Children as young as three or four may have raised cholesterol and this can persist over the next few years.

Researchers at Columbia University have a new report from the Healthy Start program, which is trying to reduce total and saturated fat within the diet of young children. It's hoped that this will reduce the incidence of adult heart problems.

The team found that children with the highest levels aged three or four were more likely to have high levels five years on. More than half of the youngsters who were in the high group when they were three or four were in the same group when they were eight. This suggests that a heart healthy diet cannot begin too soon. Schools following dietary intervention to reduce cholesterol had good results. The researchers suggest that the most useful first step - for children aged two and above - could be to introduce low-fat milk in place of the full-fat version.

Source

American Heart Association Asia Pacific Meeting 9th June 2003