could be a normal state for some people and heart disease could be caused by some other factor that causes cholesterol to clog the arteries. This is not a speculative statement as there exist at least two theories of heart disease that may make cholesterol an insignificant factor in heart disease: the homocysteine theory and the C-reactive protein theory.(1, 2)
1. Total serum cholesterol has proven not to be a strong determinant of cardiovascular risk.(3, 4)
2. HDL ratio has been proven to be a better standard to assess cardiovascular risk. What can you eat to raise HDL? Only one thing: fat.(5) All fats raise HDL but saturated fats raise HDL the most.(6)
3. The saturated fats except stearic acid do raise total serum cholesterol levels as shown in controlled and epidemiological studies.(7, 8, 9, 19, 33) This is insignificant if total cholesterol has little to do with heart disease.
4. If you have high cholesterol in most cases there is no need to avoid red meat. This is because only 30% of fats in red meat are composed of the saturated fats that raise cholesterol. What are the other 70%? Stearic acid which has a neutral effect on cholesterol comprises about 15%.(10, 19) About 50% is monounsaturated fat (like olive oil) which does not raise total cholesterol levels but raises HDL the good cholesterol.(25) And the remainder is polyunsaturated fat which lowers total cholesterol levels while raising HDL.(11) One study shows that lean red meat is equal to eating lean white meat.(12) So how do they test whether saturated fats raise cholesterol if red meat has so much of the other fats? One study used tropical oils.(9) Others have used liquid cholesterol products. When a natural diet is used, calculations are made according to percentage of each fat in each product, then elevation of cholesterol is apportioned accordingly.
5. It is beneficial that some saturated fats can raise cholesterol because if blood cholesterol gets too low, people get depressed, commit suicide or die of cancer.(13, 14, 15)
6. Studies are inconsistent regarding saturated fat. In one epidemiological study the more saturated fat one ate, the lower their serum cholesterol was.(16) In another study, saturated fats in the diet were high, but serum cholesterol levels were low.(17) Because the results of studies lack consistancy as regards to saturated fats in the diet, there must be some attenuating affect of saturated fats that negates the rise in total serum cholesterol.(19)
7. It is over-simplifying to name one villain, "saturated fat", as the culprit in heart disease especially when the results of studies on saturated fat are contradictory, inconclusive, and ambiguous at best. There are other factors that influence heart disease including but not limited to high glycemic carbohydrate intake, homocysteine, C-reactive protein, oxidative stress, smoking, and exercise to name just a few.(45) A meta-analysis of research to date states, "Despite decades of effort and many thousands of people randomized, there is still only limited and inconclusive evidence of the effects of modification of total, saturated, monounsaturated, or polyunsaturated fats on cardiovascular morbidity and mortality."(4)
8. In most people, however, if saturated fat raises their blood cholesterol it is probably not an important risk factor for heart disease as HDL is raised along with total cholesterol. It is also important to note that although LDL is raised too, it has been shown that there are two different types of LDL and saturated fats raise the good kind of LDL.(18) Also avoiding saturated fat may not be an important deterrent of heart disease because saturated fat is never alone in natural animal products but accompanied by monounsaturated (olive-oil-type-fats). Therefore, the combination of fats in animal products keep cholesterol levels where they should be which accounts for them not being a significant risk factor.(19)
9. Fat intake in the diet should not be decreased.(20, 19)
10. Protein with 80% from animal products which includes saturated fats lessens risk of heart disease.(21, 22)
11. Lowering saturated fats and cholesterol in the diet lowers HDL and decreases secretion of the good APO A-1 cholesterol.(23, 24)
12. Replacing saturated fats in the diet with carbohydrates is bad for your serum cholesterol and bad in general for your heart disease risk and mortality.(25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30) Carbohydrates are not an essential nutrient in the diet.(31) Carbohydrates increase C-reactive protein thereby increasing risk of heart disease.(32)
13. Some nations that eat a high amount of fats and animal products [Crete(33, 34, 3) and Spain(35)] have less heart disease than nations who eat a little fat. Total fat in the diet is not an indicator.(3, 20)
14. Dietary cholesterol has little impact on total blood cholesterol.(36) Dietary cholesterol does not increase risk for heart disease or stroke.(37) Two-thirds of the population show no change in serum cholesterol levels from intake of cholesterol.(38) Dietary cholesterol accounts for a minimum amount of cholesterol produced by the body. The liver produces most cholesterol in the body. Eating cholesterol down-regulates your body's production of cholesterol.(39)
15. Many people with low cholesterol levels die of heart disease. One article stated: "Indeed, high cholesterol levels alone could only predict at most half of all heart attacks."(2)
16. Many people with exceptionally elevated levels of cholesterol never have a heart attack.(2)
17. Researchers say if a person, group of people or nation has higher serum cholesterol that they are at greater risk for heart disease. Croatia and Japan have high cholesterol but low heart disease.(40, 41) But considering that many people have high cholesterol and do not have heart disease and many with low cholesterol do have heart disease, then this may not be a valid marker of risk.(2)
18. Once the rise in HDL is factored in, studies have shown that saturated fats are less of a risk factor for heart disease than carbohydrate.(19, 42, 43)
19. A lot of people with heart disease have high triglycerides. High triglycerides are a risk factor for heart disease.(44, 45) Eating fat, any kind of fat, lowers triglycerides.(19, 46)
20. The American Heart Association has recommended that people with low HDL go on a diet high in unsaturated fat rather than replacing fat with carbohydrate.(47)
21. Saturated fats do not increase risk of diabetes.(48) The American Diabetes Association has recently recommended a high monounsaturated fat diet to those with diabetes.(49)
22. The American Heart Association says high glycemic carbohydrates are linked to heart disease.(50)
23. The American Heart Association says Americans should eat a 30% fat diet with not less than 15% fat.(47) The American Heart Association says diets less than 15% fat can be dangerous.(51) Ironically, Americans do not know this so they try to eat 0% fat and are ruining their health. However, these guidelines limiting fat intake to 30% do not appear to have support of the studies shown here.
24. Fats are not the cause of obesity.(52, 53) Studies have shown that diets high in fat and low in carbohydrate cause a person to lose weight.(54) High fat foods like nuts decrease risk of heart disease.(55)
25. Another important consideration is what our bodies were meant to eat. For the last 2.5 million years man has evolved as a hunter/gatherer with emphasis on carnivore-hunter. In the past hundred years man may have evolved a higher consciousness and may want to be vegetarian, but our bodies are genetically still 99.8% Paleolithic man and as such require meat. The leading experts on Paleolithic Nutrition say that man has eaten mostly animal products (likely over 50%) for most of his existence on earth.(56, 57, 58) Another important factor in evolution was man's development of a larger brain vs. body size. The only way this could have happened was with a nutrient dense source. The accepted explanation is "The Expensive Tissue Hypothesis" which states that meat and fat were that source.(59) These studies show that during man's entire history on earth fat intake would have exceeded both carbohydrate and protein intake. Grains are a foreign product in human evolution. For 99.9% of man's existence on earth, man did not eat grain. In fact, man is the only primate to eat cereal grains.(60) Therefore, trying to force our bodies to accept some form of higher consciousness by trying not to eat animal products would be a foreign diet to our system causing an unbalance and malnutrition in ways that science cannot even predict. Imbalance in the human body is the cause of all disease. When the body is perfectly balanced it is disease-free. Imbalance causes cancer, heart disease, autoimmune disease, and death. In other words, man's so-called recent "higher consciousness" is killing him.

Therefore, fat in the diet has never been the problem. Avoiding fat is the problem.


