A study suggests foods rich in good fats may partly offset risk factors for ischemic heart disease (IHD).

High cholesterol, high blood pressure, diabetes and aging are risk factors for IHD, a reduced blood supply to the heart. But IHD rates are low in Spain, where risk factors are high. So scientists compared blood levels of unsaturated fats in healthy people with those showing signs of IHD and concluded greater levels of oleic, alpha-linolenic and omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids – found in olive oil, walnuts and fish, respectively – protected against IHD.

This brief summary was released May 12 but details are withheld until a future issue of the online and print editions of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.