Healthy fats? Yes! Am I kidding? No! For the last two decades, while Americans have purchased and eaten more and more fat-free and reduced-fat products, obesity in America has doubled. While these foods contain fewer calories from fat, they tend to have more calories from sugar and other refined carbohydrates – thus the same amount of calories or more.
Contrary to the low-fat, low-cholesterol diet recommendations of the last 20 years, research now shows that it is the type of fat eaten that makes the difference in disease risk. We are allowed some fat – in moderation. The idea is to substitute healthy fats for unhealthy fats. All fats have twice the number of calories per gram as do proteins or carbohydrates; however, some oils, such as olive, flaxseed, and fish oils, eaten in moderation, help protect against certain cancers and heart disease, and help regulate blood sugar. Of course, too much animal fat is unhealthy, but the main culprits in increased disease risk are refined and hydrogenated or even partially hydrogenated vegetable oils. Virgin, naturally pressed, unrefined oils — the healthy fats — can be found at www.spectrumorganics.com and www.tropicaltradition.com.
“I will give you the best of the land of Egypt and you can enjoy the fat of the land.” (Gen. 45:18)
Fat and cholesterol — We need them
Actually, fat has many important functions in food as well in as the body. Fats give foods flavor and smooth texture, as well as extra calories! Food fats help slow the rate of digestion and give a feeling of satiety after eating. Several essential nutrients like essential fatty acids (found only in foods and not manufactured by the body) are soluble (or absorbed) only in fats. Omega-3 fatty acids are abundant in milk, milk products and eggs from grass fed animals. Fats act as carriers for the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K, which, in turn, are important for the absorption of many other nutrients in the body.
Cholesterol also has vital functions in our body such as hormone formation, cell membrane structure, and production of vitamin D. Actually, dietary cholesterol found only in animal foods has very little relationship to the level of blood cholesterol in our bodies, since our liver also produces cholesterol. Dietary cholesterol from animal foods includes the cholesterol in meats, eggs and shellfish. In fact, shellfish are rich in heart healthy omega-3 fatty acids and other important vitamins and minerals.
The bad guys
Some processed forms of fat in our food (hydrogenated fat) do affect levels of blood cholesterol. Total blood cholesterol contains both low-density lipoproteins (LDL, bad cholesterol) which deposit fat in artery walls, and high-density lipoproteins (HDL, good cholesterol) which remove cholesterol from the blood. When total blood cholesterol becomes too high, and especially the LDL cholesterol, then risk for heart disease increases.
Trans fats come from plant oils that have been hydrogenated or made more solid, like shortening or margarine. Trans fats not only raise LDL, but actually lower HDL. Trans fats are the bad guys! Commercially prepared baked goods, snack foods and processed foods, including fried fast foods, are high in trans fat. So remember to avoid all processed foods that list hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils near the beginning of the ingredient list (including regular peanut butter!). Hydrogenated oils and refined polyunsaturated oils not only increase the risk of heart disease but also cancer, diabetes, liver disease, dementia and other diseases.
As a helpful resource, I have lots of articles on healthy ingredients and recipes that you can implement into your daily life.
If you’d like to dig deeper into my journey of discovering God’s plan for health and wellness, check out my book, Made For Paradise: God’s Original Plan for Healthy Eating, Physical Activity, and Rest.
