A hundred years ago, shoppers had few fats to choose from. Usually, only butter and lard were available to consumers.

Today, there are enough fats and oils on the market to confuse anyone. But all of them fall into one of three categories:

1. Table fats (butter and margarines)
2. Cooking and salad oils
3. Shortenings

To  make things simpler, remember just one thing. All of these items are high in fat. In fact, the fat content of shortenings and oils is virtually identical. Butter and margarine have  slightly less fat because these spreads contain a small amount of water that shortenings and oils lack.

The Different Types of Fat

The only important difference between the many fats has to do with what nutritionists call “type of fat.” Some of the fat in food is saturated, while other fats are monounsaturated or polyunsaturated. The saturated type of fat promotes heart disease, but others do not seem to do so. Somehow,  still there are controversies among experts and scientists regarding correlation between saturated fats and heart diseases or/and cancers.

But when it comes to cancer prevention, all fats are equal footing. Scientists believe that eating less of any type of fat will help prevent cancers of the breast, colon, and prostate gland. They have not concluded that any one type of fat has more effect on cancer than another.

This makes the message about fat and cancer much simpler than advice on preventing heart disease. You need only to keep three guidelines in mind concerning the fats and oils in your diet:

1. Add no more than one pat of margarine to each serving of bread, pasta, or vegetables.
2. Limit fats and oils used in cooking to no more than 2 tablespoons per 4 servings (3 tablespoons for 6 servings).
3. Experiment with reduced-fat salad dressings, margarines, and cream cheese; try jams, jellies, and other condiments to replace some of the fat added to food

Saturated or Unsaturated?

For For those who are interested in preventing both heart disease and cancer, I would like to offer some facts about the type of fat in food.

Preventing heart disease means eating less saturated fat, for (dietary) saturated fat is  one of several sources that raise the blood cholesterol level. Of course there are other sources.  High  blood cholesterol is one of the three major factors that determine your risk of heart disease.

Scientists believe that polyunsaturated fats help to lower the blood cholesterol (but some other scientists doubt about this matter; still a controversy). But these fats don’t lower blood cholesterol as efficiently  as saturated fats may raise it. Some people believe that eating less saturated fat is the most important thing to do, but some other people don’t.

All foods contain some of each type of fat, That makes life too complicated, though, because it means that everything is partially saturated, partially monounsaturated, and partially polyunsaturated. Nutritionists have simplified things, calling a fat saturated or unsaturated based on the dominant amount of each fat that the food contains.

The following kinds of fat have enough saturated fat to be simply called saturated:

• Beef, pork, or lamb fats
• Milkfat and butter
• Coconut and palm oils
• Some industrial shortenings

Industrial shortenings are those used by food companies to make processed foods. Supermarkets do not sell these shortenings, but we encounter them in a wide range of ready-made products. Most vegetable oils and some margarines fall into the polyunsaturated category. There are many to choose from. They include:

• Corn oil
• Safflower oil
• Sesame seed oil
• Soybean oil
• Sunflower oil
• Some margarines, most likely those in tubs

Olive oil, peanut oil, many margarines, and some industrial shortenings are monounsaturated. The monounsaturated fats are believed have little or no effect on the blood cholesterol level.

Chicken and fish fats are less saturated than the fat of red meats. For this reason, some nutritionists and heart experts recommend eating more fish and fowl.

( to be continued )

The following nutrient-rich traditional fats have nourished healthy population groups for thousands of years:

For Cooking

• Butter
• Tallow and suet from beef and lamb
• Lard from pigs
• Chicken, goose and duck fat
• Coconut, palm and palm kernel oils

For Salads

• Extra virgin olive oil (also OK for cooking)
• Expeller-expressed sesame and peanut oils
• Expeller-expressed flax oil (in small amounts)

For Fat-Soluble Vitamins

• Fish liver oils such as cod liver oil (preferable to fish oils, which do not provide fat-soluble vitamins, can cause an overdose of unsaturated fatty acids and usually come from farmed fish.)

The following newfangled fats can cause cancer, heart disease, immune system dysfunction, sterility, learning disabilities, growth problems and osteoporosis:

• All hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils
• Industrially processed liquid oils such as soy, corn, safflower, cottonseed and canola
• Fats and oils (especially vegetable oils) heated to very high temperatures in processing and frying.

