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FOOD FOR THOUGHT

High cholesterol ‘can help you live longer and lower heart disease risk’

However claims have been panned by boffins as critics say study has 'serious weaknesses'

PEOPLE with high cholesterol live longer and face a lower risk of heart disease, a study claims.

Researchers found no link between “bad cholesterol” and premature death in the over-60s, and said using statins to combat it was a “total waste of time”.

Researchers found 92 per cent of people with high cholesterol lived longer
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Researchers found 92 per cent of people with high cholesterol lived longerCredit: Rex Features
The study's authors said using statins to combat premature death is a waste of time and that changes to lifestyle are the best way to prolong life
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The study's authors said using statins to combat premature death is a waste of time and that changes to lifestyle are the best way to prolong lifeCredit: Getty Images

Changes to lifestyle were the best way to stay well, they said.

Study co-author Professor Sherif Sultan said a review of studies of more than 68,000 people found 92 per cent with high cholesterol lived longer.

He said the fatty substance guarded against cancer, cataracts, muscle pain and fatigue in the elderly.

Government boffins are reviewing advice on saturated fats in food such as butter, cheese and processed meat
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Government boffins are reviewing advice on saturated fats in food such as butter, cheese and processed meatCredit: Getty Images
One cardiologist says sugar, not saturated fat, is the 'No1 dietary culprit'
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One cardiologist says sugar, not saturated fat, is the 'No1 dietary culprit'Credit: Getty Images

But Oxford University Professor Colin Baigent said the study had “serious weaknesses”. Cambridge University Professor John Danesh called it “crude”.

Meanwhile government boffins are reviewing advice on saturated fats in food such as butter, cheese and processed meat.

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High consumption has been linked to heart disease for decades.

But cardiologist Aseem Malhotra said: “Saturated fat has been wrongly demonised. Sugar is the No1 dietary culprit.”

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