The next study in my sequence of studies used by S-T & K is the Boston Diet Heart Study. Published in 1985, the study looked at observations on men living in Ireland, men born in Ireland living in Boston and Irish men born and living in Boston. Echoes of Ni-Hon-San, right?
Except that unlike Ni-Hon-San, there were no differences between the groups at all. The study was based on a single dietary recall that was then scored using the Hegsted and Keys scores. The study was unremarkable, showing exactly what you would expect.
Those with the highest cholesterol and saturated fat in the diet had the highest rate of heart disease and those with the lowest had the lowest rates. Plant matter, both fiber, starch and plant protein were all protective. nejm.org/doi/full/10.10… 
All three groups had very high cholesterol, diets very high in saturated fat (>15%) and very high death rate from heart disease. What is surprising is that it was possible to show an effect at all, given the small variability among individuals and groups.
Deaths from heart disease were shockingly high. For patients over 60, over 20 years of study, about 20% of the people in all three arms died of heart disease. Compare that to Ni-Hon-San, where the rate was much lower. Tomorrow we'll look at Framingham.