Role of  Saturated Fats

Saturated fats, such as butter, meat fats, coconut oil and palm oil, tend to be solid at room temperature. According to conventional nutritional dogma, these traditional fats are to blame for most of our modern diseases–heart disease, cancer, obesity, diabetes, malfunction of cell membranes and even nervous disorders like multiple sclerosis. However, many scientific studies indicate that it is processed liquid vegetable oil–which is laden with free radicals formed during processing–and artificially hardened vegetable oil–called trans fat–that are the culprits in these modern conditions, not natural saturated fats.

Humans need saturated fats because we are warm blooded. Our bodies do not function at room temperature, but at a tropical temperature. Saturated fats provide the appropriate stiffness and structure to our cell membranes and tissues. When we consume a lot of liquid unsaturated oils, our cell membranes do not have structural integrity to function properly, they become too “floppy,” and when we consume a lot of trans fat, which is not as soft as saturated fats at body temperature, our cell membranes become too “stiff.”

Contrary to the accepted view, which is not scientifically based, saturated fats do not clog arteries or cause heart disease. In fact, the preferred food for the heart is saturated fat; and saturated fats lower a substance called Lp(a), which is a very accurate marker for proneness to heart disease.

Saturated fats play many important roles in the body chemistry. They strengthen the immune system and are involved in inter-cellular communication, which means they protect us against cancer. They help the receptors on our cell membranes work properly, including receptors for insulin, thereby protecting us against diabetes. The lungs cannot function without saturated fats, which is why children given butter and full-fat milk have much less asthma than children given reduced-fat milk and margarine. Saturated fats are also involved in kidney function and hormone production.

Saturated fats are required for the nervous system to function properly, and over half the fat in the brain is saturated. Saturated fats also help suppress inflammation. Finally, saturated animal fats carry the vital fat-soluble vitamins A, D and K2, which we we need in large amounts to be healthy.

Human beings have been consuming saturated fats from animals products, milk products and the tropical oils for thousands of years; it is the advent of modern processed vegetable oil that is associated with the epidemic of modern degenerative disease, not the consumption of saturated fats.

“Avoid saturated fats.”
Saturated fats play many important roles in the body. They provide integrity to the cell wall, promote the body’s use of essential fatty acids, enhance the immune system, protect the liver and contribute to strong bones. The lungs and the kidneys cannot work without saturated fat. Saturated fats do not cause heart disease. In fact, saturated fats are the preferred food for the heart. Because your body needs saturated fats, it makes them out of carbohydrates and excess protein when there are not enough in the diet.

“Limit cholesterol.”
Dietary cholesterol contributes to the strength of the intestinal wall and helps babies and children develop a healthy brain and nervous system. Foods that contain cholesterol also provide many other important nutrients. Only oxidized cholesterol, found in most powdered milk and powdered eggs, contributes to heart disease. Powdered milk is added to 1% and 2% milk.

“Use more polyunsaturated oils.”
Polyunsaturates in more than small amounts contribute to cancer, heart disease, autoimmune diseases, learning disabilities, intestinal problems and premature aging. Large amounts of polyunsaturated fats are new to the human diet, due to the modern use of commercial liquid vegetable oils. Even olive oil, a monounsaturated fat considered to be healthy, can cause imbalances at the cellular level if consumed in large amounts.

“Avoid red meat.”

Red meat is a rich source of nutrients that protect the heart and nervous system; these include vitamins B12 and B6, zinc, phosphorus, carnitine and coenzyme-Q10.

“Cut back on eggs.”
Eggs are nature’s perfect food, providing excellent protein, the gamut of vitamins and important fatty acids that contribute to the health of the brain and nervous system. Americans had less heart disease when they ate more eggs. Egg substitutes cause rapid death in test animals.

“Restrict salt.”
Salt is crucial to digestion and assimilation. Salt is also necessary for the development and function of the nervous system.

“Eat lean meat and drink lowfat milk.”
Lean meat and lowfat milk lack fat-soluble vitamins needed to assimilate the protein and minerals in meat and milk. Consumption of lowfat foods can lead to depletion of vitamin A and D reserves.

