Saturated fat raises heart risk?

Common sense tells us that saturated fatty acids found in animal fat and vegetable oils may  boost risk of heart disease and stroke and most people should do whatever it takes to avoid them. But a Japanese study suggests these fatty acids may actually be beneficial. 

The study, which was first published online Aug 4 in American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, shows people who had  a high intake of saturated fatty acids were less likely to die from stroke. 

Kazumasa Yamagishi and colleagues from the University of Tsukuba in Tsukuba, Japan examined data from the Japan Collaborative Cohort Study for Evaluation of Cancer Risk, which involved 58,453 Japanese men and women ages 40 to 79 years at baseline between 1988 and 1990.  The participants were followed for 14.1 years on average. 

The researchers found an inverse association of saturated fatty acids with mortality from total stroke. Those whose intake registered in the highest quintile were 31 percent less likely to suffer stroke compared to those whose intake was in the lowest quintile. 

Highest intake of saturated fatty acids was associated with a 52 percent reduction in the risk of intraparenchymal hemorrhage and a 42 percent reduction in the risk of ischemic stroke. 

Saturated fatty acids may also help reduce the risk of death from heart disease and subarachnoid hemorrhage in those with highest intake by 9 percent and 11 percent respectively, compared to the lowest intake.  But the associations were considered statistically insignificant. 

The researchers concluded "SFA (saturated fatty acids) intake was inversely associated with mortality from total stroke, including intraparenchymal hemorrhage and ischemic stroke subtypes, in this Japanese cohort."

Jimmy Downs and editing by Rachel Stockton
http://www.foodconsumer.org/newsite/Safety/chemical/saturated_fat_raises_heart_risk_1110101136.html