Design of practical fat-controlled diets. Foods, fat composition, and serum cholesterol content

Abstract

The effects of changing the kind and amounts of animal products, eggs, and oil in a vegetable-oil (standard) diet on serum cholesterol levels was studied in young, normal subjects in 18-day quantitative diet tests. Comparison of serum cholesterol reduction with standard and variant diets in the same subjects showed that effective diets with 38% of calories as fat contained less than 20 g of animal fat, no more than 8 oz. of lean meat/day and 4 eggs/week, and oil with at least 48% polyunsaturates. The fatty acid composition should be below 14% of calories as saturates and more than 15% polyunsaturates. The diet should contain less than 450 mg of cholesterol. An effective moderate fat diet (30% of calories) contained under 10% saturates and over 13% polyunsaturates.