References
1 McCully KS, Wilson RB. Homocysteine theory of arteriosclerosis. Atherosclerosis 1975 Sep-Oct;22(2):215-27.
2 Gary Taubes, Does Inflammation Cut to the Heart of the Matter? Science Magazine Volume 296, Number 5566, Issue of 12 Apr 2002, pp. 242-245.
3 Hu FB, Willett WC, Types of dietary fat and risk of coronary heart disease: a critical review. J Am Coll Nutr 2001 Feb;20(1):5-19.
4 Lee Hooper et al, Dietary fat intake and prevention of cardiovascular disease: systematic review. BMJ 2001;322:757-763 (31 March).
5 Niacin also raises HDL. Tavvintharan S, Kashyap ML, The benefits of niacin in atherosclerosis. Curr Atheroscler Rep 2001 Jan; 3(1):74-82.
6 Ridker PM, Stampfer MJ, Rifai N. Novel risk factors for systemic atherosclerosis: a comparison of C-reactive protein, fibrinogen, homocysteine, lipoprotein(a), and standard cholesterol screening as predictors of peripheral arterial disease. JAMA 2001 May 16;285(19):2481-5.
7 Pai T, Yeh YY Stearic acid unlike shorter-chain saturated fatty acids is poorly utilized for triacylglycerol synthesis and beta-oxidation in cultured rat hepatocytes. Lipids 1996 Feb;31(2):159-64.
8 Kelly FD, Sinclair AJ, Mann NJ, Turner AH, Raffin FL, Blandford MV, Pike MJ. Short-term diets enriched in stearic or palmitic acids do not alter plasma lipids, platelet aggregation or platelet activation status. Eur J Clin Nutr 2002 Jun;56(6):490-9.
9 Francisco J. Sánchez-Muniz*, Mari Cruz Merinero*, Sonia Rodríguez-Gil*, Jose M Ordovas, Sofía Ródenas and Carmen Cuesta** Dietary Fat Saturation Affects Apolipoprotein AII Levels and HDL Composition in Postmenopausal Women The American Society for Nutritional Sciences. J. Nutr. 132:50-54, 2002.
10 Pai T, Yeh YY. Stearic acid unlike shorter-chain saturated fatty acids is poorly utilized for triacylglycerol synthesis and beta-oxidation in cultured rat hepatocytes. Lipids 1996 Feb;31(2):159-64.
11 Gary Taubes The Soft Science of Dietary Fat Science. Volume 291, Number 5513, Issue of 30 Mar 2001, pp. 2536-2545.
12 Davidson MH, Hunninghake D, Maki KC, Kwiterovich PO Jr, Kafonek S Comparison of the effects of lean red meat vs lean white meat on serum lipid levels among free-living persons with hypercholesterolemia: a long-term, randomized clinical trial. Arch Intern Med 1999 Jun 28;159(12):1331-8..
13 Kreger BE, Anderson KM, Schatzkin A, Splansky GL.Cancer Serum cholesterol level, body mass index, and the risk of colon cancer. The Framingham Study. 1992 Sep 1;70(5):1038-43
14 Hawthon K, Cowen P, Owens D, Bond A, Elliott M. Low serum cholesterol and suicide. Br J Psychiatry 1993 Jun;162:818-25.
15 Ellison LF, Morrison HI Low serum cholesterol concentration and risk of suicide. Epidemiology 2001 Mar;12(2):168-72.
16 Castelli, William, Concerning the Possibility of a Nut... Archives of Internal Med, Jul 1992, 152:(7):1371-2.
17 Posner BM, Cupples LA, Franz MM, Gagnon DR. Diet and heart disease risk factors in adult American men and women: the Framingham Offspring-Spouse nutrition studies. Int J Epidemiol 1993 Dec;22(6):1014-25.
18 Dreon DM, Fernstrom HA, Campos H, Blanche P, Williams PT, Krauss RM.Change in dietary saturated fat intake is correlated with change in mass of large low-density-lipoprotein particles in men. Am J Clin Nutr 1998 May;67(5):828-36.
19 Mensink et al. Effect of dietary fatty acids on serum lipids and lipoproteins. A meta-analysis of 27 trials. Arterioscler Thromb 1992; 12: 911-9.
20 L.A. Corr, M.F. Oliver The low fat/low cholesterol diet is ineffective--European Heart Journal European Heart Journal (1997) 18, 18-22.
21 Frank B Hu, Meir J Stampfer, JoAnn E Manson, Eric Rimm, Graham A Colditz, Frank E Speizer, Charles H Hennekens and Walter C Willett Dietary protein and risk of ischemic heart disease in women American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 70, No. 2, 221-227, August 1999.
22 Frank B Hu and Walter Willett. Reply to TC Campbell. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 71, No. 3, 850-851, March 2000.
23 Velez-Carrasco W, Lichtenstein AH, Welty FK, Li Z, Lamon-Fava S, Dolnikowski GG, Schaefer EJ. Dietary restriction of saturated fat and cholesterol decreases HDL ApoA-I secretion. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol 1999 Apr;19(4):918-24.
24 Brinton E, S. E., Jan Breslow (1990). "A Low-fat Diet Decreases High Density Lipoprotein (HDL) Cholesterol Levels by Decreasing HDL Apolipoprotein Transport Rates." J Clin. Invest. 85(January): 144-151.
25 Kris-Etherton PM. AHA Science Advisory: monounsaturated fatty acids and risk of cardiovascular disease. American Heart Association Nutrition Committee. Circulation.. 1999;100:1253-1258
26 Simin Liu, JoAnn E Manson, Frank B Hu and Walter C Willett. Reply to DL Katz. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 73, No. 1, 132-133, January 2001.
27 Liu S, Willett WC, Stampfer MJ, et al. A prospective study of dietary glycemic load, carbohydrate intake, and risk of coronary heart disease in US women. Am J Clin Nutr 2000;71:1455-61.
28 Simin Liu, JoAnn E Manson, Frank B Hu and Walter C Willett, Reply to BO Schneeman, American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 73, No. 1, 130-131, January 2001.
29 J Jeppesen, P Schaaf, C Jones, MY Zhou, YD Chen and GM Reaven Effects of low-fat, high-carbohydrate diets on risk factors for ischemic heart disease in postmenopausal women. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol 65, 1027-1033, 1997.
30 MB Katan, Effect of low-fat diets on plasma high-density lipoprotein concentrations. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol 67, 573S-576S, 1998.
31 Eric C Westman Is dietary carbohydrate essential for human nutrition? American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 75, No. 5, 951-953, May 2002.
32 Simin Liu, JoAnn E Manson, Julie E Buring, Meir J Stampfer, Walter C Willett and Paul M Ridker, Relation between a diet with a high glycemic load and plasma concentrations of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein in middle-aged women. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 75, No. 3, 492-498, March 2002.
33 Kromhout et al. Dietary saturated and trans fatty acids and cholesterol and 25-year mortality from coronary heart disease: the Seven Countries Study.Prev Med 1995; 24: 308-15
34 Kafatos A, Diacatou A, Voukiklaris G, Nikolakakis N, Vlachonikolis J, Kounali D, Mamalakis G, Dontas AS. Heart disease risk-factor status and dietary changes in the Cretan population over the past 30 y: the Seven Countries Study. Am J Clin Nutr 1997 Jun;65(6):1882-6.
35 L Serra-Majem, L Ribas, R Tresserras, J Ngo and L Salleras. How could changes in diet explain changes in coronary heart disease mortality in Spain? The Spanish paradox American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol 61, 1351S-1359S, 1995.
36 Boucher P, de Lorgeril M, Salen P, Crozier P, Delaye J, Vallon JJ, Geyssant A, Dante R.
Effect of dietary cholesterol on low density lipoprotein-receptor, 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase, and low density lipoprotein receptor-related protein mRNA expression in healthy humans. Lipids 1998 Dec;33(12):1177-86.
37 Hu FB, Stampfer MJ, Rimm EB, Manson JE, Ascherio A, Colditz GA, Rosner BA, Spiegelman D, Speizer FE, Sacks FM, Hennekens CH, Willett WC. A prospective study of egg consumption and risk of cardiovascular disease in men and women. JAMA 1999 Apr 21;281(15):1387-94.
38 McNamara DJ. Dietary cholesterol and the optimal diet for reducing risk of atherosclerosis. Can J Cardiol 1995 Oct;11 Suppl G:123G-126G.
39 Jones PJ, Pappu AS, Hatcher L, Li ZC, Illingworth DR, Connor WE, Dietary cholesterol feeding suppresses human cholesterol synthesis measured by deuterium incorporation and urinary mevalonic acid levels. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol 1996 Oct;16(10):1222-8.
40 Menotti A, Keys A, Blackburn H, Kromhout D, Karvonen M, Nissinen A, Pekkanen J, Punsar S, Fidanza F, Giampaoli S, Seccareccia F, Buzina R, Mohacek I, Nedeljkovic S, Aravanis C, Dontas A, Toshima H, Lanti M. Comparison of multivariate predictive power of major risk factors for coronary heart diseases in different countries: results from eight nations of the Seven Countries Study, 25-year follow-up. J Cardiovasc Risk 1996 Feb;3(1):69-75.
41 Verschuren WM, Jacobs DR, Bloemberg BP, Kromhout D, Menotti A, Aravanis C, Blackburn H, Buzina R, Dontas AS, Fidanza F, et al. Serum total cholesterol and long-term coronary heart disease mortality in different cultures. Twenty-five-year follow-up of the seven countries study. JAMA 1995 Jul 12;274(2):131-6.
42 Walter C Willett, Reply to AE Hardman American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 72, No. 4, 1061-1062, October 2000.
43 Walter C. Willett Will High-Carbohydrate/Low-Fat Diets Reduce the Risk of Coronary Heart Disease? Proc Soc Exp Biol Med 2000 Dec; 225(3):187-90.
44 Lapidus L, Bengtsson C, Lindquist O, Sigurdsson JA, Rybo E. Triglycerides--main lipid risk factor for cardiovascular disease in women? Acta Med Scand 1985;217(5):481-9.
45 Harjai KJ. Potential new cardiovascular risk factors : left ventricular hypertrophy, homocysteine, lipoprotein(a), triglycerides , oxidative stress, and fibrinogen. Ann Intern Med 1999 Sep 7;131(5):376-86.
46 Walter Willett, Meir Stampfer, Nain-Feng Chu, Donna Spiegelman, Michelle Holmes and Eric Rimm Assessment of Questionnaire Validity for Measuring Total Fat Intake using Plasma Lipid Levels as Criteria American Journal of Epidemiology Vol. 154, No. 12 : 1107-1112
2001.
47 Ronald M. Krauss, et al, AHA Dietary Guidelines : Revision 2000: A Statement for Healthcare Professionals From the Nutrition Committee of the American Heart Association Circulation 0: 2296-2311.
48 Salmeron J, Hu FB, Manson JE, Stampfer MJ, Colditz GA, Rimm EB, Willett WC. Dietary fat intake and risk of type 2 diabetes in women.Am J Clin Nutr 2001 Jun;73(6):1019-26.
49 Marion J. Franz, et al. Evidence-Based Nutrition Principles and Recommendations for the Treatment and Prevention of Diabetes and Related Complications Diabetes Care 25:148-198, 2002.
50 Barbara V. Howard, PhD; Judith Wylie-Rosett, RD, EdD AHA Scientific Statement Sugar and Cardiovascular Disease A Statement for Healthcare Professionals From the Committee on Nutrition of the Council on Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Metabolism of the American Heart Association Circulation. 2002;106:523
51 Very low fat diets may harm some people. BMJ 1998 Feb 21;316(7131):573
52 Willett WC Dietary fat plays a major role in obesity: No. Obesity Review 2002 May;3(2):59-68.
53 Walter C Willett Is dietary fat a major determinant of body fat? Am J Clin Nutr 1998;67(suppl):556S-62S. 1998
54 Westman EC, Yancy WS, Edman JS, Tomlin KF, Perkins CE, Effect of 6-month adherence to a very low carbohydrate diet program. Am J Med 2002 Jul;113(1):30-6.
55 Hu FB, Stampfer MJ, Manson JE, Rimm EB, Colditz GA, Rosner BA, Speizer FE, Hennekens CH, Willett WC. Frequent nut consumption and risk of coronary heart disease in women: prospective cohort study. BMJ 1998 Nov 14;317(7169):1341-5.
56 Loren Cordain, Janette Brand Miller, S Boyd Eaton, Neil Mann, Susanne HA Holt and John D Speth Plant-animal subsistence ratios and macronutrient energy estimations in worldwide hunter-gatherer diets. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 71, No. 3, 682-692, March 2000.
57 Cordain L, Eaton SB, Miller JB, Mann N, Hill K. The paradoxical nature of hunter-gatherer diets: meat-based, yet non-atherogenic. Eur J Clin Nutr 2002 Mar;56 Suppl 1:S42-52.
58 Loren Cordain, Janette Brand Miller, S Boyd Eaton and Neil Mann Macronutrient estimations in hunter-gatherer diets American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 72, No. 6, 1589-1590, December 2000.
59 Aiello LC, Wheeler PE. The expensive-tissue hypothesis. Current Anthropol 36:199-221, 1995.
60 S. Boyd Eaton, MD, Stanley B. Eaton III Evolution, Diet and Health , poster session, the Williamsburg-ICAES conference 1998.

