Whether plant-based diets help in lowering cholesterol or not continues to remain one of the debatable topics in medical science. The growing number of people with abnormal cholesterol levels is another reason why several theories around this have developed. Many people believe that completely avoiding animal products will reduce cholesterol levels automatically. We spoke to experts on this matter.
A recent meta-study published in the European Heart Journal found that plant-based diets helped in a 7% reduction in total cholesterol and a 14% reduction in all artery-blocking lipoproteins and hence reduced the risk of heart diseases in people by 5 years. For the study, the results of 30 different randomized trials published between 1980 and 2022 investigating the effect of plant-based diets on cholesterol were analyzed.
