Relationship between cholesterol and fat contents of commercial dairy products

Thirty-three varieties of dairy products were analysed for fat and cholesterol contents, and a high correlation (r=0.983) was found between these two compositional attributes. Cholesterol concentration was independent of processing factors such as heat-treatment of the raw material, use of starter culture, type of the starter organisms employed and whipping or flavouring of the product. The non-fat varieties of fluid, fermented and dried milks showed significantly increased cholesterol-to-fat ratios compared to the other products tested because they contained considerable amounts of small fat globules and, therefore, had a large surface area with cholesterol bound to the fat globule membranes. The results of this study may be useful when establishing dietary guidelines for the general public according to health concerns, when formulating diets for population groups with special requirements or when assessing fat and cholesterol intakes in epidemiological studies aimed at investigating the relationship between diet and health.