[DebPenny]

Voyager, that was great! Another one to get my dad to read.

;-Deb

[Voyajer]

Thanks Deb,

I realize I forgot two points:

26. There is one fat that should be avoided: trans fat (partially hydrogenated oil). Replacement of just 2% of energy from trans unsaturated fats with unsaturated fats would result in a 53% risk reduction for coronary heart disease. The U.S. government Board of Food and Nutrition recently issued a report on trans fat saying "that dietary trans fatty acids are more deleterious with respect to coronary heart disease than saturated fatty acids."(51) This report suggests "a Tolerable Upper Intake Level (UL) of zero."(52)
27. Although the government's Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends that Americans cut their daily saturated fat intake to 10% and certain researchers recommend replacing saturated fat with polyunsaturated fat, there appear to be valid reasons to fear replacing saturated fats with polyunsaturated fats.(53) When the arterial plaque of deceased humans was examined it contained polyunsaturated fats.(54) Oxidation of fats whether it occurs in the body or whether oxidized fat is ingested is known to lead to clogging of the arteries. The fat that oxidizes the easiest is polyunsaturated fat.(55) Saturated fats are the most stable.(56)

References:
51 Ascherio A, Hennekens CH, Buring JE, Master C, Stampfer MJ, Willett WC. 1994. Trans-fatty acids intake and risk of myocardial infarction. Circulation 89:94-101.
52 Letter Report on Dietary Reference Intakes for Trans Fatty Acids; Institute of Medicine in the National Academy of Sciences, July 10, 2002. http://www.iom.edu/iom/iomhome.nsf/Pages/FNB+Reports.
53 Dietary Guidelines for Americans http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/dga/dga95/lowfat.html
54 Felton CV et al: Dietary polyunsaturated fatty acids and composition of human aortic plaques. Lancet 1994; 344:1195-1196.
55 Nippon Rinsho, Modified low-density lipoprotein. 1994 Dec; 52(12):3090-5.
56 Bourre JM, Piciotti M. Alterations in eighteen-carbon saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acid peroxisomal oxidation in mouse brain during development and aging. Biochem Mol Biol Int 1997 Mar;41(3):461-8.

[Voyajer]

I have re-listed here all the above references and where a discussion or thread exists about them on the forums:


References
1 McCully KS, Wilson RB. Homocysteine theory of arteriosclerosis. Atherosclerosis 1975 Sep-Oct;22(2):215-27.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=54420
http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=52527

2 Gary Taubes, Does Inflammation Cut to the Heart of the Matter? Science Magazine Volume 296, Number 5566, Issue of 12 Apr 2002, pp. 242-245.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=53891

3 Hu FB, Willett WC, Types of dietary fat and risk of coronary heart disease: a critical review. J Am Coll Nutr 2001 Feb;20(1):5-19.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=52776

4 Lee Hooper et al, Dietary fat intake and prevention of cardiovascular disease: systematic review. BMJ 2001;322:757-763 (31 March).

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=53549

5 Niacin also raises HDL. Tavvintharan S, Kashyap ML, The benefits of niacin in atherosclerosis. Curr Atheroscler Rep 2001 Jan; 3(1):74-82.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=54396

6 Ridker PM, Stampfer MJ, Rifai N. Novel risk factors for systemic atherosclerosis: a comparison of C-reactive protein, fibrinogen, homocysteine, lipoprotein(a), and standard cholesterol screening as predictors of peripheral arterial disease. JAMA 2001 May 16;285(19):2481-5.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=53891

7 Pai T, Yeh YY Stearic acid unlike shorter-chain saturated fatty acids is poorly utilized for triacylglycerol synthesis and beta-oxidation in cultured rat hepatocytes. Lipids 1996 Feb;31(2):159-64.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=53606

8 Kelly FD, Sinclair AJ, Mann NJ, Turner AH, Raffin FL, Blandford MV, Pike MJ. Short-term diets enriched in stearic or palmitic acids do not alter plasma lipids, platelet aggregation or platelet activation status. Eur J Clin Nutr 2002 Jun;56(6):490-9.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=53606

9 Francisco J. Sánchez-Muniz*, Mari Cruz Merinero*, Sonia Rodríguez-Gil*, Jose M Ordovas, Sofía Ródenas and Carmen Cuesta** Dietary Fat Saturation Affects Apolipoprotein AII Levels and HDL Composition in Postmenopausal Women The American Society for Nutritional Sciences. J. Nutr. 132:50-54, 2002.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=52960

10 Pai T, Yeh YY. Stearic acid unlike shorter-chain saturated fatty acids is poorly utilized for triacylglycerol synthesis and beta-oxidation in cultured rat hepatocytes. Lipids 1996 Feb;31(2):159-64.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=53606

11 Gary Taubes The Soft Science of Dietary Fat Science. Volume 291, Number 5513, Issue of 30 Mar 2001, pp. 2536-2545.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=40182

12 Davidson MH, Hunninghake D, Maki KC, Kwiterovich PO Jr, Kafonek S Comparison of the effects of lean red meat vs lean white meat on serum lipid levels among free-living persons with hypercholesterolemia: a long-term, randomized clinical trial. Arch Intern Med 1999 Jun 28;159(12):1331-8..