“Limit fat consumption to 30 percent of calories.”
Thirty percent calories as fat is too low for most people, leading to low blood sugar and fatigue. Traditional diets contained 30 percent to 80 percent of calories as healthy fats, mostly of animal origin.

“Eat 6-11 servings of grains per day.”
Most grain products are made from white flour, which is devoid of nutrients. Additives in white flour can cause vitamin deficiencies. Whole grain products can cause mineral deficiencies and intestinal problems unless properly prepared.

“Eat at least 5 servings of fruits and vegetables per day.”
Fruits and vegetables receive an average of 10 applications of pesticides, from seed to storage. Consumers should seek out organic produce. Quality counts!

“Eat more soy foods.”

Modern soy foods block mineral absorption, inhibit protein digestion, depress thyroid function and contain potent carcinogens.

The kidneys need stable fats both for their cushioning and as their energy source. We know that the kidney fat normally has a higher concentration of the important saturated fatty acids than are found in any of the other fat depots. These saturated fatty acids are myristic acid (the 14-carbon saturate), palmitic acid (the 16-carbon saturate), and stearic acid (the 18-carbon saturate). When we consume various polyunsaturated fatty acids in large amounts, they are incorporated into kidney tissues, usually at the expense of oleic acid, because the normal high level of saturated fatty acids in the kidney fat does not change.¹

A species of rat known to be prone to strokes and to spontaneously develop hypertension (high blood pressure) has been used to evaluate effects of different lipids such as plant sterols or cholesterol, and also fatty acids such as omega-3 or omega-6 fatty acids in the finely tuned functions of the kidney. These animals are very sensitive to dietary cholesterol manipulations and a deficiency of cholesterol in their membranes makes their membranes weak and fragile. When plant sterols found in vegetable oils are substituted for cholesterol in their diets, these animals have a shortened life span.² Also, these animals are reported to need a proper omega-6 to omega-3 ratio in the kidney phospholipids. It was further reported that feeding oils high in omega-6 fatty acids without omega-3 fatty acids resulted in renal injury, and that feeding oils rich in the omega-3 fatty acids such as fish oil, perilla oil, and flaxseed oil prolonged the survival time of this animal.³

The omega-3 fatty acids are recognized as being important, and the conversion of the flax oil-type omega-3 fatty acid (alpha-linolenic acid) to the fish oil-type omega-3 fatty acids (EPA and DHA) is enhanced when the diet contains saturated fat such as coconut oil. This conversion is hindered when there is extra omega-6 oils in the diet.⁴ Injury to the kidney from immune dysfunction (IgA nephropathy) responds to omega-3 fats (both flax oil-type omega-3 and fish oil-type omega-3).⁵ As noted, adding the saturated fats, especially coconut oil, improves the body’s use of omega-3 fatty acids.

Another reason that coconut oil enhances kidney function is because it supplies myristic acid, the 14-carbon saturated fatty acid.⁶ Myristic acid is involved in the signalling from cell membrane receptors through G proteins and their attachment to membranes. These signalling proteins require a lipid such as myristic acid to be added to one end of the protein, a process called myristolation.⁷

Thus, the fats that we recommend for general good health, namely various saturated animal fats and tropical oils, along with a supplement of flax oil, are also specifically helpful for kidney function. Products containing high omega-6 oils and trans fatty acids should be avoided.

References:

1. Suarez et al, Lipids 1996;31:345; Taugbol and Saarem, Acta Vet Scand 1995;36:93
2. Ratnayake, et al, J Nutrition 2000;130:1166
3. Miyazaki et al, Biochim Biophys Acta 2000;1483:101
4. Gerster, Int J Vitam Nutr Res 1998;68:159
5. Kelley, ISSFAL, 2000;7:6
6. Monserrat et al, Res Exp Med (Berl) 2000;199:195
7. Busconi and Denker, Biochem J 1997;328:23

Food fats or dietary fats are white or yellowish greasy material, found in both animals and plants. Pure fat lacks color, odor, and taste, and it exists both as a liquid and as a solid.

