A direct association between falling cholesterol levels and mortality in men and women aged between 31 and 65 years old

This study was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association 1987 Apr 24;257(16):2176-80.

Study title and authors:
Cholesterol and mortality. 30 years of follow-up from the Framingham study.
Anderson KM, Castelli WP, Levy D.

The paper can be accessed at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3560398?holding=ukpmc

Over a 4 year period cholesterol levels were measured in 1959 men and 2415 women aged between 31 and 65 years who were free of cardiovascular disease and cancer.

The study found:
(a) There is a direct association between falling cholesterol levels over the first 14 years and an increase in total death rates over the following 18 years (11% increase per 1 mg/dL per year drop in cholesterol levels)
(b) There is a direct association between falling cholesterol levels over the first 14 years and an increase in cardiovascular death rates over the following 18 years (14% increase per 1 mg/dL per year drop in cholesterol levels) 

The paper illustrates that if your cholesterol levels fall you have a greatly increased risk of dying - and an even greater risk of dying from cardiovascular disease, and the more your cholesterol levels fall the bigger the risk of premature death.

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