DIETARY OILS, SERUM-LIPOPROTEINS, AND CORONARY HEART-DISEASE (REPRINTED FROM AM J CLIN NUTR, VOL 60, PG 1017S-1022S, 1994)

Variable amounts of olive oil rather than hard fats were used in class ic Mediterranean diets. We review the effects of replacing hard fats w ith olive oils or starchy foods on blood lipoprotein concentrations. T he saturated fatty acids lauric, myristic, and palmitic acids raise bo th low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) so mewhat compared with oleic acid. If any fat is replaced by carbohydrat es, fasting triglyceride values rise and HDL concentrations fall; effe cts on LDL depend on the type of fat that is being replaced. Trans iso mers of oleic acid lower HDL and raise LDL and lipoprotein(a). The fat ty acids in unhydrogenated fish oil potently lower triglycerides but m ay raise LDL somewhat. When body weight is forcibly kept constant, sub stitution of unsaturated oils such as olive oil for hard fats rich in saturated or trans fatty acids will produce a more favorable lipoprote in profile than replacement of fat by carbohydrates. However, high-oil diets might lead to obesity, which would undo their favorable effects .