Nope, I'm not referring to bodyfat here...but rather dietary fat.
You all know I generally post at BFL/Bodybuilding, but I DO lurk at other forums/threads here at 3FC. I've seen a lot of confusion regarding fats - are they bad for you or good for you?
What disturbed me was a statement made that fat has been 'proven' not to cause heart disease. That is, quite frankly, oversimplification...If you have ever seen what surgeons pull out of a clogged artery during heart surgery - white sticky gunk - basically that's saturated fat and cholesterol.
Of course you would have to be hiding under a rock not to hear the latest new findings about the dangers of trans fats...
But there ARE healthy fats out there. Udo Erasmus, author of the book "Fats that Heal, Fats that Kill" is known as the eminent authority on EFAs and healthy fats. Here's a snippet of his lecture (you can read the whole thing starting at http://www.udoerasmus.com/articles/u...udo_fthftk.htm )
Quote:
Most of the health problems that we blame on fats should actually be blamed on the destructive processing to which the fats have been subjected. This point has been overlooked by most researchers and educators, but it is the critical issue that makes the difference between the fats that heal and the fats that kill - processing.
Three oil processing methods turn fats that heal into fats that kill.
1. Hydrogenation turns oils into cheap, plastic, spreadable, shelf-stable fats. It twists healing fats trans- fatty acids present in margarines, shortenings (sometimes listed as 'vegetable shortening'), shortening oils, and partially hydrogenated vegetable oils. According to research studies, trans- fatty acids increase cancer risk factors (interfere with liver detoxification, change B and T immune cell ratios, interfere with the functions of anti-cancer fatty acids); elevate cardiovascular risk factors (elevate total cholesterol and 'bad' LDL cholesterol, lower 'good' HDL cholesterol, make platelets more likely to stick to together to form a clot, increase the strongest known risk factor for cardiovascular disease (lipoprotein{a}; interfere with insulin function, making diabetes worse, and more likely to occur; decrease testosterone, increase abnormal sperm, & interfere with pregnancy in animals; correlate with low birth weight babies, & lower human breast milk quality; change the fluidity of cell membranes, making them more leaky, thereby lowering cell vitality; and interfere with the healing fats-essential fatty acids-required for health.
Hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils are widespread in breads, cakes, candies, cookies, granola bars, crackers, digestive biscuits, pancake mixes, raisin bran, instant soups, chocolate, desserts, fruit cakes, chips, convenience and junk foods, peanut butter, some salad dressings, and even in the croutons used to make your 'healthy' Caesar salad. Research suggests that they ought to be absent from the foods of anyone interested in health.
2. Frying. Research consistently shows that fried (over-heated) fats correlate with increased cancer and cardiovascular problems.
The oils best for our health, those richest in the healing essential fats, become most toxic when fried. But frying heat also damage hard, stable, saturated tropical fats and butter.
The browned (burned) parts of fried, deep-fried, toasted, roasted, baked, broiled, barbecued foods are toxic. By definition, toxic means: 'of, or relating to, poison'. And poison, by definition, is: 'any substance that, when introduced into or absorbed by a living organism causes death or injury'. Either quickly, or slowly. In the case of toxic oils, they do their poisoning job slowly.
The inner part of burned (browned) foods is fine, because it does not reach burning temperatures-it is actually steamed in the water it contains.
The best oil for frying? If health is what we want, water is the only oil appropriate for frying. We're back to steaming, poaching, boiling, or pressure cooking our foods. Or, even better in most cases, eating them raw.
3. Refining and Deodorizing produces colorless, odorless, tasteless, oils-the equivalent of white sugar and white flour, products from which most of the nutrients required for health have been removed. Except for extra virgin (green) olive oils, which remain unrefined and undeodorized, all oils not labeled: 'Unrefined' have been harshly treated: degummed-treated with sodium hydroxide, an extremely corrosive base; refined-treated with extremely corrosive (phosphoric) acid; bleached with bleaching clays, producing rancidity (peroxides)-unpleasant odors and tastes; and deodorized: over-heated (above frying) to remove the rancidity produced by bleaching. Toxic molecular alterations take place at those temperatures. These oils, especially corn and safflower oils, are associated with increased cancer and cardiovascular disease.
4. Excess of hard fats-the saturated fats in pork, beef, lamb, dairy and tropical fats have existed in nature for a long time. Our body uses them in cell membranes, in fat deposits, and as fuel. When we consume more than we use, they make platelets more sticky, interfere with insulin function, and interfere with functions of the healing fats.