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=53602

13 Kreger BE, Anderson KM, Schatzkin A, Splansky GL.Cancer Serum cholesterol level, body mass index, and the risk of colon cancer. The Framingham Study. 1992 Sep 1;70(5):1038-43

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=52741

14 Hawthon K, Cowen P, Owens D, Bond A, Elliott M. Low serum cholesterol and suicide. Br J Psychiatry 1993 Jun;162:818-25.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=52741

15 Ellison LF, Morrison HI Low serum cholesterol concentration and risk of suicide. Epidemiology 2001 Mar;12(2):168-72.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=52741

16 Castelli, William, Concerning the Possibility of a Nut... Archives of Internal Med, Jul 1992, 152:(7):1371-2.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=52783

17 Posner BM, Cupples LA, Franz MM, Gagnon DR. Diet and heart disease risk factors in adult American men and women: the Framingham Offspring-Spouse nutrition studies. Int J Epidemiol 1993 Dec;22(6):1014-25.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=52783

18 Dreon DM, Fernstrom HA, Campos H, Blanche P, Williams PT, Krauss RM.Change in dietary saturated fat intake is correlated with change in mass of large low-density-lipoprotein particles in men. Am J Clin Nutr 1998 May;67(5):828-36.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=53606

19 Mensink et al. Effect of dietary fatty acids on serum lipids and lipoproteins. A meta-analysis of 27 trials. Arterioscler Thromb 1992; 12: 911-9.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=52960

20 L.A. Corr, M.F. Oliver The low fat/low cholesterol diet is ineffective--European Heart Journal European Heart Journal (1997) 18, 18-22.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=53847

21 Frank B Hu, Meir J Stampfer, JoAnn E Manson, Eric Rimm, Graham A Colditz, Frank E Speizer, Charles H Hennekens and Walter C Willett Dietary protein and risk of ischemic heart disease in women American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 70, No. 2, 221-227, August 1999.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=49822
http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=56484

22 Frank B Hu and Walter Willett. Reply to TC Campbell. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 71, No. 3, 850-851, March 2000.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=49822

23 Velez-Carrasco W, Lichtenstein AH, Welty FK, Li Z, Lamon-Fava S, Dolnikowski GG, Schaefer EJ. Dietary restriction of saturated fat and cholesterol decreases HDL ApoA-I secretion. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol 1999 Apr;19(4):918-24.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=52776
http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=48665

24 Brinton E, S. E., Jan Breslow (1990). "A Low-fat Diet Decreases High Density Lipoprotein (HDL) Cholesterol Levels by Decreasing HDL Apolipoprotein Transport Rates." J Clin. Invest. 85(January): 144-151.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=52776
http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=48665

25 Kris-Etherton PM. AHA Science Advisory: monounsaturated fatty acids and risk of cardiovascular disease. American Heart Association Nutrition Committee. Circulation.. 1999;100:1253-1258

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=47015

26 Simin Liu, JoAnn E Manson, Frank B Hu and Walter C Willett. Reply to DL Katz. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 73, No. 1, 132-133, January 2001.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=49822

27 Liu S, Willett WC, Stampfer MJ, et al. A prospective study of dietary glycemic load, carbohydrate intake, and risk of coronary heart disease in US women. Am J Clin Nutr 2000;71:1455-61.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=49822

28 Simin Liu, JoAnn E Manson, Frank B Hu and Walter C Willett, Reply to BO Schneeman, American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 73, No. 1, 130-131, January 2001.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=49822

29 J Jeppesen, P Schaaf, C Jones, MY Zhou, YD Chen and GM Reaven Effects of low-fat, high-carbohydrate diets on risk factors for ischemic heart disease in postmenopausal women. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol 65, 1027-1033, 1997.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=49823

30 MB Katan, Effect of low-fat diets on plasma high-density lipoprotein concentrations. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol 67, 573S-576S, 1998.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=48665

31 Eric C Westman Is dietary carbohydrate essential for human nutrition? American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 75, No. 5, 951-953, May 2002.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=46187

32 Simin Liu, JoAnn E Manson, Julie E Buring, Meir J Stampfer, Walter C Willett and Paul M Ridker, Relation between a diet with a high glycemic load and plasma concentrations of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein in middle-aged women. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 75, No. 3, 492-498, March 2002.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=46832

33 Kromhout et al. Dietary saturated and trans fatty acids and cholesterol and 25-year mortality from coronary heart disease: the Seven Countries Study.Prev Med 1995; 24: 308-15

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=7644455&dopt=Abstract

34 Kafatos A, Diacatou A, Voukiklaris G, Nikolakakis N, Vlachonikolis J, Kounali D, Mamalakis G, Dontas AS. Heart disease risk-factor status and dietary changes in the Cretan population over the past 30 y: the Seven Countries Study. Am J Clin Nutr 1997 Jun;65(6):1882-6.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=9174487&dopt=Abstract

35 L Serra-Majem, L Ribas, R Tresserras, J Ngo and L Salleras. How could changes in diet explain changes in coronary heart disease mortality in Spain? The Spanish paradox American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol 61, 1351S-1359S, 1995.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=50652

36 Boucher P, de Lorgeril M, Salen P, Crozier P, Delaye J, Vallon JJ, Geyssant A, Dante R.
Effect of dietary cholesterol on low density lipoprotein-receptor, 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase, and low density lipoprotein receptor-related protein mRNA expression in healthy humans. Lipids 1998 Dec;33(12):1177-86.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&postid=500744

37 Hu FB, Stampfer MJ, Rimm EB, Manson JE, Ascherio A, Colditz GA, Rosner BA, Spiegelman D, Speizer FE, Sacks FM, Hennekens CH, Willett WC. A prospective study of egg consumption and risk of cardiovascular disease in men and women. JAMA 1999 Apr 21;281(15):1387-94.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=49822
http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=46819

38 McNamara DJ. Dietary cholesterol and the optimal diet for reducing risk of atherosclerosis. Can J Cardiol 1995 Oct;11 Suppl G:123G-126G.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=54219

39 Jones PJ, Pappu AS, Hatcher L, Li ZC, Illingworth DR, Connor WE, Dietary cholesterol feeding suppresses human cholesterol synthesis measured by deuterium incorporation and urinary mevalonic acid levels. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol 1996 Oct;16(10):1222-8.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=8857917&dopt=Abstract

40 Menotti A, Keys A, Blackburn H, Kromhout D, Karvonen M, Nissinen A, Pekkanen J, Punsar S, Fidanza F, Giampaoli S, Seccareccia F, Buzina R, Mohacek I, Nedeljkovic S, Aravanis C, Dontas A, Toshima H, Lanti M. Comparison of multivariate predictive power of major risk factors for coronary heart diseases in different countries: results from eight nations of the Seven Countries Study, 25-year follow-up. J Cardiovasc Risk 1996 Feb;3(1):69-75.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=8783033&dopt=Abstract

41 Verschuren WM, Jacobs DR, Bloemberg BP, Kromhout D, Menotti A, Aravanis C, Blackburn H, Buzina R, Dontas AS, Fidanza F, et al. Serum total cholesterol and long-term coronary heart disease mortality in different cultures. Twenty-five-year follow-up of the seven countries study. JAMA 1995 Jul 12;274(2):131-6.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=7596000&dopt=Abstract

42 Walter C Willett, Reply to AE Hardman American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 72, No. 4, 1061-1062, October 2000.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=52420

43 Walter C. Willett Will High-Carbohydrate/Low-Fat Diets Reduce the Risk of Coronary Heart Disease? Proc Soc Exp Biol Med 2000 Dec; 225(3):187-90.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=52776

44 Lapidus L, Bengtsson C, Lindquist O, Sigurdsson JA, Rybo E. Triglycerides--main lipid risk factor for cardiovascular disease in women? Acta Med Scand 1985;217(5):481-9.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=52961

45 Harjai KJ. Potential new cardiovascular risk factors : left ventricular hypertrophy, homocysteine, lipoprotein(a), triglycerides , oxidative stress, and fibrinogen. Ann Intern Med 1999 Sep 7;131(5):376-86.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=52961
http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=53891

