Coronary heart disease dietary guidelines

Food and Drug Administration (FDA) health claims" show that a relationship between a nutrient(s) or other substances and a disease or health-related condition, i.e., foods with soy protein, soluble fiber, and plant sterols, helps lower the risk of coronary heart disease (Table 8.5). These claims help individuals to select foods as either part of following recommended dietary guidelines, such as the TLC and Heart Healthy diets, or part of a self-treatment in response to You need to eat less fat and cholesterol and more fiber. ... 

The use of phytosterols as part of diet therapy to lower LDL-C and risk for CAD is supported by both the NCEP guidelines and the FDA s health claim about the relationship between the consumption of plant sterol and stand esters and reduced risk of coronary heart disease. This section briefly discusses the efficacy of the phytosterols as arguably the most effective dietary approach to lower plasma LDL-C in most types of subjects with the least impact on habitual diets. 

The physiological effects of vegetable oil are based on their fatty acid composition. Current US dietary guidelines recommend that diets contain less than 30% calories from fat, of which less than 10% is from saturated fat, 10-15% from monounsaturated acid, and 10% from polyunsaturated acids. The primary concerns with fatty acid consumption relate to two chronic diseases—coronary heart disease (CHD) and cancer. Research has shown that high levels of dietary saturated fatty acids are related to increased CHD and that dietary modification can lower plasma cholesterol. Consequent changes in cholesterol level can be predicted by the following relationship (Hegsted et al. 1993). 

A fat content of 20-35% is strongly recommended in the 2005 dietary guidelines for Americans released by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The fat in today s diet is about 40% saturated, 40% monounsaturated, and 20% polyunsaturated. Lowering the saturated and monounsaturated fat and raising the polyunsaturated fat content of the diet is also strongly recommended. What is the basis for these recommendations Heart disease is the primary cause of death in the United States (Section 17.1), and atherosclerosis, the buildup of fatty deposits called plaque on the inner walls of arteries, reduces the flow of hlood to the heart. If a coronary artery is blocked by plaque, a heart attack occurs as a result of the reduced blood flow carrying oxygen to the heart. About 98% of all heart attack victims have atherosclerosis, and the major components of atherosclerotic plaque are saturated fatty acids and cholesterol. 

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