Does Fat Make You Fat?

Does Fat Make You Fat?

To some of you the answer is obvious. Unfortunately the obvious answer to many is Yes, while the 'obvious' answer to others is No. After reading many books on the subject, I think the answer is "it depends". Let's look at both sides.

1. The followers of the Paleolithic diet have a point. We are, we have evolved to be, MEAT EATERS! Our bodies know how to digest, metabolize and use meats and animal fats.

2. The other side also has a point. As our meat and fat consumption increases so does heart disease and obesity. Some researchers look at this as proof that saturated fats are the cause of the obesity epidemic. They really are fixated on the fact that 1 gram of fat has 9 calories, while nearly everything else has only 4 calories per gram. So if you eat fat you consume more calories. This ignores the other fact, that fat is more satisfying, so while people who eat a lot of fat may consume a lot at one sitting or meal, they are more likely to have fewer meals (3 not 6 small ones) or have meals further apart. Eating fat foods does not automatically mean you are eating more calories.

Others look at the same evidence as say refined carbohydrates increased in the same period and they are the problem. Don't you wish everyone agreed.

There is one idea I have not been able to find any literature on; the quality of fats. Could that make a difference? If we are what we eat, isn't our food a product of what it eats too?

The fats our ancestors ate came from wild animals, living in the way they were designed to live and eating the food they were designed to eat. I do not believe 'mad cow' disease was a problem a couple of thousand years ago, or even a couple of hundred. It came about because we messed with nature. What idiot came up with the idea that it would be okay to take cows that were not fit for human consumption and feed them to the cows we were planning to eat? This is nuts with a capital N -- N.U.T.S. but now that that particular problem is solved we are feeding our cows grains, and hormones and anti-biotics. - an aside here, I am not opposed to feeding sick cows anti-biotics to make them well, but it should be used only as a medicine for an existing problem not as feed 'just in case'. - so if we are feeding hormones and anti-biotics to the cows we are going to eat, could it be possible that we are getting these hormones too? I have read that our bodies will remove toxins from our food and eliminate them through urine, but if we inundate our bodies with too much, overload our organs, these toxins still have to be dealt with, they can't be allowed into the blood stream, so to get them quickly out of the way, they are wrapped up in our fat and stored out of harm's way. (this is partially why our bodies will not easily release fat -- the toxins in it have to be addressed, but that is another story) If cows do the same thing, the hormones and anti-biotics, and toxins resulting from eating far more grain than nature intended will be stored in their fat. If this is the case, when we eat this fat we are getting far more trouble than just 9 calories per gram. We are getting all toxins, they could not cope with while still alive.

My conclusion. Whether fat is good for you are not depends on the source. If you have access to wild game, or grass fed beef I would not be concerned with the fat content. If you do not, if you get your meat at the local grocers and do not have access to, or cannot afford organically raised meats you need to be cautious. Trim the visible fat before cooking,and drain the fat after you cook the meat. Don't discard the egg yolk in favour of the whites, it is still the best part of the egg; but only eat organic eggs, even if this means you must eat eggs less often. Organic eggs are in most grocery store, they are much easier to get than organic meats. Minimize your exposure to animal fat. But we still need some fat. Our brains require fat to function. The solution is to increase the amount of fats and oils directly from vegetables (avocadoes, almonds, olive oil, coconut oil, flax seed oil (cold pressed). NOT generic vegetable oils- who knows what's in those! Also increase the fats from cold water fish sardines, salmon.

I eat fat. I eat meat with fat. I eat eggs, with the yolks. But I buy only organic beef (no growth hormones) that are grass fed and FINISHED ** and my eggs come from free range, chickens, actually from my own chickens when they are laying.

Just a note about grass fed and finished cows. Even organically raised cows are sometimes grain finished to increase the fat content and give them a nice marbling. This finishing is usually two weeks of grain feeding. Cows do not naturally eat grains. I am trying to avoid anything unnatural in my foods. But something that really causes me concern. Grain finishing only takes 2 weeks. Just two weeks of grains to make a slender cow fat.

Doctors will often tell you to eat dry (butter less) toast for breakfast if you want to lose weight. I suspect you would have better results if you ate the butter and dispensed with the toast! I love bread and butter. It is my Achilles heel. Yesterday I had white bread- just 3 slices over the course of the whole day. I gained half a pound overnight. Maybe grain 'finishes' people just as quickly as it 'finishes' cows!

The author has a blog devoted to healthy aging, particularly for "baby-boomer's". She researches and reports on simple, easy, exercises, nutrition, and weight loss strategies.
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