Random Thoughts: Don't Fear the Fat!

The world of nutrition is a joke. I’m going to piss a lot of people off with that statement, but come on – first carbs are good, then they’d bad. Then fat is good, then it’s bad, now only some fats are good and some fats are bad … this is messed up!

People want solid answers. Just like the world of science, true nutrition is something that we do not fully understand, and probably won’t anytime soon. We simply can’t offer the world 100% assured advice … except for this: “whole” (non-processed) foods good; processed foods not so good, but eating a few isn’t the end of the world.

It all runs on fear. You can’t scare people out of eating dessert … but it may work with McDonald’s

Ode Magazine’s Fat Is Where It’s At article (June/July 2009 issue) by Janet Paskin was nothing short of spectacular. Here are a few particular gems I enjoyed:

Our myopic aversion to fat may be doing more damage than an order of steak frites ever could. In our effort to avoid the demon lipids at all costs, we’re forever tinkering with our diets—substituting Snackwells for Oreos, dry toast and a glass of orange juice for a plate of bacon and eggs—in hopes it will keep us skinny almost effortlessly. But these dietary contortions often have unintended consequences. They inspire us to eat more food, for starters. And the food we eat more of? It contains more chemicals, starches and sugar. These ingredients “are more harmful than the much-feared animal fats,” says Irina Baumbach, secretary of the Association for Nutritional Medicine and Dietetics in Aachen, Germany.

and

Fat—on the plate or the hips—didn’t trigger health concerns until the late 20th century. As recently as the 1970s, dietary guidelines included plenty of fats and protein, because they helped people feel sated, preventing overeating. And obesity wasn’t considered a serious problem in Europe or the U.S.; high-carbohydrate meals were associated with weight gain, and academic articles linked obesity in Africa and the Caribbean with starchy diets.

and

As for the connection between fatty foods and weight, it’s controversial as well. Obesity was never the target of Congress’ efforts, although the low-fat recommendations were instituted to help people manage their weight. They haven’t. Since the guidelines were adopted, Americans have indisputably gotten fatter. “In the early 1990s, we ate low-fat everything and we didn’t get thinner,” says Alice Lichtenstein, a professor of nutrition science and policy at Tufts University in Massachusetts. “There’s your proof.”

I’ve got at least 6 other sections of the article highlighted, but you really should just read the article yourself.

The simple truth is that we don’t know everything there is to know about how our bodies function. We should wait another few decades before we start putting lab-created “foods” (using that word is being quite generous) into them. I think we are doing permanent damage that we can’t even fathom yet.

As with all other things in life, keep your diet simple – it will save you a lot of headaches now & in the long run (both literally and figuratively).  If you want a cookie, have it (not 20!) & think about how you can get active to burn it off. Usually, it’s the simple things that escape us.