Lard

Studies in people

• Benefit

  Blood pressure³

  In people, lard mixed with soybean oil lowered blood pressure more than lard or soybean oil alone.

• Open question

  Cholesterol levels in people⁴

  In adults with insulin resistance, swapping saturated fat for monounsaturated fat lowered LDL cholesterol, but lard itself was not studied.

• No harm found

  Blood fat after eating⁵

  In people, lard and two other fats left blood fat levels much the same after meals.

• No harm found

  Blood fats after eating⁶

  In this study, lard and two other fats caused no different blood fat or insulin response after meals.

• Concern

  Blood cholesterol levels⁷

  In healthy men, eating lard raised total cholesterol and lowered "good" HDL cholesterol.

• Open question

  Growth in premature babies⁸

  Premature babies fed formula with lard as the only fat absorbed it well and grew normally.

Animal and lab studies only

• Concern

  Gut bacteria balance¹⁰

  In mice, eating lard for six weeks changed the gut bacteria and how they break down sugars and fats.

• Concern

  Heart size and stress¹¹

  In mice, high-calorie lard-based diets were linked to larger hearts and more heart oxidative stress.

• Benefit

  Body weight and body fat¹²

  In animal studies, mice eating lard mixed with soybean oil gained less weight and body fat.

• Concern

  Fat in the diet¹³

  In animal studies, lard in high-fat diets was linked to more cell growth and cancer-related effects.

How it’s made and used

• Cooking fats in rural Mexico⁹

  In two Yucatán villages, lard was used to fry about a quarter of all dishes eaten.

The signal at the top counts the findings in people and in animal and lab studies. A concern in studies of people outranks animal and lab studies, and “No concerns” needs at least one finding in people. When most findings in people point one way, the page leans that way (“Mostly”), and every finding is still shown. Findings whose study type is not stated are shown but not counted. This page is a reference, not medical advice. It describes what regulators and published research say. Talk to a doctor or dietitian about your own diet.