What is "phytosterol"

n. (context steroid botany English) Any of a group of steroid alcohols, phytochemicals naturally occurring in plants. They are white powders with mild, characteristic odor, insoluble in water and soluble in alcohols.

Phytosterols, which encompass plant sterols and stanols, are steroid compounds similar to cholesterol which occur in plants and vary only in carbon side chains and/or presence or absence of a double bond. Stanols are saturated sterols, having no double bonds in the sterol ring structure. More than 200 sterols and related compounds have been identified. Free phytosterols extracted from oils are insoluble in water, relatively insoluble in oil, and soluble in alcohols.

Phytosterol-enriched foods and dietary supplements have been marketed for decades. Despite well documented LDL cholesterol lowering effects, no scientifically proven evidence of any beneficial effect on cardiovascular disease (CVD) or overall mortality exists.