from British Medical Journal
There is more doubt about the benefit of
so-called heart healthy vegetable oils
compared to butter. Researchers at the
University of North Carolina School of
Medicine and National Institutes of Health
suggest that using oils high in linoleic acid,
while helping to lower cholesterol, might
be no better—or even worse--than butter
in preventing heart attacks. Researchers
caution that more research needs to be
done, but the latest evidence comes from
previously unpublished results of a study
in Minnesota nearly fifty years ago along
with review of all other similar studies.
Researchers say incomplete publication of
important data has contributed to the
overestimation of benefits of replacing
butter with vegetable oils and
underestimation of potential risks. The
study appears in the British Medical
Journal.