What makes you fat?

I recently heard a popular cooking network star proclaim with gusto during her segment in which she was demonstrating how to make a vegetarian stew from chick peas, not to worry about the amount of carbs in the dish.  “It’s a myth,” she said, “that carbs make you fat.  Carbs don’t make you fat,” she yelled with conviction as she pointed a bejeweled finger into the camera, “fat makes you fat, you nerds.”  Wrong---if only it were that simple.

People watching their diet often cut down on dietary fat in order to lose body fat.  After all, it was long believed that obesity and other chronic diseases associated with obesity were the result of eating too much fat.  For decades the medical community as well as the USDA recommended a low fat diet in order to lose weight and reduce risk of obesity and heart disease.  In previous posts I explained the reasons for avoiding bad sugar and bad flour, two carbohydrates that do, in fact, make you fat, now let’s talk about dietary fat.  We need fat in our diet.  Our bodies need it as a source of energy, to process the fat soluble vitamins A,D,E, and K, and as the source of essential fatty acids, important for the normal function of certain glands, metabolic functions, growth and reproduction.

Not All Fats Are Equal

 There are three types of fat.  Two are bad fats.  They are fats that raise cholesterol and can therefore increase the risk for heart disease.  The two bad fats are saturated and trans fats.  Saturated fats are in foods that are often referred to as fatty meats like bacon, salt pork, sausage, short ribs, steak with marbling and the skin of poultry, and in lesser amounts in lean meats and poultry.  But it is also in dairy products such as cheese, ice cream and sour cream and certain oils like palm and coconut oil, although it is uncertain at this time as to whether or not saturated fats from dairy products have the same effect as saturated fats from meat and poultry.  All animal protein and dairy contain some saturated fats and coincidentally, all animal protein and dairy are highly acid producing in the body as well.  Which means, once you start eating good food, that which is alkaline producing, you will avoid these bad foods altogether or at least reduce the portion size to a minimum.  For those of you new to this blog, by good food I mean a diet of 60% (minimum) of alkaline producing foods on each and every plate. 

Trans fat, the second bad fat, is manufactured by hydrogenating liquid oil into a solid fat.  Trans fats are identified as such on food labels, but only if the amount exceeds a minimum of .5 grams so you must read the ingredients list on all packaged foods and look for the term hydrogenated oil or partially hydrogenated oil.  Foods most likely to contain trans fats are snack foods, baked goods and butter substitutes.  And again, since these foods are all highly acid producing, once you start eating good food, these too will be avoided. 

The third type of fat is the good fat---unsaturated fat of which there are three:  monounsaturated, polyunsaturated and omega-3.  Nuts and seeds, oils made from nuts and seeds and avocados are good sources of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats.  Omega-3 fatty acids are found in many species of fish such as salmon, sardines, herring and mackerel and in soybean products, walnuts, flaxseed and canola oil.  Since most people don’t  eat fish species that are rich in omega-3, or soy products or flaxseed, that leaves canola oil which is the oil I recommend for all cooking applications not just for the omega-3 fatty acid, but also because it has no flavor and therefore does not interfere with the flavors from seasonings and other ingredients.  For those of you who don’t eat fish, there are of course omega-3 over the counter nutritional supplements available.  Omega-3 is beneficial in keeping arteries free of plaque. 

Now, I think you can see why I say that the cooking network star is wrong about fats making you fat.  They may indeed contribute to a heart attack, but make you fat?  No!  Bad sugar and bad flour, two carbohydrates, make you fat.  Now that you “nerds” know that some fats are good and some fats are bad, how do you avoid the bad and enjoy the good?  Look at it this way, avoid fatty animal proteins, high fat dairy and hydrogenated oil, and the next time you want to snack, grab a few nuts or seeds.  As for the fish?  Well, there is a pill for everything. 

 Buon Appetito e Buona Salute, Chef AngelaB

P.S.  My current book EAT SMART, AMERICA, AN ANTI-AGING DIET PRIMER  $ 2.99 is available now for Kindle on Amazon 

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