The Skinny on Fat.

We’ve been convinced for years that eating fat is what has caused us to get fat, as well as contribute to illnesses like cancer and heart disease. But what if I told you this isn’t the case, and we’ve got all of our facts wrong? What if I told you that all fats aren’t created equal, and that the ones most Americans are cooking with or consuming regularly are doing more harm to our health than good?

THE HISTORY OF FATS IN OUR DIET

With 9 calories per gram (protein + carbohydrates are 4 each), fats have been a stable source of nutrition + energy in our diets for hundreds of years. Naturally occurring fats in animals, egg yolks, avocados, and nuts + seeds have not only been the vital nutrient in our ancestors’ health, but their survival pretty much depended on it.

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With the modernization of the agriculture business, our great-great-great grandmother’s once beloved hand-churned butter was soon replaced with tubs of yellow-dyed-butter-flavored bogus, slapped with clever labels to convince you it’s better than the real deal.

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We’ve been scared out of our minds about cholesterol levels + heart disease, so when told to jump, we automatically say, “how high?”, without ever really asking questions or doing any research for ourselves. And now with these “facts” forever engrained in our minds, we’ve feared for our lives (and waistlines) when the butter dish gets passed around the dinner table.

For years primal/paleo health gurus have been preaching that healthy fats + real butter are NOT the problem, but continued to be silenced by the food industry + media who support bottled + packaged synthetic, cheap versions of fats + oils, claiming that they are heart healthy and will help lower cholesterol.  Interestingly enough, in recent (june 2014) mainstream news–one that would be considered a “reliable source” for information–TIME magazine decided to come clean by choosing to “End the War on Fat” and encouraging Americans to eat butter. The magazine that was the forefront for removing fats from our diets now recants their former claims, but why? Hmmm…

Screen Shot 2014-09-04 at 2.02.03 PMWHY ARE FATS SO IMPORTANT TO OUR DIET?

Well, first off, they provide us with more energy to maintain our fast-paced and busy lives. Fat packs more than twice the amount of calories as protein or carbohydrates. So when we have insufficient energy, fat is the solution.

Ever wonder why you are STARVING before lunch time after that bowl of healthy oatmeal + berries just 2 hours earlier? You’ve consumed ONLY carbs for your meal! No wonder you are hangry, have a headache or are lacking focus at work/school. Add some almond butter to that oatmeal, and a side of eggs!

Many crossfitters use The Zone Diet as a way to balance their meals + blood sugars adequately. But The Zone is geared towards obtaining a lean body mass, resulting in body fat loss. So when their performance might be lacking in the gym, many competitive crossfitters eat 3-9x their specific “zoned” fat intake. Want to see PR’s in the gym? Eat more healthy fats! You might not be SUPER lean, but do any of them look fat? NO!

Take this year’s crossfit games “fittest woman on earth”, Camille Leblanc-Bazinet: she is strong, curvy, fit + still feminine. And let’s not forget that she’s a serious badass, too.

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Another important role of fat is for the transportation of nutrients. Fats are vital in our diet for the absorption + transportation of vitamins A, D, E and K–the fat-soluble vitamins. Fats are an essential component in our cell function, and help protect our vital organs from trauma, help us regulate body temperature, and are key in the development of our brain + nervous system (especially in children).

I love this excerpt from one of my nutrition books, Staying Healthy With Nutrition:

“When we look at fat in energy storage, it’s QUANTITY that is the most important. However, when we look at fat as a cell membrane component, or a transport mechanism, fat quantity becomes much less important than fat QUALITY.”

THE SCIENCE BEHIND FATS

Before we go any farther, let’s do a quick chemistry overview of the classification of fats. You have probably heard of the terms saturated + unsaturated, omega-3’s + omega-6’s, as well as short-, medium-, + long-chain fatty acids.

Fatty acids are essentially like chains of molecules consisting of links (made of carbon atoms) and they are typically classified by length; short, medium + long. Our bodies need all 3 types of these fatty acids to remain healthy.

The two essential fatty acids (EFAs) you may be familiar with are omega-3’s + omega-6’s. These are vital to our normal growth + development, especially for our blood vessels + nervous system. They keep our skin looking youthful, our muscles strong, and our brains working optimally. EFAs have often been referred to as “vitamin F”; so, a deficiency in vitamin F can lead to dryness, scaliness or eczema of the skin, as well as reduction of absorption of the other vital fat-soluble vitamins mentioned above.

In the typical american diet, we have been known to over-consume our omega-6’s, resulting in an estimated ratio of 10 to 20 times as much omega-6’s as omega-3’s! An ideal ratio would be between 1:1 and 4:1. Having too much of a good thing still can be a bad thing, so be sure to keep those in check!

Here is a fun info-graphic from mindbodyplate to help you get the idea:

omega-3-omega-6-balance-infographic-2-0The other feature of these fatty acids is the degree of saturation. Think of saturation as stability. When a fatty acid is fully saturated, it interacts the least with other molecules in the body, therefore providing a strong, stable structure. This means it is not very susceptible to damage; i.e. breaking down or oxidation.

