Elevated cholesterol is not the only important risk factor for heart disease, but doctors do consider it significant. That puts people with high cholesterol in a quandary. Should they take a prescription medication to lower their cholesterol, or might they use a more natural approach? One reader asked about plant stanol esters. These natural compounds can reduce blood cholesterol levels significantly.
Will Plant Stanol Esters Lower Your Cholesterol?
Q. I was surprised that you didn’t include a reference to plant stanol esters in your answer to a question about lowering cholesterol. Six years ago my husband’s cholesterol was at 385. We didn’t want him to take statins because of interactions with other health problems.
His cardiologist recommended that he use at least one tablespoon of Benecol at each meal and make some other dietary changes. This brought his cholesterol down to 185 and the balance of HDL versus LDL was restored to a level.
A. The FDA has concluded that stanol esters can lower cholesterol and reduce the risk of heart disease. Spreads such as Benecol contain these plant products.
We are delighted to learn that the dietary changes your husband made had such a profound impact on his cholesterol levels. In most cases, people who consume about 2 grams of plant stanol esters per day lower their LDL cholesterol by about 10 percent (Rosin et al, Cholesterol, Oct. 12, 2015). Your husband was able to get a much bigger bang for his buck.
Other Foods That Contain Plant Stanol Esters:
Benecol margarine is not the only food that has been formulated to provide additional plant stanol esters. The same manufacturer has created a cereal-based snack bar that provides 1.6 grams of these plant compounds when consumed twice a day (Sarkkinen et al, Cholesterol, May 2, 2018). Finnish researchers determined that people consuming such snack bars lower their LDL cholesterol by approximately 8 percent and non-LDL cholesterol by about 9 percent. Other food companies have created yogurt-like drinks containing plant stanol esters. These lower cholesterol by a roughly similar amount (Salo & Kuusisto, Cholesterol,Feb. 21, 2016).
Natural sources of plant stanol esters include Brussels sprouts, olive oil, wheat germ and almonds. Regularly including some of these foods in the diet along with food products developed to lower cholesterol might well help reduce blood levels of LDL. For most people, however, the amount of cholesterol lowering is modest and would not compare to the effects from taking a statin medication.
Revised 6/28/18
