Scientists doubt saturated acids add heart disease risk

Some guidelines say people should lower fatty acid intake and choose "healthy" polyunsaturated fats, in order to reduce the risk of coronary disease. However, a new study published on Tuesday questioned that.

An international research collaboration, involving Cambridge University and researchers from America and the Netherlands, published this new study in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine, suggesting that the current level of evidence does not support guidelines restricting saturated fatty acid consumption to reduce coronary risk.

The researchers conducted a "meta-analysis" of data from 72 studies involving more than 600,000 participants from 18 countries. The key finding was that total saturated fat, whether measured in the diet or the bloodstream, showed no association with heart disease.

On the other hand, they found that levels of polyunsaturated fats such as omega 3 and omega 6 had no general effect on heart disease risk, while only omega-3 fatty acid found in oily fish was linked to a lower risk of heart disease.

Dr Rajiv Chowdhury, the lead author of the research at Cambridge University, said: "These are interesting results that potentially stimulate new lines of scientific inquiry and encourage careful reappraisal of our current nutritional guidelines."

According to experts, with millions of people affected by cardiovascular diseases, it is critical to have appropriate prevention guidelines which are informed by the best available scientific evidence.

Professor Jeremy Pearson from the British Heart Foundation commented that: "This analysis of existing data suggests there isn't enough evidence to say that a diet rich in polyunsaturated fats but low in saturated fats reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease."

He added large scale clinical studies are still needed before making a conclusive judgement.