New possibilities to influence blood lipids and atherosclerosis-proneness with semi-synthetic fats.

Notwithstanding the universally accepted concept that atherosclerosis is a multifactorial disease, our research since thirty years convinced us of the validity of the fat diet theory in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. Experiments with semi-synthetic fats enable us to stress the importance of quantitatively and qualitatively modified fat diets, not only in their fatty acid composition, but also in the specific triglyceride structure. Experiences comparing randomized butterfat with natural butterfat and administration of polyunsaturated fatty acid rich fats with monoglycerides, led to comprehensive explanations about the mechanism of monoglyceride assimilation and about the beneficial effect of randomized butterfat in long term experiments.