Influence of Small-Bowel Transit Time on Dietary Cholesterol Absorption in Human Beings

Abstract

ALTHOUGH the individual steps in the absorptive process of cholesterol have been studied in great detail in recent years,^{1 , 2} there is still relatively little information on the factors regulating and influencing cholesterol absorption. Recent studies have shown that in certain guinea pigs that are resistant to the pathologic effect of dietary cholesterol, intestinal transit time is more rapid than in other guinea pigs that become hypercholesterolemic, suggesting that intestinal transit time allows less absorption of cholesterol in the former group, thus limiting cholesterol accumulation in body tissues.³ In view of these findings, it seemed of interest to investigate the relation . . .