Editing Atherosclerosis (section)

=== Dietary ===
The relation between dietary fat and atherosclerosis is controversial. The [[United States Department of Agriculture|USDA]], in its [[food guide pyramid|food pyramid]], promotes a diet of about 64% [[carbohydrate]]s from total calories. The [[American Heart Association]],  the [[American Diabetes Association]], and the [[National Cholesterol Education Program]] make similar recommendations. In contrast, Prof [[Walter Willett]] (Harvard School of Public Health, [[Principal investigator|PI]] of the second [[Nurses' Health Study]]) recommends much higher levels of fat, especially of [[Monounsaturated fat|monounsaturated]] and [[polyunsaturated fat]].<ref name="titleFood Pyramids: Nutrition Source, Harvard School of Public Health">{{cite web|url=http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/pyramids.html |title=Food Pyramids: Nutrition Source, Harvard School of Public Health |access-date=2007-11-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071226085222/http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/pyramids.html |archive-date=26 December 2007 }}</ref> These dietary recommendations reach a consensus, though, against consumption of [[trans fat]]s.{{citation needed|date=December 2020}}

The role of eating oxidized fats ([[rancidification|rancid fats]]) in humans is not clear.
Rabbits fed rancid fats develop atherosclerosis faster.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Staprãns I, Rapp JH, Pan XM, Hardman DA, Feingold KR | title = Oxidized lipids in the diet accelerate the development of fatty streaks in cholesterol-fed rabbits | journal = Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology | volume = 16 | issue = 4 | pages = 533–538 | date = April 1996 | pmid = 8624775 | doi = 10.1161/01.atv.16.4.533 }}</ref> Rats fed [[Docosahexaenoic acid|DHA]]-containing oils experienced marked disruptions to their [[antioxidant]] systems, and accumulated significant amounts of [[phospholipid]] [[hydroperoxide]] in their blood, livers and kidneys.<ref name=SongJH>{{cite journal | vauthors = Song JH, Fujimoto K, Miyazawa T | title = Polyunsaturated (n-3) fatty acids susceptible to peroxidation are increased in plasma and tissue lipids of rats fed docosahexaenoic acid-containing oils | journal = The Journal of Nutrition | volume = 130 | issue = 12 | pages = 3028–3033 | date = December 2000 | pmid = 11110863 | doi = 10.1093/jn/130.12.3028 | doi-access = free }}</ref>

Rancid fats and oils taste very unpleasant in even small amounts, so people avoid eating them.<ref name=pmid16249011>{{cite journal | vauthors = Mattes RD | title = Fat taste and lipid metabolism in humans | journal = Physiology & Behavior | volume = 86 | issue = 5 | pages = 691–697 | date = December 2005 | pmid = 16249011 | doi = 10.1016/j.physbeh.2005.08.058 | quote = The rancid odor of an oxidized fat is readily detectable }}</ref>
Measuring or estimating the actual human consumption of these substances is challenging.<ref name=pmid12589185>{{cite journal | vauthors = Dobarganes C, Márquez-Ruiz G | title = Oxidized fats in foods | journal = Current Opinion in Clinical Nutrition and Metabolic Care | volume = 6 | issue = 2 | pages = 157–163 | date = March 2003 | pmid = 12589185 | doi = 10.1097/00075197-200303000-00004 }}</ref> Highly unsaturated [[Omega-3 fatty acid|omega-3]] rich oils such as fish oil, when being sold in pill form, can hide the taste of oxidized or rancid fat that might be present. In the US, the health food industry's dietary supplements are self-regulated and outside of FDA regulations.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.fda.gov/Food/DietarySupplements/default.htm |title=Dietary Supplements |website=[[Food and Drug Administration]] |date=4 February 2020}}</ref> To protect unsaturated fats from oxidation, it is best to keep them cool and in oxygen-free environments.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Khan-Merchant N, Penumetcha M, Meilhac O, Parthasarathy S | title = Oxidized fatty acids promote atherosclerosis only in the presence of dietary cholesterol in low-density lipoprotein receptor knockout mice | journal = The Journal of Nutrition | volume = 132 | issue = 11 | pages = 3256–3262 | date = November 2002 | pmid = 12421837 | doi = 10.1093/jn/132.11.3256 | doi-access = free | author-link4 = Sampath Parthasarathy }}</ref>