Under the headline "Olive oil health benefits questioned," the news media recently reported that a new study in mice suggests this may not be true. According to a report in the November issue of Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology, a publication of the American Heart Association, mice fed a diet containing monounsaturated fats were more likely to develop atherosclerosis than mice fed a diet containing saturated fat, which is more common in butter and meat, or mice fed polyunsaturated fat, the type of fat found mostly in vegetable oil. The mice were prone to heart disease because they were genetically engineered to have high blood levels of LDL ("bad") cholesterol,
One study in genetically abnormal mice does not negate dozens of studies in humans and multiple species of laboratory animals that monounsaturated fats are okay. Mice are considered one of the less reliable animal models for atherosclerosis, but their ease of manipulation by genetic engineers is increasing their use in many areas where they would not normally be studied. It has been known for 35 years that polyunsaturated fat is best at lowering total cholesterol. The problem is that polys also lower HDL cholesterol so that the ratio of good:bad cholesterol does not improve. Monounsaturated fats do not lower HDL cholesterol and sometimes lower total cholesterol so the ratio improves. I say sometimes because the effect depends on the rest of the diet. Pouring olive oil on steaks does not make a healthy diet. The so-called Mediterranean diet specifically refers to the diet of Crete in the 1950s and early 1960s. Crete is a poor, farming island where the diet is characterized by little meat, lots of olive oil, fruits, vegetables, fish but especially by lots of hard physical work.
Farmers in the U.S. historically have some of the worst diets for cardiovascular risk. Lots of whole milk, eggs, etc. However, farmers have significantly less heart disease than the general public, and it is assumed this is due to the hard work they do. So this study may be interesting for scientists in the field but it has zero practical significance for dietary recommendations.
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