Low-fat, low-cholesterol diets increase the risk of heart disease

This study was published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation 1990 Jan;85(1):144-51

 

Study title and authors:

A low-fat diet decreases high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels by decreasing HDL apolipoprotein transport rates.

Brinton EA, Eisenberg S, Breslow JL.

Laboratory of Biochemical Genetics and Metabolism, Rockefeller University, New York, New York 10021.

 

This study can be accessed at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2104877

Scientific evidence suggests that high levels of high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol and apolipoproteins A-I may offer protection from heart disease, see here, here and here. Other studies reveal that high triglyceride levels are associated with heart disease see here and here.

This study compared the effects of a high-fat diet and a low-fat diet on heart disease risk factors. The study included 13 subjects who were kept on either a high-fat or low-fat diet for four weeks each.

The fat and cholesterol content of the diets comprised of:
(i) 41.9% fat of which 23.6% was saturated fat + 215 mg of cholesterol per 100 calories (high-fat diet).
(ii) 8.6% fat of which 2.1% was saturated fat + 40 mg of cholesterol per 100 calories (low-fat diet).

The study found:
(a) Those on the low-fat diet had 29% lower levels of high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol compared to those on the high-fat diet.
(b) Those on the low-fat diet had 23% lower levels of apolipoproteins A-I compared to those on the high-fat diet.
(c) Those on the low-fat diet had 32% higher levels of triglycerides compared to those on the high-fat diet.

The results from this study reveal that a low-fat, low-cholesterol diet increases the risk factors associated with heart disease compared to a high-fat, high-cholesterol diet.