About this Resource
Dietary guidelines commonly recommend that intake of saturated fatty acids (SFAs) be restricted, primarily due to the relationship between saturated fat and LDL cholesterol. However, emerging evidence suggests that this relationship between saturated fat LDL cholesterol depends on the type of SFA that is being restricted, as well as the nutrient that replaces it.
Grounded in the Research
“dietary SFAs should not be considered as a homogeneous nutrient group, and that individual SFAs might have differential impacts on cardiometabolic health.”
Excerpt from: Sellem, L., Flourakis, M., Jackson, K. G., Joris, P. J., Lumley, J., Lohner, S., … & Lovegrove, J. A. (2022). Impact of replacement of individual dietary SFAs on circulating lipids and other biomarkers of cardiometabolic health: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials in humans. Advances in Nutrition, 13(4), 1200-1225.
References
[1] Sellem, L., Flourakis, M., Jackson, K. G., Joris, P. J., Lumley, J., Lohner, S., … & Lovegrove, J. A. (2022). Impact of replacement of individual dietary SFAs on circulating lipids and other biomarkers of cardiometabolic health: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials in humans. Advances in Nutrition, 13(4), 1200-1225. https://doi.org/10.1093/advances/nmab143
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[6] Hunter, J. E., Zhang, J., & Kris-Etherton, P. M. (2010). Cardiovascular disease risk of dietary stearic acid compared with trans, other saturated, and unsaturated fatty acids: a systematic review. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 91(1), 46-63. https://doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.2009.27661
[7] Ervin, R. B. (2004). Dietary intake of fats and fatty acids for the United States population: 1999-2000 (No. 348). Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15587902/
[8] Neelakantan, N., Seah, J. Y. H., & van Dam, R. M. (2020). The effect of coconut oil consumption on cardiovascular risk factors: a systematic review and meta-analysis of clinical trials. Circulation, 141(10), 803-814.
https://doi.org/10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.119.043052