Lower cholesterol levels are better. For about 40 years now, the Federal government and the top medical organizations in America have been promoting that message with fervent zeal. They have scared us with stories of fat clogged arteries, massive heart attacks and generally threatened us into lowering our intake of saturated fats and fats in general. The message is repeated constantly: eat more whole grains, vegetables and fruit, and avoid red meat and whole fat milk products.

And we have listened. On the advice of our physicians, millions of us have cut back on the fatty foods we enjoy, taken dangerous statin drugs, and eaten tons of vegetables to lower cholesterol levels. We eat so many vegetables that the demand has driven up the price, and today, many vegetables are more expensive per pound than meat.

And now, 40 years later, the results are in. What has been the outcome of our diligence and focus on lower cholesterol and dietary fat consumption?

Skyrocketing rates of disease. The United States, in spite of the fact that billions of dollars are spent each year on disease research, dietary education and health care, is one of the sickest nations in the industrialized world. Here are some of the facts:

• The US has higher heart disease mortality rates than many other developed nations. And they aren't just a little higher. For example, American rates are 55% higher than France's rates, even though the French eat 4 times more saturated fat. (World Health Organization statistics)
• The prevalence of diabetes in the US has skyrocketed, increasing by 200% since 1980. (CDC statistics)
• Huge sums of money have been spent on cancer research in the past 30 years, yet the US rates of cancer mortality have not diminished, and if the advances for treatment are factored in, it may have actually gone up. (CDC statistics)
• An estimated 5 million Americans have Alzheimer's disease. This number has doubled since 1980, and is expected to be as high as 13.4 million by 2050. (CDC statistics)

In fact, the US adult mortality rate (AMR), which is defined as the probability of dying between the ages of 15 - 60 years, is higher than every other industrial nation. In 2006, the US AMR was 109/1000. This means that 109 Americans out of every 1000 died before the age of 61 because of a health issue or injury. To compare, the AMR in Italy is only 64 out of 1000. And in Japan, the AMR is a low 67. As you can see by just this simple statistic, something is very wrong.

In looking at the larger picture of disease in the US, one comes to realize a simple fact: as the US consumption of saturated fats and cholesterol have declined, the rates of disease related deaths have increased.

If you spend time reading about the causative factors associated with the diseases that plague us, at some point, you find that lower cholesterol levels are connected in some way.

• No longer can we say that high cholesterol levels cause heart disease. Research has shown there is no link. However, we can say that low levels of cholesterol contribute to increased inflammation in the body, which IS related to heart disease.
• We can also say that the high carb, low fat, low cholesterol diet recommended by the experts has contributed in a major way to the epidemics of diabetes and obesity in the US.
• Low cholesterol levels are being investigated as a causative factor in Alzheimer's disease. It seems that cholesterol molecules are needed to prevent brain cells from being destroyed by the oxidative processes associated with metabolism.
• In the first of several studies on cholesterol lowering drugs, researchers halted the trials when it was found that the treatment groups were experiencing higher rates of cancer.

The dietary advice promoted by our national health institutions and medical professionals has done more to harm the American public than any other factor over the past 40 years. Our hospitals and doctors' offices are overrun with people who have listened to these "experts".

So the burning question is this: If lower cholesterol levels are so good, why is our collective health so bad after 40 years of cholesterol lowering efforts?

Ellen Davis researches nutrition and health issues and shares that information with other health conscious consumers. You can find more alternative information about real nutrition and alternative health at her website Healthy Eating Politics. The URL is http://www.healthy-eating-politics.com