The health benefits of plant stanols as dietary component are discussed. Since their chemical structure closely resembles cholesterol, plant stanols replace part of the cholesterol in the cholesterol absorption process during food digestion. When a sufficient amount of plant stanol is included into the daily diet, this results in significantly lowered serum cholesterol levels of an individual. Esterification of plant stanols with fatty acids of vegetable oils enhances the solubility of stanols to fats, which makes them easier to incorporate into various food forms. The esterified plant stanols are the key to Benecol foods that lower cholesterol effectively.