Economic valuation of the potential health benefits from foods enriched with plant sterols in Canada.

Background: Increased consumption of foods containing plant sterols has the potential to reduce the incidence of coronary heart disease (CHD) and thus reduce costs associated with treating that disease in a significant way. This paper reports the results of an investigation of the potential monetary benefits of allowing foods enriched with plant sterols to be marketed in Canada.

Objective: The objective of this research was to estimate the annual savings that would accrue to Canada's single-payer publicly funded health care system if plant sterols were approved for use.