New Guidelines May Remove Dietary Cholesterol Limitations

The 2015 edition of Dietary Guidelines for Americans may find the current limitations on dietary cholesterol lifted.

The Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, appointed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), has recommended that restrictions on dietary cholesterol be removed from the upcoming edition of the Dietary Guidelines, which has been published jointly by the HHS and the USDA every 5 years since 1980. The guidelines are designed to encourage Americans to eat a healthy diet, focusing on foods and beverages that help achieve and maintain a healthy weight, promote health, and prevent disease.
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The committee’s recommendations are based on its most recent report, which examined food and nutrient intakes by the U.S. population, the food and eating environment, and prevalence of chronic health conditions, for example.

The committee analyzed data from sources including the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, the SEARCH for Diabetes in Youth Study, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention population-based birth defects surveillance system, the National Health Interview Survey, and the Alzheimer’s Association.

Based on intake data, taken together with nutritional biomarker and health outcomes data, the committee identified nutrients that may pose a public health concern. The group noted that sodium is over-consumed across the entire U.S. population, and found that saturated fat is over-consumed and may pose the greatest risk to those over the age of 50. Cholesterol, however, is not considered a nutrient of concern for overconsumption, according to the committee, which analyzed nutrient intakes and nutrients of concern for under- or over-consumption.

In contrast, the committee also found that vitamin D, calcium, potassium, and fiber are under-consumed across the entire U.S. population.

—Mark McGraw