New Evidence That Fat Isn't Bad

Billed as good news for everyone who likes to stuff their faces during Christmas, a new study has found that fats, even saturated fats, aren't necessarily bad for you. But not all Christmas dishes have been given a free pass, as high-carb foods were shown to be the major contributor to obesity.



Cream. Source: Paul Downey (CC 2.0)

Led by experts from the University of Bergen in Norway, this research involved obese men who had diets high in either carbohydrates or fat. Their levels of body fat in the abdomen and around the heart, as well as other risk factors for cardiovascular disease and diabetes, were measured and compared between the two groups. Professor and cardiologist Ottar Nygard said that "The very high intake of total and saturated fat did not increase the calculated risk of cardiovascular diseases", going against conventional dietary advice that has been the norm for years (regardless of accuracy). "Participants in the very high-fat diet also had substantial improvements in several important cardiometabolic risk factors, such as ectopic fat storage, blood pressure, blood lipids (triglycerides), insulin and blood sugar", he added. Processed and low-quality foods, however, were also key factors in obesity. Total and saturated fat consumption was examined in context with healthy diets that were rich in fresh foods and favoured vegetables and rice over flour-based products. The fat sources were typically unprocessed, and were mainly butter, cold-pressed oils and cream. Conventional wisdom would tell you that saturated fats raise "bad" LDL cholesterol, but these researchers found no such thing - while there was no significant increase in LDL cholesterol, the "good" HDL cholesterol was higher in people with high fat diets.
"These results indicate that most healthy people probably tolerate a high intake of saturated fat well, as long as the fat quality is good and total energy intake is not too high. It may even be healthy", Professor Nygard concluded.

This research and the mainstream news article reporting it comes soon after Australia's AHPRA has attempted to silence Gary Fettke, an orthopaedic surgeon with an interest in nutrition, because of his support for the same ideas found by this study! AHPRA failed to recognise his thousands of hours of research, from textbooks to journal articles and working with scientists and other health professionals of all types. He is no longer allowed to participate in research or speak in public in Australia, all because of his support for the Low-Carb High-Fat (LCHF) diet. His reasons for being such a bad little boy? Most of his patients had joint issues related to obesity and/or diabetes, and for years, all he could see was these patients get worse on government nutritional advice. Fortunately, Nutrition for Life is setting up a not-for-profit community arm so that their work can continue. And we can all join in to spread the news of diets that actually heal, instead of one-size-fits-all, government-approved ideas that do not. We have more power than what these people would like us to believe.