Denke, M., Adams-Huet, B., Nguyen, A. Individual Cholesterol Variation in Response to a Margarine- or Butter-Based Diet. Journal of the American Medical Association. December 6, 2000. Vol. 284. No. 2. 2740-2747.

This recent study confirmed that simple dietary substitutions make a difference in lowering cholesterol levels, not only in adults but also in children. The study, compared the dietary responsiveness of entire families to a margarine (unsaturated fat) and butter (saturated fat) based diet. This groundbreaking research revealed that the entire family can benefit from a heart-healthy diet, as cholesterol levels were dramatically lowered in adults and children when they switched from butter to margarine. Compared to butter, the margarine based diet lowered levels of LDL (bad) cholesterol by an average of 11 percent in adults and 9 percent in children. In fact, the results show that making the switch from butter to margarine can be as effective as cholesterol-lowering medication for some individuals. Total cholesterol was lowered as well and HDL (good) cholesterol was not affected.