Functional Medicine

Question 1

does dietary cholesterol raise blood cholesterol?

Answer 1

in 75% of the population, no
about 25% of people are hyper-responders

in this group, dietary cholesterol does modestly increase both LDL and HDL, but it does not affect the ratio of LDL to HDL or increase the risk of heart disease

https://chriskresser.com/the-diet-heart-myth-cholesterol-and-saturated-fat-are-not-the-enemy/

Question 2

cholesterol ratios

Answer 2

your cholesterol ratio is calculated by dividing your total cholesterol by your HDL cholesterol. For example, if your total cholesterol is 180 and your HDL is 60, your cholesterol ratio is 3

https://www.verywellhealth.com/cholesterol-ratio-5189761

Question 3

Non-HDL cholesterol

Answer 3

the amount of HDL cholesterol subtracted from your total cholesterol. It includes LDL cholesterol and other types of cholesterol such as very-low-density lipoprotein—or VLDL—cholesterol

https://www.verywellhealth.com/cholesterol-ratio-5189761

Question 4

The optimal cholesterol ratio is

Answer 4

Between 3.5 and 1

Question 5

Normal cholesterol ratio

Answer 5

a ratio of 5 or below is considered normal

Question 6

what does the research say:

does saturated fat increase the risk of heart attack?

Answer 6

The studies that show saturated fat intake increase cholesterol levels are short-term controlled diet trials, in which volunteers are fed different fats for 2-13 weeks and their blood cholesterol measured

Nearly every high-quality (prospective) observational study ever conducted found that saturated fat intake is not associated with heart attack risk. So if saturated fat increases blood cholesterol, and higher blood cholesterol is associated with an increased risk of having a heart attack, then why don’t people who eat more saturated fat have more heart attacks?

Question 7

who no longer recommends low-fat diet?

Answer 7

the founder of the diet-heart hypothesis said (10):

Dietary cholesterol has an important effect on the cholesterol level in the blood of chickens and rabbits, but many controlled experiments have shown that dietary cholesterol has a limited effect in humans. Adding cholesterol to a cholesterol-free diet raises the blood level in humans, but when added to an unrestricted diet, it has a minimal effect.