46 Walter Willett, Meir Stampfer, Nain-Feng Chu, Donna Spiegelman, Michelle Holmes and Eric Rimm Assessment of Questionnaire Validity for Measuring Total Fat Intake using Plasma Lipid Levels as Criteria American Journal of Epidemiology Vol. 154, No. 12 : 1107-1112
2001.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=52961

47 Ronald M. Krauss, et al, AHA Dietary Guidelines : Revision 2000: A Statement for Healthcare Professionals From the Nutrition Committee of the American Heart Association Circulation 0: 2296-2311.
48 Salmeron J, Hu FB, Manson JE, Stampfer MJ, Colditz GA, Rimm EB, Willett WC. Dietary fat intake and risk of type 2 diabetes in women.Am J Clin Nutr 2001 Jun;73(6):1019-26.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=52914

49 Marion J. Franz, et al. Evidence-Based Nutrition Principles and Recommendations for the Treatment and Prevention of Diabetes and Related Complications Diabetes Care 25:148-198, 2002.
50 Barbara V. Howard, PhD; Judith Wylie-Rosett, RD, EdD AHA Scientific Statement Sugar and Cardiovascular Disease A Statement for Healthcare Professionals From the Committee on Nutrition of the Council on Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Metabolism of the American Heart Association Circulation. 2002;106:523

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=52514

51 Very low fat diets may harm some people. BMJ 1998 Feb 21;316(7131):573

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=50498

52 Willett WC Dietary fat plays a major role in obesity: No. Obesity Review 2002 May;3(2):59-68.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=52414

53 Walter C Willett Is dietary fat a major determinant of body fat? Am J Clin Nutr 1998;67(suppl):556S-62S. 1998

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=47089

54 Westman EC, Yancy WS, Edman JS, Tomlin KF, Perkins CE, Effect of 6-month adherence to a very low carbohydrate diet program. Am J Med 2002 Jul;113(1):30-6.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=51444

55 Hu FB, Stampfer MJ, Manson JE, Rimm EB, Colditz GA, Rosner BA, Speizer FE, Hennekens CH, Willett WC. Frequent nut consumption and risk of coronary heart disease in women: prospective cohort study. BMJ 1998 Nov 14;317(7169):1341-5.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=49822

56 Loren Cordain, Janette Brand Miller, S Boyd Eaton, Neil Mann, Susanne HA Holt and John D Speth Plant-animal subsistence ratios and macronutrient energy estimations in worldwide hunter-gatherer diets. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 71, No. 3, 682-692, March 2000.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=50470

57 Cordain L, Eaton SB, Miller JB, Mann N, Hill K. The paradoxical nature of hunter-gatherer diets: meat-based, yet non-atherogenic. Eur J Clin Nutr 2002 Mar;56 Suppl 1:S42-52.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=50470

58 Loren Cordain, Janette Brand Miller, S Boyd Eaton and Neil Mann Macronutrient estimations in hunter-gatherer diets American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 72, No. 6, 1589-1590, December 2000.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=50470

59 Aiello LC, Wheeler PE. The expensive-tissue hypothesis. Current Anthropol 36:199-221, 1995.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=50699

60 S. Boyd Eaton, MD, Stanley B. Eaton III Evolution, Diet and Health , poster session, the Williamsburg-ICAES conference 1998.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=51039



Section 2 on trans fat and fat oxidation:

51 Ascherio A, Hennekens CH, Buring JE, Master C, Stampfer MJ, Willett WC. 1994. Trans-fatty acids intake and risk of myocardial infarction. Circulation 89:94-101.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=50278

52 Letter Report on Dietary Reference Intakes for Trans Fatty Acids; Institute of Medicine in the National Academy of Sciences, July 10, 2002. <http://www.iom.edu/iom/iomhome.nsf/Pages/FNB+Reports.>

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=50278

53 Dietary Guidelines for Americans <http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/dga/dga95/lowfat.html>

54 Felton CV et al: Dietary polyunsaturated fatty acids and composition of human aortic plaques. Lancet 1994; 344:1195-1196.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=51797

55 Nippon Rinsho, Modified low-density lipoprotein. 1994 Dec; 52(12):3090-5.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=51755
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=7853694&dopt=Abstract

56 Bourre JM, Piciotti M. Alterations in eighteen-carbon saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acid peroxisomal oxidation in mouse brain during development and aging. Biochem Mol Biol Int 1997 Mar;41(3):461-8.

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=51755
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=9090453&dopt=Abstract

[ferrando]

You are Good!

[BlueToo]

What else do you have on point 25? I have some issues with your wrapup.

1) At what point does what our ancestors eat become relelvant or irrelevant regarding what is best for us? In other words man 2M years ago primarily ate meat but chimps primarily ate fruit? Why looks at man 2M years ago versus chimps 4-7M years ago? Can evolution change (or better, did evolution change) the basic metabolic system between chimps and man such that one diet better reflects how our bodies should be fed? 2M years is nothing and I doubt it could seriously change much (in general is changed size only - brain, bone, muscle). In addition if you look over the broad range of primates the diets radically change per other work done by your reference 58. Chimps eat 5-10% meat at most. Which is the right comparable? Tough one to answer.

2) I don't have a good reference on this but I know more recent work has gone against the traditional concept of man as efficient meat hunter and relegated it to more of a vulture status - namely gathering meat that was left. And in most cases the remaining meat was brain or marrow - we were able to better extract brain meat from a skull/bones than other animals. In most cases brain meat is incredibly dense with protein and fats. Does that mean our best diet would be brain? Muscle meat has very different composition and therefore your're making a stretch. A second point is that there is only one study to my knowledge (Crawford, Michael) showing the absolute need for meat as a precursor to larger brain development.

3) If meat was 50% of our diet what was the other 50%? If that is all fruit then this is a problem with the evolutionary diet theory. Homo habilis ate more plant matter than meat but I can't find any studies on dietary breakdown.

4) "When the body is perfectly balanced it is disease-free" Huh? First of all what does 'perfectly balanced' mean? Are you saying that viral and bacterial infections don't affect the human body if we meet that definition of 'perfectly balanced'? Come on you're stretching here.

5) Man hasn't eaten grain for a most of his existence. Fine but if you are going to invoke this argument don't you have to invoke it for all the other stuff we haven't eaten for most of our existence? What meats aren't on that list? What vegetables aren't on that list? I don't know the answer but I know it wasn't that long ago that the homo lines of humans branched out of Africa and the potential for evolutionary forces to modify the metabolic/dietary process was too short to do anything radical. Therefore you could argue we should be eating meat and plants from the African region.

[ferrando]

I read somewhere that the fat in brain tissue is very high in Omega 3 fatty acids. All that brain eating may have helped develop human brains, particularly when the salmon (and other cold water fish) were not available. Again I think mother's milk is very high in omega 3 (provided the mother gets enough in her diet, so somehow human intelligence may be connected or supported by diet.

When a colleague became pregnant last year we chatted about Omega 3 fatty acids, and she decided to regularly to take flax oil and, when available, wild salmon. Her friends were calling the baby a "flax baby" even before it was born. I met her on a bike ride recently and she said that here baby was talking already, apparently 2 or 3 months ahead of when babies ususally start talking.

Just some thoughts, but I'm glad this tread is being continued as I expect that the amazing Voyajer will provide some more insights.

Ferrando

[BlueToo]

That is very interesting. I've never heard the brain fat/omega 3 connection before. Would love to see an article on that - Any idea if that omega 3 has to be ingested or does our body have any capabilities to produce the compound?


TIA

[ferrando]

Omega 3 and Omega 6 oils are called "essential" fatty acids. They are considered "essential" because they are structural fats, important to life and we cannot make them ourselves. So we must get both from food. I am told that most people get enough Omega 6, but other experts tell me that the Omega 6 we get is often not of very high quality. Still the one we don't get a lot of is probably the first one to make sure we add to our diet and that is Omega 3.

I ran a search on Google using the string "brain omega 3" and got a number of interesting responses. I quote this one from:

http://www.alaskaseafood.org/flavor/omega.htm

Fetal and Child Development benefits of Omega 3

"It has been demonstrated that getting enough omega 3 fatty acids very early in life is critical. An omega 3 derivative called docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) actually helps build the brain, becoming rapidly incorporated into both the cerebral cortex and the retina three months before and three months after birth, and more slowly but no less significantly up until the age of two, when brain development is complete. ...Eating more fatty fish, such as salmon, is the most efficient way to build your store of omega-3s."

