Health Alert 226
Dear Subscriber:
Walk through the dairy section of any store and you’ll see shelf after shelf of low-fat cheese, milk, and yogurt. Is it healthier? No. The truth is, fat isn’t as dangerous for you as they’re leading you to believe.
Today I’m going to expose the fat myth so you’ll never fall victim again. Then you’ll get a quick ‘fat check-up’ and discover an easy way to maintain a healthy fat intake without cutting fat grams.
Follow some diet gurus advice and you’d cut out most of the fat in your diet. Would you be healthier? Nope. A study published in The Journal of The American Medical Association found people eating very low-fat diets (14% fat) showed no improvement in body composition, blood sugar, insulin levels, or blood pressure. In fact, the study’s authors called very low fat diets “counterproductive” to health.1
But the main problem I have with the low-fat diet is that it’s generally high-carb. Excessive intake of the wrong kinds of carbohydrates, not fat, is the central dietary problem in my patient population. (See Message # 224 {insert weblink}) What’s more, if you follow all this low-fat advice you could be robbing your body of essential nutrients.
Your body needs fat to absorb vitamins. And some of the most important nutrients are fat-soluble, take for instance vitamins A, D, E, and K and coenzyme CoQ10. Cut out all the fat, and you cut out these essential nutrients.
Is this license to load up on fatty sausage and luncheon meat? Absolutely not…
You should be focusing on eating good fats and eliminating bad ones if you want to stay young, strong and maintain a healthy weight. Before I show you which is which, let’s see how you’re doing on your own with a little ‘fat check-up’:2
- Do you eat fast food several times a week?
- Do you rarely eat fish?
- Do you eat processed meats (sausage, hot dogs, etc.) several times a week?
- Do you eat doughnuts, croissants or sweet rolls for breakfast very often?
- Do you routinely add store bought salad dressing and sauces to foods?
- Do you eat fried foods several times a week?
If you answered ‘yes’ to any of the questions above, you need to make some changes. It’s not that you’re getting too much fat, it’s that you’re getting too much of the wrong kind of fat-Omega 6s.
Omega-6s are in virtually every processed food. But cutting them out doesn’t mean you have to stop eating foods you love. You just have to become pickier. Start reading labels and avoid foods high in omega-6s, namely oils like corn, soy, canola, safflower and sunflower. Instead, focus on buying foods rich in good fats or omega-3s. Your best sources of these are flaxseed oil, walnut oil, and fish.
How much should you eat? The ideal ratio of good to bad fats is 1:1 but most Americans fall far short. The national dietary average is between 1:20 and 1:50!3 Scary, yes, yet all it takes to bring your ratio down is a commitment to avoid processed foods. Is it worth it? Absolutely. Lower your bad fat intake and you’ll find you’ll improve your health significantly… and even lose weight!
To Your Good Health,
Al Sears MD
Sources:
1. Journal of the American Medical Association, 1997; 278(18): 1509-1515
2. Adapted from American Dietetic Association and Mosby Great Performance, Healthy Eating For the Whole Family, St. Louis, MO: Mosby-Year Book, Inc. 1995, p. 5.
3. (taken from Dr. Sears’ ‘Your Six-Week Anti-Aging Plan’ Premium-no citation offered.)