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Vetten tegen hart- en vaatziekte*
In tegenstelling tot wat al jaren wordt gezegd blijken niet vetten, ook niet de verzadigde te zorgen voor hartproblemen in tegendeel zelfs zo blijkt uit een studie onder ruim 218.000 mensen, die gepresenteerd werd op een congres in München van de European Society of Cardiology. De hoofdonderzoeker van de studie is een cardioloog van de McMaster universiteit in Canada. Voeding rijk aan vetten in vlees en zuivel geven, zo blijkt uit de studie, wel 25% minder kans op hartproblemen en 22% minder kans op een hartaanval. De theorie dat verzadigd vet zorgt voor aderverkalking en meer vaatwandstijfheid blijkt gewoon niet juist te zijn, zo zeggen de onderzoekers, wel is het oppassen met geraffineerde koolhydraten want die kunnen beter vermeden worden om hartproblemen te voorkomen.
(Hier kunt u de presentatie zien.)
Een andere studie onder 2.900 senioren die 22 jaar gevolgd werden bevestigt de resultaten van de voorgaande studie. Het eten van volvette zuivelproducten zorgt in tegenstelling tot vetarme producten voor een kleinere kans om dood te gaan aan hart- en vaatziektes en zelfs ruim 40% minder kans om dood te gaan aan een beroerte. 
De studie. (Oktober 2018)

Saturated fats guard against heart disease, top cardiologists told 
The world's leading cardiologists have been told that the advice they've been handing out for 30 years about heart health is wrong: far from causing heart disease, saturated fats from cheese and red meat protect us from ever getting the condition and could cut the risk of an early death by 25 per cent.
The amount we eat can be safely doubled from the levels that current dietary guidelines advise so, for instance, we can have 4.5 oz a day of red meat—equivalent to a small steak—every day and not the 2.5 oz currently being recommended.
Those who are eating more meat and dairy have a 25 per cent lower risk of heart disease, and a 22 per cent reduced risk of a heart attack, leading cardiologists have been told at their annual conference.
Researcher Andrew Mente from McMaster University in Canada has told the cardiologists that the theory that saturated fats clog arteries and cause atherosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries, is just plain wrong. On the contrary, saturated fats from meat and dairy seems to have a protective effect.
The best healthy-heart diet would include three servings a day of dairy products, such as cheese, and one-and-a-half of meat, plus eight servings of fruit and vegetables, and two-and-a-half portions of nuts and beans.
Analysing the results of a study involving more than 218,000 people, Mente and his team have concluded that the foods to avoid are the refined carbohydrates.

Full-fat dairy may actually benefit heart health
Popular belief has it — and even some governmental authorities on nutrition agree — that we should avoid full-fat dairy products due to their high content of saturated fats. But, a new study boldly challenges these claims.
Whole-fat dairy does not raise cardiovascular risk. Conversely, some fats present in certain dairy products might even keep stroke and heart disease at bay.
This is the main takeaway of a recent study led by Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian, from the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University in Boston, MA.
With their findings, Dr. Mozaffarian and team challenge not only popular opinions, but also the stance of governmental organizations such as the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.
The two bodies advise people to avoid full-fat dairy due to its impact on cholesterol levels. The saturated fats found in whole-fat dairy products, warn the USDA, raise levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, also known as the "bad" kind of cholesterol.
In time, high LDL cholesterol may lead to cardiovascular conditions such as atherosclerosis or coronary artery disease.
However, the new study turns the idea that full-fat dairy is bad for you on its head. The surprising findings were published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 
Marcia Otto, who is an assistant professor in the Department of Epidemiology, Human Genetics, and Environmental Sciences at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, is the first and corresponding author of the paper.
Dairy fat may prevent heart disease, stroke
To study the effect of dairy on mortality risk and cardiovascular health, Dr. Mozaffarian and team examined over 2,900 U.S. seniors, aged 65 and above.
The researchers measured the participants' blood plasma levels of three fatty acids contained by dairy products at the beginning of the study in 1992, 6 years later, and then 13 years later.
Associations with "total mortality, cause-specific mortality, and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk" were examined.
During the 22-year follow-up period, 2,428 of the participants died. Of these deaths, 833 were due to heart disease.
However, none of the three fatty acids examined correlated with the risk of total mortality. In fact, high circulating levels of heptadecanoic fatty acid were associated with a lower risk of death from heart disease.
Also, adults with higher levels of fatty acids overall were 42 percent less likely to die from stroke, revealed the analysis.
Dietary guidelines should be revised
According to the study's corresponding author, the findings suggest that current dietary guidelines need to be amended.
The 2015–2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans issued by the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion recommend the consumption of "fat-free and low-fat (1 percent) dairy, including milk, yogurt, cheese, or fortified soy beverages (commonly known as 'soymilk')."
However, Otto disagrees. "Consistent with previous findings," she says, "our results highlight the need to revisit current dietary guidance on whole fat dairy foods, which are rich sources of nutrients such as calcium and potassium."
"These are essential for health not only during childhood but throughout life, particularly also in later years when undernourishment and conditions like osteoporosis are more common," adds the researcher.
"[D]airy fat, contrary to popular belief, does not increase [the] risk of heart disease or overall mortality in older adults. In addition [...], the results suggest that one fatty acid present in dairy may lower risk of death from cardiovascular disease, particularly from stroke."
Marcia Otto
She adds, "Consumers have been exposed to so much different and conflicting information about diet, particularly in relation to fats," and she highlights the fact that "a growing body of evidence" suggests that dairy fat is actually good for you.
"It's [...] important to have robust studies, so people can make more balanced and informed choices based on scientific fact rather than hearsay," Otto concludes.