Unsaturated fat diet helps decrease cholesterol: study

Consumption of these unsaturated fats has been linked with lower risk of cardiovascular disease and other health benefits.[Photo/Xinhua]

Metabolically healthy obese adults consuming a diet high in unsaturated fat and low in saturated fat may be able to decrease their total cholesterol by 10 points, a study of the University of Illinois (UI) shows.

Nutrition scientists at UI analyzed the findings of eight randomized controlled trials to investigate the impact of diets that provided similar amounts of calories, but high amounts of either saturated or unsaturated fats, on the blood lipid levels and body composition of overweighted and obese adults.

Compared with their counterparts, subjects who ate greater amounts of monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats reduced their total cholesterol by more than 10 milligrams per deciliter.

However, reductions in these individuals' low-density lipoprotein (LDL), commonly called the "bad cholesterol," and triglyceride concentrations were marginal, said lead author Bridget A. Hannon, a graduate research assistant at the university.

Regardless of the amount of saturated or unsaturated fat they consumed, only those subjects who followed calorie-restricted diets lost weight, the UI scientists found.