If we work hard physically (like our grandparents), we can burn a lot of hard fats to produce energy. Sedentary, we need far less fuel, and cannot stay healthy if we eat grandfather's high hard fat diet. The more hard fats we eat, the more of the healing fats-essential fatty acids-we need to consume.
If we optimize our intake of essential fats, made with health in mind, and in the right ratio of omega 3 to omega 6, then we can use saturated fats in moderation without fear. We can then use whipping cream in our coffee, butter on our bread, and sour cream on our potatoes (but, since the starch in the potatoes can make us fat, we should probably eat the sour cream by itself!).
This is, in fact, another key point you need to understand. It is more important for health to optimize the consumption of essential fats than it is to avoid the bad fats. The fats that heal protect us from the fats that kill. If you removed all the bad fats from your diet, and did not bring in the good ones, you would still die from degenerative disease, because you cannot live without the good essential fats.
5. Sugar, even in small amounts, kills. Sugar is not a fat, but our body turns sugars into the same hard fats that make platelets sticky; interfere with insulin; and interfere with healing fats. Sugar also damages teeth; feeds bacteria, yeast, fungus, and cancer cells; increases serum triglycerides; interferes with vitamin C transport and immune function; increases adrenalin production by up to 4 times, a powerful internal stressor; cross-links proteins and speeds aging; and steals calcium, chromium, and other minerals from the body.
If the 120 or more pounds of sugar that Westerners consume annually were replaced by 120 pounds of honey, maple syrup, brown sugar, rice syrup, corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, or other similar sweeteners, the cause would have the same effect. Detrimental results on health would be similar.
Just trying to clear up the confusion on dietary fat...bottom line is - your body DOES need fat to function - that should have been made clear after the 1990's ultra-low-fat diet debacle. However, trans fats, processed hydrogenated fat, margarine, Crisco, bacon fat, etc. can eventually wind up putting you in the hospital, as it did my father...thank God he's healthy now (after a triple bypass).
When government researchers earlier this month said no amount of trans fat was safe to eat, consumers hurried to their pantry shelves.
But once they got there, they were stumped.
That's because food manufacturers don't have to list the amount of trans fat on the nutrition panel -- even though it can be found in more than 40 percent of the food on supermarket shelves.
Trans fat is a processed fat formed by partially hydrogenating edible oil. Crisco is a perfect example. But a growing body of research has definitively connected it to heart attacks and strokes, because it wreaks havoc on blood cholesterol.
Although the Food and Drug Administration plans to require food manufacturers to include trans fat amounts on nutrition labels, the process could take a year or more. Until then, there is no easy way to determine exactly how much trans fat is in a given product. However, there are a few tricks to arrive at fairly close estimates. Our at-a-glance guide will explain some of them.
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Trans fat at a glance
A recent federal report recommends consumers eat as little trans fat as possible. Limiting trans fat is tough -- especially since the ingredient is not clearly labeled on food packages. Still, it's in more than 40,000 products.
Here are some ways to ferret out the fat.
What is it?
Trans fat (trans-fatty acids) is formed when oil is hydrogenated, a manufacturing process in which hydrogen atoms are mixed with non-saturated liquid oil from plants like corn or soy beans. The result is fat that stays relatively solid at room temperature. Think of trans fat essentially as shortening or margarine. It's why your pie crust is so flaky and why Ritz crackers stay crisp. It prolongs shelf life, which is why commercial bakeries love it. Some naturally occurring trans fats can be found in small amounts in beef and high-fat dairy products because trans fat is produced in the gastrointestinal lining of cattle.
Why is it bad for you?
Trans fat causes heart disease and can lead to heart attacks and strokes, according to an influential report issued July 10 by the National Academies of Sciences. The report summarized several studies that showed trans fat raises levels of the waxy cholesterol that clogs blood vessels and strips the good kind of cholesterol. Other studies have connected trans fat to a broader range of health problems, like insulin resistance, which can lead to diabetes, and possibly cancer.
How much is safe?
The National Academies of Sciences report said no level of trans fat is safe. But the researchers recognized that it would be impossible to remove trans fat from the American diet, because it's in more than 40,000 products on supermarket shelves. Their answer, short of an all-out ban, is to recommend that people eat as little as possible. .
