By Andrew M. Seaman (Reuters Health) – While experts continue to debate the health effects of saturated fat, a new U.S. study suggests its link to heart disease depends on what else a person eats. Over time, cutting back on saturated fat was tied to a drop of up to 25 percent in heart disease risk – unless people used refined carbohydrates like white bread or pasta as replacements. “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.