A new US study has found that health effects of saturated fat on heart depend on the overall diet of a person. Cutting down on saturated fat was linked to a decline of up to 25% in heart disease risk.

Study researchers said 25% decline was not there when people used carbohydrates like white bread or pasta as replacements. Study's co-author Adela Hruby from the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston said, "The saturated fats look benign when you compare them to the refined carbohydrates, but when you compare them to something else they're not benign".

It has been said for ages that one should have limited amount of foods high in saturated fat like meats, butter and cheese. Saturated fat can increase the amount of bad cholesterol, LDL, in the blood, which is linked to heart disease.

The American Heart Association suggests that a person should not have saturated fats more than 6% of his daily diet. As per the 2010 US Dietary Guidelines for Americans, maximum of 10% of person's daily calories come from saturated fats.

The recent study's results are based on the data of nearly 130,000 people. During the 24 to 3 decades of follow up, there were around 7,500 cases of heart disease. Main point is the change people make in their diets for saturated fats.

"The saturated fats look benign when you compare them to the refined carbohydrates, but when you compare them to something else they're not benign," said Adela Hruby from the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston, a coauthor of the study.

"Use some olive oils instead of butter or eat a few handfuls of nuts instead of a few handfuls of potato chips," she said. "These are not complex swaps."