Here's a related theory: People who consume a significant amount of fat tend to become overweight/obese because they also overconsume carbohydrates (and protein), which spikes blood insulin and causes the dietary fat to be stored as adipose tissue. People with a lot of adipose tissue have higher levels of cholesterol, a hormone manufactured by the body to manage its fat stores (among many other things).

So in this scenario, is it eating saturated dietary fat which causes unhealthy levels of cholesterol in the blood?

Or is it because the person's diet has caused them to become overweight/obese and therefore the body's cholesterol levels have increased as a result?

In my own experience, I lost 20% of my body weight (57 lbs) by eating a high fat low-carb diet, supplemented by intermittent fasting. I was on statins (cholesterol medication) and an ARB (for hypertension), and was able to stop taking these meds 18 months after losing the weight.

There are lots of reasons to avoid saturated oils/fat. I think it's misleading and overly simplistic to say or imply that dietary fat leads to high cholesterol.

https://peterattiamd.com/the-straight-dope-on-cholesterol-pa...