The effect of soybean sterols on the absorption of cholesterol by the rat.

Mixed soybean sterols (SO per cent sitosterols) were fed to rats simultaneously with cholesterol in acute and chronic experiments. In acute experiments, concurrent feeding of a test dose of soybean sterols and cholesterol did not diminish the usual fraction of cholesterol absorption into the thoracic duct lymph. In chronic experiments the addition of 2 or 10 per cent soybean sterols to a diet which induces chronic hypercholesteremia in rats failed to inhibit the development or magnitude of chronic hypercholesteremia.