Saturated fat from cheese may not be so bad for your cholesterol

There is good evidence that eating too much saturated fat raises both total and bad (LDL) cholesterol -- the blood fats that lodge in artery walls, encouraging dangerous plaque buildup. Saturated fatty acids (there are 6 types) are found mainly in animal foods like meat, butter and cheese but are also found in some plant foods like coconut, palm and hydrogenated vegetable oils/fat often used by the food industry. There is emerging evidence that not all foods high in saturated fat may raise your cholesterol. An Australian study, conducted by the Baker Institute, showed that butter raised blood cholesterol significantly (from 5.6mmol/l to 6 mmol/l) after 4 weeks whereas the cheese eating group did not have significant changes to their blood cholesterol. The subjects consumed 40g of dairy fat daily for 4 weeks - this is equivalent to about 50g butter and 120g regular cheese.
This was a small study (20 subjects), but it confirms the results of two others done in cheese-loving Denmark and Norway.

A 3 week feeding study on 22 adults, published in the British Journal of Nutrition in November 2004 (Biong AS et al) showed that consuming a diet containing about 160g cheese per day (about 8 thin slices) elevated blood cholesterol less than consuming a diet containing 55g butter per day (about 3 tablespoons) even though saturated fat intake was the same on both diets. Subjects had significantly lower blood cholesterol when consuming the cheese diet than when consuming the butter diet. The researchers hypothesise that cheese may be less cholesterol-raising than butter because of its higher calcium content or because of changes that occur during the fermentation process of cheese making.

Still, it's not a license to go wild on cheese. The French stay slim not necessarily because they love cheese and wine, but because their typical portion sizes are much smaller than portion sizes in Australia and the United States. Also, this study needs to be replicated on a larger sample.

Furthermore, there is emerging evidence that plant sources of saturated fatty acids may not be as harmful as animal sources due to the differing composition of saturated fatty acids (the former containing more short chain fatty acids and the latter more long chain fatty acids). Until we understand the science behind saturated fatty acids a little better, limit your intake of butter if trying to lower or maintain your cholesterol level and include moderate amounts of cheese in your diet (prefer reduced fat high calcium cheese if trying to lose weight or eat small portions of regular cheese) and include more unrefined plant fats. Ricotta and cottage cheese are low fat but they are low to moderate in calcium.

Last Updated: September 2006