On Mon, 7 Sep 1998, T. Martin wrote:

> Do we have any idea what the standard deviation is for the distribution
> of modern-HG cholesterol levels? Isn't is possible that those
> modern-HGs at the all-meat end of the spectrum have cholesterol levels
> closer to those of Stefansson than those of the mean (125)?

I believe the mean for the Samburu (the meat-and-milk people) is
150.  The Tutsi (another all-meat group) are lower than that.

> Is diet the only thing which affects cholesterol levels? If not,
> your dichotomy is false. When you refer to diet in this paragraph,
> I infer that you're speaking only of composition, and perhaps
> quantity. But perhaps frequency and time between feedings are
> also relevant to cholesterol levels.

Stress and exercise levels have an effect, but the effect is
small, not nearly enough to account for the difference.
Quantity is a factor.  I have somewhere in my notes a study to
the effect that a major cut in calories causes an immediate and
significant drop in cholesterol.  Frequency could be an issue.  I
recall that Sears says that if more than 35g of protein are eaten
at a single meal, there is a disproportionate insulin response
because that is the maximum amount of protein that can be
utilized at one time.  The rest must be stored as fat.  That's
what Sears says, but I have never been able to find a reference
for that factoid.

It could potentially be highly relevant though, couldn't it?  35g
is only about 5 ounces of lean beef.  Maybe I'll ask again at the
website.

Todd Moody
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