"Essential Fatty Assets," by Elizabeth Hiser, published in "Eating Well"


"Our results indicate that n-3 long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids should be considered provisionally essential for infant nutrition. DHA [docosahexaenoic acid] may also be required by individuals with inherited metabolic defects in elongation and desaturation activity, such as patients with peroxisomal disorders and some forms of retinitis pigmentosa. ...The mother's diet before pregnancy plays an important role in determining maternal EFA 'essential fatty acid' status. ...Major EFA deposition in the human fetus occurs during the third trimester. ...it has become generally accepted that n-6 as well as n-3 fatty acids play a key role in perinatal nutrition, especially for the developing central nervous system."

"Role of Essential Fatty Acids in the Function of the Developing Nervous System," by Ricardo Uauy, Patricio Peirano, Dennis Hoffman, et al, Institute of Nutrition and Food Technology, University of Chile, Santiago, Chile and Retina Foundation of the Southwest, Dallas, Texas published in Lipids, Vol. 31 Supplement (1996)


I strongly recommend the other quotes on the page link provided above. Also some of the other results from the google search are worth exploring if this subject is of interest to you.

Ferrando.

PS when I was doing a research project for a client I read a quote from Mary Enig where I think she suggested that Coconut oil (you know the so called evil tropical oil) might one day be considered "essential" as well. She was referring to the powerful anti viral and anti bacterial benefits that oil provides.

[dan_rose]

I think it is a great idea to post reviews like this, as it seems daft for all of us to read (and try to understand) the many research studies that have been conducted.

An idea:

Would it be possible to set up a dedicated page that contains known and proveable facts (with references) regarding what one should/should-not eat. Such a page could be put together by the well-read senior members for us all to use. It could then be updated as and when new research is published.

A benefit would be that we don't have to keep filling the pockets of all those flogging diet books (they can't all be right!)

If such a resource already exists, then please point me to it and forget this post.

Thanks.

[gfehr3]

I appreciate the sound research that has gone into the posts I've seen on this forum.

I would like to know if anyone has been able to come up with any refererences to validated studies that a balanced diet is a way to ward off arteriosclerosis (hardening of the arteries).

I have two friends that have suffered heart attack and cariac arrest that were models of fitness and attempted to do everything to improve their cardio vascular systems. Both very lean in body mass, one with a wife that was a registered nutritionist and RN.

One is now mentally incapacitated and was eating the low fat, Becel margarine as the only recommended spread on their diets, as endorsed by both the Canadian and US heart associations.

The other is recovering from triple by pass and is very lucky to be alive and with all faculties intact.

I have yet to see an article that shows the benefits of eating the so called heart healthy way will improve hardening of the arteries.

Wondered if anyone else has or it is just a myth.

[bvtaylor]

I came across this from DANDR:

p. 356 - 1997: In a twenty-year follow-up of 832 men tracked in the world-famous Framingham Heart Study, researchers matched incidence of stroke (there were 61 in all) with dietary intake. The men with the highest intake of dietary fat had the fewest strokes; the men with the lowest had the most strokes.
He goes on to mention the list of indicators for heart disease, so without knowing what your apparently healthy friends looked like on the inside, it's difficult to speculate:

TOTAL CHOLESTEROL
LOW-DENSITY LIPOPROTEIN (LDL)
HIGH-DENSITY LIPOPROTEIN (HDL)
TRYGLYCERIDE
HDL TO TOTAL CHOLESTEROL RATIO
HOMOCYSTEINE is a by-product of defective protein metabolism. An elevated level is a powerful marker for heart disease and stroke risk. High homocysteine levels also indicate a dificiency of folic acide, a B vitamin. (Homocysteine level can be reduced with the intake of vitamins B6, B12, and folic acid.)...
LIPOPROTEIN (A) is a high-risk component of LDL cholesterol. In the last 10 years it has been recognized as a strong risk factor for heart disease and stroke. Elevated levels may indicate insufficient intake of vitamin C, which is needed to maintain healthy blood vessels....
C-REACTIVE PROTEIN is an antibody. It appears that some heart-attack victims actually have an infectious component to their disease, which has little to do with following a sound dietary approach. The result is chronically inflamed blood vessels that are widely regarded as part of the atherosclerotic disease process. High levels of C-reactive protein have been found to increase the risk of heart disease by 4 1/2 times...

[gfehr3]

Thanks for your reply and added information. I can see that I will need to ask any questions in a much less ambiguous way. My fault for not wording it clearly.

What I have been searching for is the base research findings that support what is currently recommended by US and Canadian nutritionists and the medical communitiy at large. What I have noted is that the Framingham study has been touted as the basis for these recommendations however other very well respected researchers (Mary Enig, University of Maryland for example) reviewed the raw data and have come to different conclusions. Unfortunately much of the raw data research results are hidden from the average person behind pay based electronic publishers.

With the Framingham study It appears to be a case of picking the data that supports the hypothesis and ignoring what doesn't fit or perhaps interpreting the results in a non scientific way. This is generally considered to be an abuse of statistics however only if you get caught.

Still seaching for the underpinnings of our current dietary recommendations. Any help would be appreciated.

[IslandGirl]

...What I have noted is that the Framingham study has been touted as the basis for these recommendations however other very well respected researchers (Mary Enig, University of Maryland for example) reviewed the raw data and have come to different conclusions. Unfortunately much of the raw data research results are hidden from the average person behind pay based electronic publishers.

With the Framingham study It appears to be a case of picking the data that supports the hypothesis and ignoring what doesn't fit or perhaps interpreting the results in a non scientific way. This is generally considered to be an abuse of statistics however only if you get caught.

Still seaching for the underpinnings of our current dietary recommendations. Any help would be appreciated.Unfortunately, you have for the most part answered your own question.

There are no true underpinnings for the current dietary recommendations, only assumptions and wide extrapolations from narrow datapoints.

Have you gone to the (I hear now public) Medline at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/PubMed/ ?

You might also find this site an excellent place to track down both pro and con scientific opinions (there's a reason they call them opinions :devil: ) at The International Network of Cholesteral Skeptics ... http://www.thincs.org/index.htm ... all scientists tried and true.

The pharmaceutical companies really don't want everybody to know that approximately 50% of heart attack victims have 'normal' cholesteral...

[Ursula]

What oils are polyunsaturated? I use olive oil and I know that's monounsaturated, and also peanut oil--I don't know what that is.

[doreen T]

What oils are polyunsaturated? I use olive oil and I know that's monounsaturated, and also peanut oil--I don't know what that is.
hi Ursula,

Dr. Mary Enig has written some excellent articles about fats and health ... these are published at the Weston A. Price Foundation (http://www.westonaprice.org/know_your_fats/) website.

This particular article .. The Skinny on Fats (http://www.westonaprice.org/know_your_fats/skinny.html) will explain to you about fats .. what saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats are, and how they impact our health. (the specific info about types of fats is 1/3 the way down the page .. it's a long article).

hth,


Doreen

[B.B.B.]

The media always tries to dispell everything positive! Dr. Atkins was in adamn coma...unable to eat on his own, exercise or anything....of course the guy gained weight!!!!!!!!!!! The issue lies in the Food Pyramid....it is funded by FARMERS! They are freaking out because they are losing sales...bread, potatoes, rice....etc...

We know Atkins works...the media can bitch, wine and complain all they want....we need to keep positive and stay focused. Dr. Atkins wa sa wonderful man...he has helped alot of us on our weight loss journey...the fact that in his death they scrutinized him is SICKENING!

[M. Howard]

http://www.pcrm.org/news/health031120_report.html

Food for thought.

[Angeline]

Hello Howard

This article is from the PCRM. They are a group of vegan radicals who are trying to pass themselves off as "concerned physicians". They are only concerned about promoting their vegan agenda, not about people's health.

Read a little more about themhere (http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?t=82314). If you do a search of PRCM on the internet you'll learn plenty. They have zero credibility.

[CindySue48]

http://www.pcrm.org/news/health031120_report.html

Food for thought.

Howard: From the article:
Table 1. Common Problems Reported by Atkins Diet Alert Registrants

44% reported constipation
42% reported loss of energy
40% reported bad breath
31% reported difficulty concentrating
22% reported kidney problems: kidney stones (11%), severe kidney infections (2%), or reduced kidney function (9%)
20% reported heart-related problems, including heart attack (1%), other heart problems (12%), or high cholesterol (7%)
11% reported gallbladder problems or removal
5% reported gout
5% reported diabetes
5% reported osteoporosis
4% reported colorectal (1%) or other cancers (3%)


Table 2. Other Problems Reported by Three or More Individuals:

11 reported irritable bowel syndrome, severe abdominal pain, or cramps (6%)
9 reported pain, cramps, tingling, or numbness in the limbs (5%)
9 reported feeling shaky and weak (5%)
9 reported vertigo, dizziness, or lightheadedness (5%)
7 reported severe diarrhea (4%)
7 reported severe or repeated headaches (4%)
5 reported severe mood swings, apathy, or depression (3%)
5 reported general malaise (3%)
4 reported nausea (2%)
4 reported severe menstrual problems (2%)
3 reported heart palpitations (2%)

Now....first thing to remember is that these results are from people who have registered on their site, not based on a global survey of LC dieters. The people who register on this site are most likely people who have had problems and went off LC.

