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Atherosclerosis

Lower your cholesterol early, and stick with it!

Consumption of a high-fat diet leads to the progressive growth of atherosclerotic lesions. Two new studies document that, despite similar overall exposure to high-fat diet over a lifetime, an intermittent consumption of high-fat diet early in life accelerates atherosclerosis compared with continuous consumption of a high-fat diet. The mechanisms for accelerated atherosclerosis include reprogramming of macrophages and neutrophils.

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Fig. 1: Intermittent high-fat diet and atherosclerosis.

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Correspondence to Filip K. Swirski or Christoph J. Binder.

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Swirski, F.K., Binder, C.J. Lower your cholesterol early, and stick with it!. Nat Rev Cardiol 22, 69–70 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41569-024-01095-x

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