Fatality rate greater for women.

• Position: Fatality rate for coronary disease

Do high cholesterol levels put men and women at the same risk for coronary heart disease. and has diet the greatest effect on cholesterol levels? No, according to researchers at The American Dietetic Association's annual meeting.

"It's widely believed that a person can substantially influence cholesterol levels through diet. But a review of current research shows that gender, genetics, and age have a far greater impact. ..., "explains Wanda Hain Howell, a registered dietitian. Through a technique known as meta-analysis, she has evaluated many different studies on cholesterol. This process allows for the pooling of data from studies with conflicting results and assessment of the over-all strength of the available evidence. "It's now clear that there are two groups of people: responders, who can impact their cholesterol levels substantially through diet, and a much larger group of non-responders, who can make little, if any, impact on their cholesterol levels through dietary modifications.'

Women, while less likely than men to develop coronary heart disease as a result of high cholesterol levels, are more likely to die from the disease once they develop it, indicates Lori Mosca, assistant professor of medicine, University of Michigan. "Because of the lower incidence of coronary heart disease, but higher death rate, women have what's known as a higher case fatality rate for this disease.

"Recent data also suggest that women can make even less of an impact than men on their...