New Cholesterol Guidelines

It’s a major shift in medical thinking. For decades our doctors and our governments have warned against eating foods high in cholesterol. Now it turns out they may have been wrong. The Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee in the U.S. intends to remove restrictions on cholesterol intake in the 2015 Dietary Guidelines For Americans. Until now, the recommendation was to limit cholesterol to 300 milligrams per day — the amount in two small eggs, or a 10-ounce  steak.

Medical experts used to believe that eating too much cholesterol could raise the risk of heart attack and stroke by contributing to plaque buildup in the arteries. But now they are saying there is no evidence of a relationship between the cholesterol in your food and the cholesterol in your bloodstream. And their conclusion is that there is no need to worry about eating too much of it.

But while cholesterol will be getting a free pass, the saturated fat that usually accompanies it is not.

In fact, experts recommend eating less than before.

They now say calories from saturated fat should make up about eight percent of a person’s daily calorie intake, compared to the 2010 guidelines that advised 10 percent.

An average person, eating 2,000 calories per day, would hit the saturated fat limit with a few spoonfuls of butter, or  a seven-ounce steak. But you could eat an entire dozen eggs before going