Chart Image of PUFA and SF oils

SATURATED — The more stable fat because each molecule contains the maximum level of hydrogens attached to each carbon atom. Good for cooking. Solid at room temperature.

UNSATURATED (different degrees of saturation–MUFA or PUFA) — The less stable fat because some carbon bonds are attached as double-bonds, therefore making the fatty acid fragile. Not good for cooking. Liquid at room temperature. Greater chance of oxidation.

  • MUFAs (monosaturated fatty acid) — one double-bond; prone to oxidation
  • PUFAs (polysaturated fatty acid) — more than one double-bond; HIGHLY prone to oxidation

SO, WHY IS OXIDATION SO BAD?

Light, air + heat cause oxidation of these fatty acids. Ever wonder why some oils are in dark bottles, or in the refrigerated section? They are highly prone to oxidation! Essentially, oxidation in our food creates free radicals in our body that can damage our cells and cause illnesses; specifically, cancer. But we are not only potentially exposed to free radicals by our foods…there are many other environmental free radicals we get exposed to every day!

Ever wonder why you hear about making sure you get enough anti-oxidants in your diet? Anti-oxidants help combat those free radicals, making them less likely to cause harm to our bodies! So, what good are all those anti-oxidants you are eating if you are still consuming oxidized oils?! Let’s make it a one-two punch by removing those bad fats out of your diets, too!

WHY DID FAT GET SUCH A BAD RAP IN THE FIRST PLACE?

Long story short: the food industry. To slow the oxidation of oils + prolong their shelf-life, the food industry made this possible through a process called hydrogenation, creating a new form of fatty acids called trans-fats. These trans-fats are what cause the increase in blood cholesterol + the hardening of arteries. So, when health professionals determined trans-fat as the leading cause of these detrimental health issues, they lumped ALL fats, good and bad into the laundry list of things to remove from one’s diet, when our bodies still needed some source of fat to stay satiated + for our bodies to function optimally.

Now, I’m not saying go eat a stick of butter or fatty-cuts of meat at every meal. Good quality fats, in moderation, should be a part of EVERYONE’S diet: those who have fat loss goals, competitive athletes, growing children, and aging grandparents alike.  ladies, that means YOU, too! The key is determining the proper amount of fat for your goals + lifestyle. Check out this article from the CrossFit Journal on “The Zone Diet” recommendations in order to get a good idea of how to apply this to your life.

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SO, WHAT IS A GOOD FAT + A BAD FAT?

GOOD: saturated (for cooking); some unsaturated (for cold uses); stable animal fats, and some plant-based fats.

  • butter – full fat, organic butter that comes from milk of grass fed cows. you can find my favorite grass-fed butter at HEB.
  • ghee – aka clarified butter. this means that the milk solids are removed from the butter, so it is a great option for those who are lactose intolerant.
  • coconut oil – organic, expeller-pressed — composed mainly of medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) which are easier for the body to absorb and utilize. unrefined coconut oils contain a sweet, coconut-y odor, and refined oils do not. this is great for just about anything: cooking, frying, baking + skin care!
  • olives + olive oil – organic; oil should be cold-pressed, unfiltered, extra-virgin olive oil in a dark glass bottle. best used unheated as salad dressings. DO NOT use this over high heat.
  • avocados + avocado oil – organic; cold-pressed, unfiltered, extra-virgin in a dark glass bottle. best used unheated as salad dressings. DO NOT use this over high heat.
  • almonds/walnuts/flaxseed + other seeds — organic, raw or dry roasted (be sure to check the label to see if they are roasted in any bad oils before buying!); great for snacking, nut butters, smoothies.
  • cold-water fatty fish + fish oils — wild-caught salmon, halibut, herring, mackerel, sardines; high quality fish oil supplements.

BAD: PUFAs; highly unstable and prone to oxidation = free radicals. any fat/oil that could have been made in a chemical lab or factory.

  • canola (rapeseed) oil
  • vegetable oil
  • grapeseed oil
  • sunflower oil
  • safflower oil
  • corn oil
  • soybean oil
  • hydrogenated or partially-hydrogenated oil (trans fat)
  • margarine/butter spreads
  • other refined oils

Check out this helpful guide to cooking fats from Diane Sanfilippo’s book, Practical Paleo:PracticalPaleo_GuidetoCookingFats

If you made it to the end of this lengthy post, I want to say THANK YOU for reading! I hope it somewhat helps clarify WHY we need fats in our diet, which fats we should eat, as well as learning to spot the ones we should run screaming across the room from!

If you are still a little skeptical, I encourage you to do some research for yourself, and experiment with adding it into your diet to see how you think, eat, sleep, perform, feel + move! Here are some great resources to get your started:

Check out these two articles from Chris Masterjohn, the cholesterol/saturated fat guru himself, about coconut oil and saturated fat in general:

Listen to this interesting podcast as Diane Sanfilippo interviews Jimmy Moore, author of Cholesterol Clarity:

Read this article by Sally Fallon, president of the Weston A. Price Foundation, about saturated fat and coconut oil! It was written back in 1999! (she was obviously on to something way back then!)

beWELL!

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