 Normally, plant sterols are poorly absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract; fewer than 5% of plant sterols are absorbed compared to approximately 40% of cholesterol absorbed.The liver preferentially excretes plant sterols over cholesterol.Dietary sterols have recently been shown to passively enter intestinal cells, and subsequently the vast majority are pumped back into the gut lumen by ATP-binding cassette transporter (ABC transporter) proteins.