Thursday February 1 5:29 PM ET
Low-Cal Diet Cuts Cholesterol, Improves Heart Health

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Patients looking to lower cholesterol levels are often told to reduce their intake of fat. But results of a study suggest that cutting back on calories may be a more effective strategy.

To investigate the role of total calories and fat in determining cholesterol, 11 lean men with moderately high cholesterol and a family history of heart disease consumed four diets with varying levels of fat and carbohydrate, for 4 weeks.

According to the report, men who followed a low-calorie diet that contained typical amounts of fat (35% of total calories) lost weight, raised HDL (''good'') cholesterol, lowered LDL (''bad'') cholesterol, and decreased levels of fatty substances in the blood that are associated with heart disease.

Levels of these compounds, known as triacylglycerols, increased when the same men followed a low-fat diet in which 15% of total calories came from fat. Furthermore, the low-fat diet did not lead to weight loss, which has been shown to lower cholesterol levels.

Finally, the diet that restricted both fat and calories led to weight loss and lower levels of bad cholesterol.

``These data indicate that energy restriction is an important determinant of circulating cholesterol concentrations,'' write Dr. Peter J. H. Jones, from McGill University in Ste. Anne de Bellevue, Canada, and colleagues.

``The present study showed that, although reductions in dietary fat or in both dietary fat and energy favorably modified lipid concentrations, reductions in dietary energy alone also consistently decreased the risk of cardiovascular disease.''

The results, published in February issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, call into question recommendations by the National Cholesterol Education Program of the National Institutes of Health (news - web sites). These guidelines stress the importance of low-fat diets in lowering heart disease risk.

``The present findings suggest that energy restriction rather than fat restriction results in a lipid profile as favorable as that seen after the (low-fat, low-calorie diet),'' Jones and colleagues conclude.

SOURCE: American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2001;73:262-267.

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