During digestion, fat is broken down in the duodenum (the first part of the small intestine, just past the stomach) to fatty acids and glycerol. As a food, its primary value and importance are as a fuel – a source of body energy. It is the most concentrated food we have, and it possesses more than twice the caloric value of carbohydrates or protein. Every ounce of fat has the same value as every other – whether it is an ounce of butter or an ounce of cottonseed oil. One type of fat, however, may be more easily assimilated, or absorbed, thus more accessible, than another. In  northern America, the fats eaten most often are in the form of eggs, margarine, butter, meat, cream, nuts, and such oils as olive oil and vegetable oil.

Cholesterol

Cholesterol is a fatlike pearly substances found in saturated animal fats and oils and especially in egg yolk. It is an ingredient of bile, blood, brain tissue, nerve fibers, the liver, kidneys, and the adrenal glands. Pathologically, it constitutes a large part of gallstones and is deposited in the wall of arteries, thickening and hardening them.

A diet  rich in polysaturated fats may raise the cholesterol level of blood; poly unsaturated fats, on the contrary, may lower it. The following foods have a high content of cholesterol: egg yolk, cream, milk, cheese, butter, lard, fatty meats, sweetbreads, brain, shellfish, and caviar

Cholesterol is known to be closely associated  with arteriosclerosis. This chemical is a waxy substance manufactured by the body and stored in those places where it participates in certain necessary physicochemical functions. The body’s supply of cholesterol may increase when certain animal fats are eaten excessively – fats high in cholesterol content. It is known that when the cholesterol level in the blood is driven above normal, the excess is deposited on the inner linings of the arteries. These deposits narrow the passage-ways, even blocking the blood vessels entirely. They also caused such changes that clotting takes place in the blood vessels themselves. The greatest danger of this is in the blood vessels of the heart or brain: when clots  occur in the blood vessels of the heart or when they are blocked, a heart attack is the result. Even if it does not progress this far, the narrowing of the blood vessels makes it harder for the heart to pump the required blood through these vessels.

Cholesterol can be found primarily in fats and particularly in animal fats, eggs, and dairy products. Experiments have indicated that recurrent heart attacks in those who have suffered prior attacks might be avoided or reduced by lowering the amount of such fat in the food they eat. Since the body needs to have fats to maintain a proper dietary balance, doctors have recommended the substitution of vegetable fats for those of animal origin wherever possible.

Saturated and Unsaturated Fats

Fats are separated chemically into two basics groups: saturated and unsaturated. Further experiments indicated that unsaturated fats do not raise the cholesterol content of the blood in contrast to the saturated ones which may. Still further experiments indicated that the unsaturated fats – particularly the polyunsaturated fats – actually lower blood cholesterol if included in the ordinary diet, even one containing saturated and animal fats.

Vegetable fats are of several different types. For example, certain saturated vegetable fats (such as coconut oil and, to a lesser extent, certain of the oleo margarines) actually raise the blood cholesterol if included in the diet. But such unsaturated vegetables fats as cottonseed oil, safflower oil, corn oil (all polyunsaturates) and in some cases olive oil either do not raise the cholesterol level or actually decrease it.

It is still too early, however, to draw any final and sweeping conclusions from the results of these early experiments as to the preferability of unsaturated to saturated fats in the diet, although the American Heart Association and certain of the experts in these fields are urging a radical change in our diets to get such killer diseases as heart attacks, stroke, and arteriosclerosis under control. Subsequent studies have tended to indicate that the excessive consumption of other foods may yet prove to be more closely connected with this excessive cholesterol blood level than is the consumption of saturated fats. These include highly refined carbohydrates such as sugar or foods high in sugar such as cakes, pies, candy, soft drinks and the like – and alcoholic beverages, especially whiskey and other hard liquors.

Based on the statistic data, countries with the lower standards of living, such as China and southern Italy, often have the lowest incidence of arteriosclerosis. The consumption of refined carbohydrates and alcohol happens to be high in northern America and Scandinavia and low in China and southern Italy, which seems to render these substances suspect as well!  Much more research is certainly needed in this field before any definitive conclusions can be drawn.

For further information, please find  a couple of important articles  regarding the dangerous type of  fats you should aware of, namely trans  fats in this blog and  similar related topic in Blog of Health.