Benecol® is recommended and safe
Plant stanol ester has gone through extensive testing to prove its efficacy and safety. This has resulted in endorsements from many food safety authorities around the world including Europe, the US, Japan, China, Australia and Russia. Plant stanol ester has been awarded an Approved Health Claim, by the European Parliament and Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) status in USA. In addition, Benecol® products have been on the market since 1995 with no reports of adverse effects.
Many national health organisations now recommend that consumers include 2 g of plant stanols per day in their diets for cholesterol reduction.
British Nutrition Foundation - The evidence for the cholesterol lowering effects of Plant Stanol Esters
Claims approved by national bodies | |
| National Body | Year |
| US Food and Drug | September 2000 |
| Netherlands Nutrition Centre | May 2001 |
| Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, Japan | February 2002 |
| Swedish Nutrition Foundation | December 2006 |
International and national guidelines recommending the use of plant stanol ester for reducing LDL-cholesterol: | |
| National Body | Year |
| American Diabetes Association | 2016, 2013 |
| American College of Cardiology | 2016 |
| European Atherosclerosis Society | 2014-2016 |
| National Lipid Association | 2015 |
| Joint British Societies | 2014 |
| International Atherosclerosis Society | 2013 |
| European Society of Cardiology | 2012 |
| National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute & National Institutes of Health & American Academy of Pediatrics | 2011 |
| European Society of Cardiology & European Atherosclerosis Society | 2011 |
| The Australian Heart Foundation | 2009 |
| American Academy of Pediatrics | 2008 |
| 2008 | |
| American College of Cardiology Foundation | 2008 |
| Australian Heart Foundation | 2007 |
| American Heart Association / American College of Cardiology | 2006 |
| 2005 | |
| International Atherosclerosis Society | 2003 |
| World Health Organization | 2003 |
| Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations | 2003 |
| 2003 | |
| Joint European Societies | 2003 |
| European Union Scientific Committee on Foods | 2002 |
| National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) | 2002 |
| National Cholesterol Education Programme Adult Treatment Panel III, USA | 2002 |
| Finnish Internal Medicine Society | 1996 |