Think Again About Cholesterol

A 1989 article in the New England Journal of Medicine (April 6, pp.904-909) presented the following all-cause death rates for the corresponding cholesterol levels:

Cholesterol
Levels
All-cause Deaths
per 10,000 Individuals
180-189 172
160-179 174
140-159 196
< 140 308

Russell L. Smith PhD, Letter to the Editor, Townsend Letter for Doctors, Jan.1993


Comment: Specific lipids, in conjunction with the immune system, play a critical role in the body's defense mechanism. Cholesterol is one of these lipids. Hence, the lower the cholesterol the greater the compromise in the defense and the higher the death rate from all causes. Ever since high cholesterol has been associated with heart disease there is the erroneous assumption that "the lower the cholesterol the better." This study provides statistical evidence to the contrary.

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