Fiber, hypercholesteremia, and atherosclerosis.

Epidemiological data suggest that populations subsisting on high fiber diets are free of a number of the diseases of Western civilization, among them coronary heart disease. Studies in animals and man show that each type of fiber exerts its own specific influence. Thus, in man bran has no effect on serum lipids, but pectin lowers cholesterol levels. In animals fed atherogenic diets, alfalfa and pectin exert some measure of protection, but cellulose does not. To fully understand the mode of action of dietary fiber, it is necessary to ascertain the mechanism(s) of action of each chemical component of that fiber.