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Fatty Foods Don't Always Harm the Heart
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - A study
of nomadic tribes in Africa suggests that people who combine a
diet rich in saturated fat but low in total calories with vigorous
exercise may not be damaging their hearts as much as previously
believed.
Despite their fatty diets, the Fulani of Nigeria had healthy
cholesterol levels, according to Dr. Robert H. Glew, from the
University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, and colleagues. The researchers
suggest the finding can be attributed to the population's high
activity level, low-calorie intake and lack of smoking.
Glew's team took blood samples from 121 Fulani men and women
aged 15 to 77 and measured total, LDL (''bad'') and HDL (''good'')
cholesterol, as well as several vitamins, and homocysteine--a
protein associated with heart disease risk. They also assessed
the population's nutrient intake.
Overall, men consumed about 6,980 kilojoules (kJ) daily--about
1,670 calories--and women consumed 6,213 kJ daily--about 1,485
calories--of which nearly one-half came from fat. And about half
of total fat calories were derived from saturated fat. In the
US, individuals are advised to consume no more than 30% of their
calories from fat, of which no more than 10% should come from
saturated fat.
The dietary protein content of the Fulani was also found to be
higher than US-recommended levels. Women derived about 16% and
men derived about 20% of their calories from protein, the researchers
report in a recent issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
US dietary guidelines advise that no more than 15% of daily calories
come from protein.
What's more, the typical Fulani diet contained only one third
of the level of folate recommended in the US and lower-than-recommended
levels of vitamins C and B-6. These vitamins have been linked
to a protective effect on the heart.
Despite all of this, participants' average levels of total cholesterol
and HDL cholesterol fell within US recommended levels, while average
LDL fell below recommended levels. The average body mass index
(BMI), a measure of weight and height, was about 20. A BMI of
at least 25 is generally considered to be overweight.
``Despite a diet high in saturated fat, Fulani adults have a
lipid profile indicative of a low risk of cardiovascular disease,''
Glew and colleagues write. ``This finding is likely due to their
high activity level and their low total energy intake.''
It is not clear why a diet rich in fat and saturated fat was
not associated with elevated cholesterol and heart disease risk
but the authors suggest that an overall low intake of calories
and a lifestyle marked by physical activity and no tobacco use
mitigates the effects of such a diet. Alternatively, genetic factors
unique to the Fulani could be at work.
They also note that most of the current recommendations regarding
heart disease risk factors are based on studies conducted in Western
nations, where the majority of individuals are relatively sedentary.
Studies on populations such as the Fulani are rare.
``Our...findings with the Fulani do not support the dogma of
the past 50 years that high-fat diets necessarily raise cholesterol
concentrations,'' the researchers conclude.
SOURCE: American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2001;74:730-736.
Reference
Source 89
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