HDL is often called good cholesterol, since it can be beneficial in lowering the total cholesterol in the blood. The body makes HDL in an effort to reduce excessive cholestrol levels. When total cholesterol is lowered in response to a more healthful diet, the body usually manufactures less HDL and the HDL level may also decrease somewhat. This is not cause for concern. Worldwide, the people with the lowest HDL levels have the lowest incidence of heart disease.
Total cholesterol is the important measuring tool.
Studies of people in two countries illustrate how what we eat can affect cholesterol. In 1983 researchers from Cornell University in New York, the Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine in Beijing, and Oxford University in England began gathering data in The China Project on how people lived and died. A scientifically selected sample from every single county, a total of 6,500 people, has been under examination since 1983. Their food intake and life habits have been carefully logged, and they have been subjected to many medical diagnostic tests. The typical Chinese eat very little animal protein or saturated fats.