The "side effects" above are often touted as being "life threatening complications"....well, let's see.

44% reported constipation (not enough fiber, of course you're going to be constipated.
42% reported loss of energy (wonder if they made it past induction)
40% reported bad breath (ketosis is not that bad....I've asked my kids and friends. My mouthmay taste nasty, but my breath isn't bad as bad as normal "morning breath")
31% reported difficulty concentrating (again, get past induction)
11% reported gallbladder problems or removal (most likely due to YEARS of LF)
5% reported gout ( a problem with a very small percentage of the population, regardless of diet)
5% reported diabetes (this one makes me wonder. There is no way DM can be triggered by LC....it just isn't possible)
5% reported osteoporosis (two words: calcium supplements. MOST people need them, not just LCers)
None of these are considered in any way life threatening.

More serious?
22% reported kidney problems: kidney stones (11%), severe kidney infections (2%), or reduced kidney function (9%)
kidney stones are directly related to calcium intake in people who are susceptable, a small percentage of the population. Kidney function can be compromised further in unhealthy kidneys, but studies have shown NO risk to healthy kidneys!!!!! An infection is caused by a bacteria. With few exceptions, that infection comes from the external perineal area, introduced into the bladder. If any bladder infection is left untreated, it can and often will lead to actualy kidney infection. That's because the bacteria migrates up the urinary tract to the kidneys. Also most "kidney infections" are actually bladder infections, there's a BIg difference.

20% reported heart-related problems, including heart attack (1%), other heart problems (12%), or high cholesterol (7%)
If only 1% end up having heart attacks, that's way lower than LF followers. BUT...unless these people had been following LC for many years, it's more likely the previoous diet was the caseu,, not LC.
"Other heart problems".....hmmmm without knowing what they are, it's hard to comment. BUT, low potassium, calcium, etc can cause heart irregularities....which if severe and untreated can lead to serious or even fatal heart rhythm irregularities. This is why most LC plans advocate a daily MVI and often added potassium and calcium.
As for high cholesterol, many are no longer convinced that is a "problem".

Look around ont eh web-site and do some searches. You'll find more information on cholesterol, saturated fat, "good" vs "bad" fats. As for cholesterol, that recomendation was based on bad research....and has now taken on a life of it's own.

Consider this: The body stores what it needs where it can get it, right? Like fat....you store that on your body, around your torso or even legs and arms, but rarely to any degree around your head. Why? because if your body needs extra fuel, the fat is right there where it can be broken down and used.

Now, consider this:
3.5 ounces extra lean ground beef, 82 milligrams
3.5 ounce lean pork chop, 94 milligrams
3.5 ounces of chicken breast meat, no skin, 73 milligrams
3.5 ounces turkey, light meat only, 69 milligrams
3 ounces perch, 36 milligrams
6 medium oysters, 46 milligrams
12 large shrimp, 130 milligrams
1 large egg, 213 milligrams
3.5 ounces of liver, 400 milligrams
3.5 ounces of brains, 2,000 milligrams

http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/fcs/heart/hhb7-1.html

Now....why would an animal's body store cholesterol in the brian if it wasn't needed there? Cholesterol is used by the body to create and repair blood vessels. It is required for blood vessel health. Maybe the body stores it here in case it's needed?

Anything PCRM says is highly suspect. They are vegetarian proponents, closely alligned with PETA. They take the data they want from studies, not the whole study. They are anti LC, anti meat fanatics. The AMA has also censured PCRN several times for their tactics. (do a sarch on the forum for PCRM, that will keep you busy for a while!)

If you want real information, go to a site like webmd and check out the references for your self. Or just do a search on cholesterol and then read the studies quoted. You'll find that either the study doens't actually say what the reports say they do.....or the study is obviously flawed.

As Dr Ravnskov says in his book "The Cholesterol Myths": "For a scientific hypothesis is sound, it must agree with all observations. A hypothesis is not like a sports event, where the team with the greatest number of points wins the game. Even one observation that does not support a hypothesis is enough to disprove it" (page 12 in the introduction)

The medical community freely admits there are people with CAD that do not have high cholesterol. They also admit that only 6% of your total cholesterol is due to your diet, and that your body will create cholesterol if it's not taken in in large enough quantities!

No one is required to eat meats on either Atkins or any other LC diet. You are also not required to eat saturated fats in any form if you don't want. LC is more about limiting all carbs and eliminating the "bad"carbs, like refined sugar, flour, etc. We have members on here that are vegetarians.

[Monika4]

What I have been searching for is the base research findings that support what is currently recommended by US and Canadian nutritionists and the medical communitiy at large. What I have noted is that the Framingham study has been touted as the basis for these recommendations however other very well respected researchers (Mary Enig, University of Maryland for example) reviewed the raw data and have come to different conclusions. Unfortunately much of the raw data research results are hidden from the average person behind pay based electronic publishers.

With the Framingham study It appears to be a case of picking the data that supports the hypothesis and ignoring what doesn't fit or perhaps interpreting the results in a non scientific way. This is generally considered to be an abuse of statistics however only if you get caught.

Still seaching for the underpinnings of our current dietary recommendations. Any help would be appreciated.

Those who are saying it isn't clear are right. But it isn't all bias either. Some studies like Framingham and studies in many countries found a correlation between high fat and arteriosclerosis, and when one country (Crete) didn't fit the picture, it was ignored. Later, the mediterranian diet became known as high fat and healthy, and scientists realized ignoring it was throwing out the baby with the bath water.

The other point to remember that studies can't typically provide the whole picture at once. So you will find some sets of studies that state that certain lipids in the blood increase risk for arteriosclerosis, and other studies that correlate diet with these lipids, but few that get all factors at once - and those that do would still be correlational.

Here are some studies that support diet- arteriosclerosis links - first one high fiber, second low glycemic index (incidentally, both are factors that Atkins and the medical establishment seem to agree on):


1. Bazzano LA, He J, Ogden LG, Loria CM, Whelton PK; National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey I Epidemiologic Follow-up Study.
Dietary fiber intake and reduced risk of coronary heart disease in US men and women: the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey I Epidemiologic Follow-up Study.
Arch Intern Med. 2003 Sep 8;163(16):1897-904.

2: Liu S, Willett WC. Related Articles, Links
Dietary glycemic load and atherothrombotic risk.
Curr Atheroscler Rep. 2002 Nov;4(6):454-61.

The following study shows that the more animal protein is eaten the higher the arteriosclerotic risk factors (I know that is non-PC here, but these are the types of studies that made physicians think cause and effect - it is a correlation, not a causation - this study does not show that the higher animal protein diet is the cause!):

J Atheroscler Thromb. 2002;9(6):299-304.
Influence of the extent of westernization of lifestyle on the progression of preclinical atherosclerosis in Japanese subjects.

Egusa G, Watanabe H, Ohshita K, Fujikawa R, Yamane K, Okubo M, Kohno N.

To clarify the influence of a westernized lifestyle on the risk factors for atherosclerosis and preclinical atherosclerosis in Japanese subjects, we surveyed a Japanese population and Japanese immigrants in the United States. Based on the extent of westernization of their lifestyle, the subjects were classified as Japanese (J), first generation Japanese-Americans (JA-I), and second or later generation Japanese-Americans (JA-II). The consumption of animal fat and simple carbohydrates increased in the order of J, JA-I, and JA-II, while the subjects with strenuous physical activity decreased in the same order. The waist-hip ratio, fasting insulin level, serum cholesterol and triglyceride levels, and prevalence of hypertension increased in the same order as the dietary changes. The carotid intima-media wall thickness and the plaque size, which are indices of preclinical atherosclerosis, also increased in the order of J, JA-I, and JA-II. These data indicate that a westernized lifestyle aggravates the risk factors for atherosclerosis and influences the progression of preclinical atherosclerosis, in correspondence with the extent of westernization

P N G Med J. 2001 Sep-Dec;44(3-4):135-50.
Superiority of traditional village diet and lifestyle in minimizing cardiovascular disease risk in Papua New Guineans. excerpts:
..."The rural diets were mainly of vegetarian type, limited in variety and low in fat and protein content. In the urban subjects, the typical meal comprised refined foods with high fat and protein content. The urban men and women had significantly (p < 0.05) greater body weight, body mass index (BMI), and waist and hip circumferences than their rural counterparts."....