What to look for on the label
First, look to see if partially hydrogenated oil is in the the ingredient list. How much depends on how high on the list those words appear. Products that list cold/expeller pressed oils, poly- or monounsaturated oils, olive oil, coconut oil, palm oil and other liquid oils likely won't have trans fat.
Note the amount of total fat listed and compare it to the breakdown of specific fats on the label. If there is a difference between the total number of fat grams and saturated fat grams, the unaccounted-for grams may come from trans fat.
The tricky thing is that not all fats will be broken out on nutrition labels. Heart-clogging saturated fat is the only fat required by law to be listed. Food packages that make specific health claims -- like "low cholesterol" or "reduced fat" -- must list poly- or monounsaturated fats along with saturated fats.
In some products, particularly cookies and crackers, a ballpark trans fat amount can be determined by using the saturated fat amount as a guide. The label on Chips Ahoy cookies, for example, lists 2 grams of saturated fat and 4 grams of total fat per serving. The additional 2 grams may be trans fat. In another example, Bisquick lists 6 grams of total fat, but only 1 1/2 of it marked as saturated. Because partially hydrogenated oil is so high on the ingredient list, the best assumption is that most of the remaining 4 1/2 fat grams are trans fat.
Foods that can have lots of hidden trans fat
Fast food: Most fast-food and family-style chain restaurants cook fries, chicken and other deep-fried foods in partially hydrogenated oil, which often comes in a solid block that's melted in the fryer. They also slather margarine -- which is trans fat -- on griddles for pancakes and grilled sandwiches. To get an idea of how much trans fat is in fast food, consider a KFC Original Recipe chicken dinner. It has 7 grams of trans fat, mostly from the chicken and biscuit. Even if the chains use some of the newer liquid, non-trans oils for frying, fries are sometimes par-fried in trans fat before they are shipped to the restaurants.
Baked Goods: This is the heaviest trans fat territory. Most mass-produced convenience and commercial bakery goods like cookies and cakes have plenty of trans fat. Cakes and shortening-based frostings from supermarket bakeries are particularly trans-heavy. So are doughnuts, which can contain shortening in the dough and also be cooked in trans fat. Generally, the higher quality the baked good, the less trans fat, because more butter is used.
Chips and crackers: To keep them crisp, manufacturers pump crackers full of shortening. Even crackers labeled "reduced fat" can still have trans fat. Watch for anything fried, like potato chips and corn chips, as well as "buttery" crackers.
Spreads, sauces and mixes: Margarine can be pure trans fat. As a general rule, the softer the margarine, the less artery-clogging fat it contains. There are some trans-fat-free spreads on the market and increasingly are labeled as such. Watch out for high trans-fat levels in nondairy creamers and flavored coffees, as well as in ready-made dips, including some bean dips, whipped toppings, gravy mixes and products like Hamburger Helper. Cake, biscuit and cornmeal mixes can have several grams of trans fat per serving.
Unexpected places: Breakfast cereals, breakfast bars, some energy bars, tortillas, microwave popcorn, fish sticks or other breaded frozen foods all can contain trans fat. So can some puddings and peanut butters, where it is used to give a creamier consistency. Frozen foods like pot pies, frozen pizzas and other entrees, even if labeled as lower in fat, are often made with trans fat. Very high levels can be found in packaged instant noodles like ramen and soup cups.
One of the healthy oils is flaxseed oil, which I have incorporated into my eating. I make delicious salad dressings with it. It cannot be used in cooking and must be kept refrigerated. However it evidently is liked by my body, which is what I was after. Since I am eating very "healthy" my eating is as close to the natural food as possible. We are still learning much in this area, and a forum like this can only be helpful.
Hi
Im sorry for calling you a disbeliever on the RS forum and yes my program has corrected me with trans fats and yes they are dangerous fats and yes your right and yes im wrong so there!
However, eating a low fat, high carb diet is not at all healthy for you whatsoever. Eliminating foods containing cholesterol and fat from your diet can actually acclerate metabolic aging leading to increased risk of disease and death. Also fat free products can actually be damaging to your health and is safer to be eating full fat products.
Sugar is more fattening than fat believe it or not. Fat does not create an insulin response in the body therefore fat cannot be stored as fat around your waist. Insulin also plays a major factor in heart disease and heart attacks.
Anyways mrs jim im probably boring you to death cause anything i tell you, you'll consider incorrect. It's like asking a vegitarian to eat a steak it wont happen. However let me tell you that any of your low fat theories wont get through to me cause im losing weight eating all the fat and protein i want and not starving!
