Government's Cholesterol Guidelines
Support Margarine Over Butter

GOVERNMENT'S NEW CHOLESTEROL GUIDELINES CONTINUE THEIR SUPPORT OF MARGARINE PRODUCTS

ATLANTA (June 8, 2001) - Once again, margarine products have been chosen as the tablespread of choice for a heart-healthy diet. The newest guidelines from the government's National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) state that health-conscious consumers should select softer margarines (including liquid products) over butter for use as a tablespread. An executive summary of the new guidelines was published in the May 16 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

NCEP's "Third Report of the NCEP Expert Panel on Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Cholesterol in Adults," also known as Adult Treatment Panel (ATP) III, is the first major update from NCEP in nearly a decade. NCEP, which is coordinated by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), develops new guidelines as warranted by research advances. Earlier guidelines, issued in 1988 and 1993, contained similar recommendations for tablespreads.

"We were understandably pleased that these latest guidelines confirm what long-term research has demonstrated for years - that margarine products are much more heart-healthy than butter," says Sue Taylor, R.D. , director of nutrition communications for the National Association of Margarine Manufacturers.

In addition to changes in diagnostic and therapeutic changes recommended in these guidelines, an intensified use of nutrition, physical activity, and weight control in the treatment of elevated blood cholesterol is outlined in detail. All three of these lifestyle elements are combined into a new "Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes" (TLC) treatment plan. For the first time ever, ATP III recommends a more intense and effective eating plan than that previously used, including a recommended decrease in saturated fat and cholesterol consumption.

The new guidelines also allow up to 35 percent of daily calories from total fat, provided most is from unsaturated fat, which doesn't raise cholesterol levels. In an accompanying editorial, two JAMA editors write: "The 'cholesterol hypothesis' is no longer a hypothesis. There is no doubt that abnormal cholesterol levels cause major morbidity and mortality and that aggressive treatment saves lives."

The NCEP guidelines offer the following recommendations about use of fats and oils.

You can help keep your blood cholesterol low when you replace saturated fats with unsaturated fat. Just be sure to limit the total amount of fats or oils to keep calories in check. When buying fats and oils, remember to:

• Choose liquid vegetable oils that are high in unsaturated fats -- like canola, corn, olive, peanut, safflower, sesame, soybean, and sunflower oils.
• Buy margarine made with unsaturated liquid vegetable oils as the first ingredient. Choose soft tub or liquid margarine or vegetable oil spreads.
• Limit butter, lard, fatback, and solid shortenings. They are high in saturated fat and cholesterol.
• Buy light or nonfat mayonnaise and salad dressing instead of the regular kind that are high in fat. For example, two tablespoons of regular Italian dressing can add as many as 14 grams of fat.

Although these guidelines are directed toward adults, a Q and A about the guidelines also notes, "Everyone older than age 2 should care about cholesterol to reduce the risk of developing heart disease as an adult. Children as well as adults can improve the health of their hearts by following a low-saturated-fat and low-cholesterol diet, avoiding obesity, and being physically active." Taylor noted that this is advice that all consumers should take to heart, especially since recent margarine vs. butter research done with families (published in the December 6 issue of JAMA) demonstrated that margarine can lower total and LDL blood cholesterol levels in both adults and children.

For more information about research studies that support the NCEP's recommendations to select margarine over butter, check out http://www.margarine.org/research.html. The NCEP guidelines also can be found on the Internet at http://rover.nhlbi.nih.gov/chd/.

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