Small cholesterol drop, big gains for IHD.
A modest decrease in serum cholesterol can reduce the risk of ischaemic heart disease by 50 per cent, London researchers report. They analysed data on the incidence of ischaemic heart disease and serum cholesterol concentrations from ten prospective studies, three international studies, and 28 randomised controlled trials. From these they measured the decrease in the incidence of ischaemic heart disease or mortality for a 0.6mmol/ litre (about 10 per cent) decrease in cholesterol.