The Questionable Link Between Saturated Fat and Heart Disease

[Tellenbach]

The Questionable Link Between Saturated Fat and Heart Disease

"Saturated fat does not cause heart disease"—or so concluded a big study published in March in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine. How could this be? The very cornerstone of dietary advice for generations has been that the saturated fats in butter, cheese and red meat should be avoided because they clog our arteries. For many diet-conscious Americans, it is simply second nature to opt for chicken over sirloin, canola oil over butter.

The new study's conclusion shouldn't surprise anyone familiar with modern nutritional science, however. The fact is, there has never been solid evidence for the idea that these fats cause disease. We only believe this to be the case because nutrition policy has been derailed over the past half-century by a mixture of personal ambition, bad science, politics and bias."

I've known this was the case since reading "The Heart Revolution" by Kilmer McCully. The reason why there is an obesity epidemic is because the government screwed up and pushed an anti-fat agenda without any hard scientific evidence. People consumed far more carbs than fats and the result is an epidemic of diabetes and obesity.

 

[WhoCares]

I support this hypothesis with my entirey unscientific experiment. I eat a high saturated fat diet. Can't get enough of bacon, butter, cream and cheese. I prefer my steak fatty and only really warmed up, leaving the char and rubberyness to others. The only vegetable oils I consume are olive oil as a sald dressing and rice bran, as an additive to prevent the butter burning in the pan. So far I haven't died from clogged arteries. The time in my life I was thinnest I ate the most fat but no grain and no sugar. I recently gained wight because I stopped eating fat started eating sugar.

Fat is satiating, it makes you full for hours. Its also an easy way to get enough energy for the day without consuming tonnes of food. Personally I think fat phobia is a crime against human rights, its whst makes food yummy!

 

[Thalassa]

Studies have shown that vegetarians and vegans have less heart disease, lower cholesterol and lower BMIs than meat eaters. "Flexitarians" (people who eat mostly plant based diets but occasional fish or other animal products) also tend to have better health. This makes a pretty strong case against saturated fat.

In fact vegans are apparently some of the healthiest people on earth, as long as they are not "junk food vegans" ( people who try to live off of vegan snack food, french fries and cereal) and take B12 supplements. After reading Vegan For Life (written by two very sane nutritionists who don't shriek about trace amounts of whey or honey) I honestly believe though it's largely because the average vegan and vegetarian pay much more attention to their overall diet to avoid unhealthy foods and to assure maximum nutrition in each meal to avoid deficiency. In fact I think being temporarily vegan in this very mindful way, even if later transitioned to lacto-ovo or Flexitarian or pescetarian diets would probably just produce more mindful eating in the long run.

The trick is usually to eat a lot of unsaturated fats and to get enough omega 3s, fat itself is not the problem, per se, in fact eating too low fat can effectively fuck you up.

 

[Thalassa]

I support this hypothesis with my entirey unscientific experiment. I eat a high saturated fat diet. Can't get enough of bacon, butter, cream and cheese. I prefer my steak fatty and only really warmed up, leaving the char and rubberyness to others. The only vegetable oils I consume are olive oil as a sald dressing and rice bran, as an additive to prevent the butter burning in the pan. So far I haven't died from clogged arteries. The time in my life I was thinnest I ate the most fat but no grain and no sugar. I recently gained wight because I stopped eating fat started eating sugar.

Fat is satiating, it makes you full for hours. Its also an easy way to get enough energy for the day without consuming tonnes of food. Personally I think fat phobia is a crime against human rights, its whst makes food yummy!

Actually it depends on the amount of saturated fat. French people may consume more saturated fat than Americans (supposedly but not really given the tons of meat and junk food Americans on average consume, just to clear up that confusing statement, caused by American people eating low fat products like margarine and sugary yogurts), but their diet is still largely plant based, and they drink red wine with red meats and heavy meals. While the French use full fat butter, etc they still consume smaller portions of rich food which still equals limited saturated fat intake in the big picture.

A very slender friend of mine got high cholesterol in her forties because of her love of red meat. I have no idea how old you are, but the possibility is that you are still too young to face the consequences of your diet.

On the other hand, maybe you eat reasonable portions. Also know that different genetic groups process food differently. Almost 90 percent of Asians are lactose intolerant, but northern European people formed an adaptation to milk out of necessity.