Saturated fat risk 'overstated'

The risk from saturated fat in foods such as butter, cakes and fatty meat is being overstated and demonised, a cardiologist has said.

In an opinion piece in the British Medical Journal, Dr Aseem Malhotra said there is too much focus on fat, with factors such as sugar often overlooked.

NHS Dietitian Catherine Collins said she thought Dr Malhotra's advice was "disingenuous", and that high total fat intake was connected to heart disease.

But Dr Malhotra, a cardiology registrar at Croydon University Hospital, London, said the "ultimate message is eat real food, avoid processed food."