Stay Heart Healthy
February is American Heart Month and no nutrient is more associated with heart health than our dear friend, Fat. Fat tends to generate the most confusion too. We’ve all heard the simple dietary advice, “Eat more fruits, vegetables and whole grains and avoid trans and saturated fats.” The dogma is so ingrained in our culture that we automatically associate “saturated fat” with “artery clogging” and “unhealthy.” But it’s not so black and white; not all fats are created equal and many deserve their place at the table once again.
Saturated Fats
Saturated fats are fatty acids with no double bonds and generally remain solid at room temperature. Butter, coconut oil, palm oil, visible meat fats and dairy are the main sources of saturated fat. They were discovered in 1952 when the invention of gas-liquid chromatography allowed scientists to differentiate between types of fat in foods.
Unsaturated Fats
Over time, we’ve identified “healthy” fats, like olives, avocados, nuts, seeds and oils derived from them and continue to shun the fat of animals. Unsaturated fats, both poly- and mono-, are fatty acids that generally remain liquid at room temperature.
The Fear of Fats
In 1955, when President Dwight D. Eisenhower suffered his first of many heart attacks, his cardiologist announced, at a national televised press conference, that Americans need to quit smoking, reduce stress and cut down on dietary fat and cholesterol. This advice was prematurely based on observational studies conducted by Ancel Keys. Keys was just beginning his epidemiological studies that observed total cholesterol in blood, intake of fat in diet and the health of the heart. He drew an over-simplified direct cause-and-effect theory, “the cholesterol hypothesis,” that fat in the diet elevates cholesterol in the blood and leads to heart disease. And so, America’s fear of fat began… long before the opportunity to study different types of fatty acid’s effect on human health, we had already viewed it all as bad.
Clearing the Air
In 2014, the largest meta-analysis related to heart disease and fats was conducted, reviewing over 76 studies and concluding “current evidence does not clearly support cardiovascular guidelines that encourage high consumption of polyunsaturated fatty acids and low consumption of total saturated fats.” This study led the American Heart Association to drop all cholesterol guidelines in February 2015 after 50-plus years of research revealed that the intake of dietary cholesterol had no effect whatsoever on blood cholesterol, but it remains a battle of saturated versus unsaturated fats.
Saturated Fatty Acids, Not Created Equal
Coconut oil is often demonized for being a saturated fat but the types of saturated fatty acids, caprylic and lauric acid, are beneficial; anti-viral, anti-bacterial and known to raise “good” HDL cholesterol levels.
Studies have shown that the way a product was grown, raised or processed dramatically influences the fatty acid composition of that product. In a review published by Nutrition Journal in 2010, scientists compared the fatty acid profiles of grain-fed vs. grass-fed beef. They found that although total saturated fat content of the meat did not change, the types of saturated fats did. They found grass-fed cows produced meat with high levels of cholesterol-neutral saturated fats like stearic acid. Grain-feed beef had significantly higher proportions of cholesterol-elevating saturated fatty acids such as myristic and palmitic acids. The same results were found in pasture-raised vs. grain-based chicken eggs.
The Bottom Line
At the end of the day, fat is not our major dilemma. What the food industry has replaced fat calories with, carbohydrates from refined grains and sugar, is (but that’s for another day). In the meantime, always go for high-quality sources of fats such as avocados, unrefined oils, nuts, seeds, organic and grass-fed meat and dairy, wild fish, extra virgin olive oil and pasture-raised eggs. Try to avoid highly-refined oils such as canola, soybean, cottonseed, vegetable and corn oils.