This one (from an egg organization) claims cholesterol in diet isn't that bad:
Biochim Biophys Acta. 2000 Dec 15;1529(1-3):310-20.
Dietary cholesterol and atherosclerosis.
McNamara DJ.

Proc Nutr Soc. 2003 Feb;62(1):135-42.
Whole grains protect against atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease
"Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) is the most common cause of death in most Western countries. Nutrition factors contribute importantly to this high risk for ASCVD. Favourable alterations in diet can reduce six of the nine major risk factors for ASCVD, i.e. high serum LDL-cholesterol levels, high fasting serum triacylglycerol levels, low HDL-cholesterol levels, hypertension, diabetes and obesity. Wholegrain foods may be one the healthiest choices individuals can make to lower the risk for ASCVD. Epidemiological studies indicate that individuals with higher levels (in the highest quintile) of whole-grain intake have a 29 % lower risk for ASCVD than individuals with lower levels (lowest quintile) of whole-grain intake. ...."

[VickiR]

Pubmed is now public and an excellent free resource - although most of the references are not available on-line, only abstracts. Still, I use it to sift through the available information, and if there is something really interesting, go to the local Health Sciences Library at the University here in town. I only have to buy a copy card, and I can copy the most interesting references.

[VickiR]

Also, this is another interesting, free, resource:

http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/

Information about food, including nutritional breakdowns, can be had here.

[eddiemcm]

Hello,Voyager
You did not address all studies listed on this forum.
How about Framingham and MRFIT?
I agree with most of what you say except for your
statement about the average cholesterol level in Japan.
It's 180 in Japan-225 in USA.
Your statement about the medical types pointing to high
cholesterol as the single source of heart problems is,for
the most part,absurd.All a person can say, after looking at
Framingham/MRFIT curves and data ,is that there appears to
be a link between high cholesterol and heart failure for people
under 50 years of age.No person,except an idiot,would point
at these studies and conclude that the single cause of heart failure is high cholesterol.It just shows that high cholesterol is probably a major contributing factor.The best summary of all
medical studies is found in the overly large expensive Chemical Abstract.

[nedgoudy]

A Review of Diet, Fat, and Cholesterol Research: 25 Points.

Woa! Way too much information to
interest me or anyone new to Low Carb.

You are probably preach'n to the choir. :wave:

But none the less, you get an A+ for
your tremendous effort and great work.

But if I wanted that much information,
I would have gone back to college
and gotten a 4th degree. :lol:

[Analog6]

Thanks for this Voyager, it was fantastic. You did a great job and I read it carefully and really found it useful.

[dpm64]

Found this easy to understand video from Univ of Wisconsin Medical School. Gail Underbakke, MS, RD presented on March 29, 2007. (54 min)

http://videos.med.wisc.edu/videoInfo.php?videoid=195

She covers it all. Has section on Omega 3 & 6.

The 1st part of video is about heart disease prevention, but then she goes into weight control as well. Very balanced approach.

[davidcoast]

[QUOTE=Voyajer]Thanks Deb,

I realize I forgot two points:

26. There is one fat that should be avoided: trans fat (partially hydrogenated oil). Replacement of just 2% of energy from trans unsaturated fats with unsaturated fats would result in a 53% risk reduction for coronary heart disease.
54 Felton CV et al: Dietary polyunsaturated fatty acids and composition of human aortic plaques. Lancet 1994; 344:1195-1196.
55 Nippon Rinsho, Modified low-density lipoprotein. 1994 Dec; 52(12):3090-5.
56 Bourre JM, Piciotti M. Alterations in eighteen-carbon saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acid peroxisomal oxidation in mouse brain during development and aging.

Impressive work Voyajer! However, you may have missed the key point in why LDL cholesterol has been indicted as the 'criminal' in CVD.

There are a series of dots between item 26 and items 54, 55 and 56. As the article in the Lancet pointed out, it is PUFAs (mainly trans fats and oxidized omega 6 which is the bad guy relative of the essential fatty version which is biologically active parent omega 6), not saturated fat that is clogging arteries. In fact the study found no saturated fat in clogs.

Insofar as LDL being the bad guy, it is merely an innocent bystander. LDL normally carries biologically active parent omega 6 because it is the transporter for it. But the majority of the omega 6 we get in our good old North American diet that has not been hydrogenated is oxidized and thus not only biologically inactive (read: doesn't function in the capacity of an EFA) but is also toxic. This is what LDL is transporting. Researchers concluded that LDL is the bad guy when in reality it is the bad omega 6 that the LDL is carrying. Lowering LDL will help to a degree. But LDL can never be lowered enough to eliminate all the oxidized omega 6 PUFA that is doing damage. Eliminating trans fats only deals with part of the problem. If there's not enough biologically active parent omega 6 to supply your body's needs (they don't call it 'essential' for nothing) it will use whatever it can get because it has no other choice.

It really stretches my imagination to the limit for me to believe that replacing trans fats with the same oxidized PUFAs that are clogging arteries will result in a 53% reduction for coronary heart disease.

I have just obtained a copy of a new article that revisits the LDL issue in the above perspective. Since it is not yet widely available I can provide a copy to anyone who provides me with their email address or I can post some excerpts in this forum along with science references of course.

[jschwab]

"

2) I don't have a good reference on this but I know more recent work has gone against the traditional concept of man as efficient meat hunter and relegated it to more of a vulture status - namely gathering meat that was left. And in most cases the remaining meat was brain or marrow - we were able to better extract brain meat from a skull/bones than other animals. In most cases brain meat is incredibly dense with protein and fats. Does that mean our best diet would be brain? Muscle meat has very different composition and therefore your're making a stretch. A second point is that there is only one study to my knowledge (Crawford, Michael) showing the absolute need for meat as a precursor to larger brain development. "

I am not understanding your post. Brain is still a highly valued part of the animal in many cuisines. Just because you don't eat it, doesn't mean other people don't. My husband just found out about a zoo that was feeding tigers muscle meat and they could not reproduce, so they observed them in the wild, taking the organ meats and leaving the rest. If man could scavenge bones and muscle meat from these carcasses, they would have. We need to eat more of the whole animal, but that does not mean muscle meat is not part of the diet.

Janine

[lorimay7]

I have a question about the following that was written......

"27. Although the government's Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends that Americans cut their daily saturated fat intake to 10% and certain researchers recommend replacing saturated fat with polyunsaturated fat, there appear to be valid reasons to fear replacing saturated fats with polyunsaturated fats.(53) When the arterial plaque of deceased humans was examined it contained polyunsaturated fats.(54) Oxidation of fats whether it occurs in the body or whether oxidized fat is ingested is known to lead to clogging of the arteries. The fat that oxidizes the easiest is polyunsaturated fat.(55) Saturated fats are the most stable.(56)

I went to look up polyunsaturated fats to know what contained it and found the following on wikipedia....

"Polyunsaturated fat, along with monounsaturated fat are "healthy fats," the amount of which in one's daily diet should be near 25 g (in a 2000 calorie-per-day diet).[citation needed] Polyunsaturated fat can be found mostly in grain products, fish and sea food (herring, salmon, mackerel, halibut), soybeans, and fish oil. "

So, is it not wise to take fish oil capsules? I was told it would reduce my bad cholesterol (it's 189) and thought it was good for other things as well. I don't eat fish so don't get it from foods. My triglycerides are only 89 and my good cholesterol is 45...buti thought it would be good to get the bad a bit lower or at least know if my bad cholesterol is made up of the bad or good fat. I'm a bit confused.
What polyunsaturated fats should I avoid?? I tried to go to a couple links in this thread that was suppose to explain them but they didn't work.

Thanks,
Lori

[dpm64]

A few of your citations are to Walter Willett.

He gave a great talk at Univ of Wisconsin, May 2007:

http://videos.med.wisc.edu/videoInfo.php?videoid=252

[LC_guy]

Voyager,

You said trans-fats are bad for the diet. My mom has a big jar of Crisco that she never uses. Do you think that it would make a good axle bearing grease for the bikes?

Earlier, you mentioned that a correlation between blood cholesterol concentration and heart attacks DOES NOT necessarily imply that one causes the other. Good point. My theory is that inflammation of the cardiovascular system leads to greater risk of heart attacks. However, I'm no doctor, so I don't have any studies to base this thought on. It's just sort of a random thought based on everything I've read.

Adam