Apology accepted on the trans fats issues. I don't even post at the Simmons board, I just wanted to clarify the issues.
BTW, if you read my previous posts and the ones in the BFL forum, you'll see that I'm well aware of the low fat/high carb issues. Do a bit of reading here and you'll see that BFL (as well as many bodybuilding nutrition plans) nutrition consists of balanced CLEAN complex carbs and lean protein. You'll also see that BFL is not an 'ultra low fat' diet. Yes the body does need fat - but it needs to be HEALTHY fat...not vegetable oils, butter, margarine, Crisco, bacon fat, etc. That, my friend, is bad for you.
Yep, sugar is bad for you...but anything eaten to excess WILL turn to fat. The human body is incredibly efficient and will turn any excess calories - whether they be from carbs, protein, or fat - to fat stored on your body (for me it usually ends up in my thighs). Insulin response is important, but bottom line, calories are what count (even though I don't count them personally - I just eat clean food - and unfortunately Cheddar Cheese does not count as 'clean food' IMO).
PS - BTW, I was not trying to "corner" you as you stated on one of your previous posts...just wanted to make sure that folks have ACCURATE information here...
PSS - I have also moved your post here to this thread so you have an opportunity to read some of the information I have posted from Udo Erasmus (noted author of "Fats that Heal, Fats that Kill") and some of the other studies from Medline.
MrsJim doesn't advocate a low fat, high carb diet. She advocates "good fat" in the diet and a healthy balance of "good" carbs and protein (approx 1:1 ratio) combined with small, frequent meals to keep the insulin level (it is true that insulin spikes lead to weight gain). She also advocates keeping sugar levels low (not typically a component of "low fat" diets).
The low carb/high fat vs high carb/low fat diet debate model is too much of a simplication. It's simply not that simple.
Both ends of the spectrum are difficult for the body to cope with because of the inherent deprivation of something and ingestion of too much of something else (in low carb it is too many "bad" fats, in low fat its too many "bad" carbs).
While you will lose weight for a time on either "diet", you will gain it back when you go off the "diet" and you WILL go off the diet because nature abhors a vacuum. When you are leaving one foodgroup completely out of your diet, you have a vacuum.
MrsJim advocates a balanced diet of "good" carbs plus protein and good fat and LOW sugar. Small frequent meals keep the insulin steady and the ratio of good (ie low glycemic) carbs and protein combined with good fat (flaxseed, "Udos" et al) gives the body everything it needs as often as it needs it (every 2-3 hours).
The problem with most "low fat" diets is that people tend to eat anything that is called "low fat" and the store shelf brand of "llow fat" tends to contain lots of sugar. And lots of sugar is bad. It is the sloppy eating habits of people and the failure to incorporate any good fats into low fat diets which is why "low fat" is getting a bad rap. You can do "low fat" as long as it's not "no fat" and as long as the fats you do ingest come from a healthy source AND the fat is not substituted with sugar. (stay away from store labeled "LOW FAT" products!!!!)
If you dont' put the "good fat" in a healthy, balanced diet, it is no longer healthy or balanced. If you purchase gobs of "low fat" products in the store, chances are you are ingesting a ton of sugar that will turn to ............... (hello) ...................fat.
I agree that we eat too many starchy carbs. Since I've stopped eating anything white and no starches after lunch I have lost weight. Speaking of fats, though, I totally disagree with any "diet plans" that advocate unlimited consumption of saturated fats (cheese, beef, bacon), and hydrogenated fats are evil!
I do absolutely love fatty fish (the oilier the better) and Udo's Essential oil. I eat fish 2-3 times a week and Udo's 3 times a week. A recent trip to the cardiologist and blood test shows I now have less than .05% of having a heart attack (I'm 42). Last year and 60 pounds heavier I was at high risk for heart attack, stroke, and diabetes. Now I am totally in the clear. My BMI went from 31 to 23, and I body build, so it's probably more like 22.
I have NOT given up grains though because I run 25-30 miles a week, and do martial arts. I simply cannot do that without more carbs. The carbs I choose though, are sweet potatoes, brown rice and whole grain bread (no pasta - don't like it). If you put a little Udo's on it too, you don't get the insulin spike that makes you sleepy.
Please try a diet with lots of vegetables, some fruits, a FEW whole grains and lots of flax and fish oil. Low fat dairy too if you can tolerate it. You will be and feel so much more healthy... And do both cardio and weights!
Good Fat vs Bad Fat...
Another article on Trans Fats...
