THE EFFECT OF A VIRTUALLY CHOLESTEROL‐FREE, HIGH‐LINOLEIC‐ACID VEGETARIAN DIET ON SERUM LIPOPROTEINS OF CHILDREN WITH FAMILIAL HYPERCHOLESTEROLEMIA (TYPE II‐A)

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Abstract
The effect of a virtually cholesterol-free, high-linoleic-acid vegetarian diet and a high-linoleic-acid normal diet with a moderate cholesterol content was tested in 39 children heterozygous for hypercholesterolemia type II-A. The diets were administered in an outpatient cross-over design of 2 periods of 10 wk each and the serum lipoproteins were analyzed at the end of the two 10 wk periods. The vegetarian diet induced a decrease in serum concentrations of LDL[low-density lipoprotein]-II total and free cholesterol and of apo-B, by an average of 10%, whereas HDL [high-density lipoprotein] cholesterol and apo-A-I decreased by 4%. The disproportionately large change in LDL compared to the small change in HDL was interpreted as an antiatherogenic effect of the vegetarian diet.