Good news for middle-aged and older women. Butter your toast, eat your ice cream, you don't have to deny yourselves some of the little pleasures in life to stay healthy.
Study finds no major benefits of low-fat diet.
A low-fat diet did not reduce older women's risk of breast cancer, colorectal cancer, or heart disease, according to a long-awaited $415 million government-funded study that creates uncertainty about exactly what Americans should eat to prevent disease.
From the Washington Post
"Based on our findings, we cannot recommend that most women should follow a low-fat diet," said Jacques Rossouw of the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, which funded the $415 million study.
Although the study involved only women, the findings probably apply to men as well, he said.
Several experts cautioned, however, that the study hints that there still may be some benefits to reducing the total amount of fat in the diet, especially for breast cancer. In addition, there is clear evidence from this and other studies that particular fats -- saturated fats from meat and trans fats from processed foods -- are unhealthful and should be avoided.