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For many years, we have been told that fat is dangerous. That too much fat in the diet will lead to obesity and high cholesterol, which in turn leads to the development of cardiovascular disease. Now we know this is a truth with a twist! Healthy fats are essential in the diet and have significant and crucial health benefits. Here, doctor and health advisor Pia Norup explains the difference between healthy and unhealthy fats - and which foods you should eat to get healthy fats.
We now know:
Healthy fats are essential in the diet! The important thing is not to be afraid of them, as they have essential and crucial health benefits - in the right amounts, of course.
Fats are healthy when they come from healthy sources, i.e. whole, naturally occurring foods - a variety of fish, lean meat, poultry and vegetable sources including oils (e.g. olive oil, flaxseed oil, walnut oil, etc.), nuts, seeds, grains, avocados and bananas. Healthy fats reduce our sugar cravings/addiction, accelerate weight loss, can prevent disease and even help to heal and alleviate symptoms and illness.
Saturated and unsaturated fatty acids
There is a distinction between saturated and unsaturated fats, and in general, animal foods are rich in saturated fatty acids, while plant foods are rich in unsaturated fatty acids. Coconut oil is an exception, as it is a vegetable source high in saturated fatty acids. Coconut oil has a number of health-promoting qualities and is therefore a good source of fat, but in limited quantities as it is concentrated, saturated fatty acids. Another positive attribute of coconut oil is that it is very heat stable and can withstand heat better than some of the more delicate unsaturated fatty acids, such as olive oil.
It has been widely accepted for many years that saturated fats (SFA, Saturated Fatty Acids) are unhealthy and are linked to cardiovascular disease by creating high cholesterol and fat deposits in the vessel wall (arteries and blood vessels). However, there is a lot of research going on these years and an increasing number of articles show very mixed results. There are even studies that show a protective effect of saturated fats in relation to the incidence of stroke (apoplexy) - however, depending on race, gender, the amount of saturated fats consumed and diet (ref. 1).
The official guidelines (USDA Nutrition Guidelines 2015) still recommend that saturated fatty acids should not exceed 10% of our total daily energy intake. Many Danes have a much higher intake of saturated fatty acids than this, primarily in the form of meat, cheese and dairy products.
Saturated fats, like unsaturated fats, are important and essential, but you can't compromise on quality! Saturated fats from animals that have lived free-range, grazed and consumed natural feed have a completely different, healthier fat composition with higher omega-3 content than meat from cattle fed artificial feed.
In contrast, processed foods, ready meals and junk food contain many of the 'bad' saturated fatty acids, and especially trans fatty acids, which are also contained in these types of foods, are dangerous to health. Trans fatty acids are a type of unsaturated fatty acid that are estimated to be up to 10 times more dangerous to health than saturated fatty acids.
Trans fatty acids are naturally occurring and can be artificially produced. Artificially produced trans fatty acids are mainly used in industrial applications, ready meals, margarine, bakery fats, snacks and junk food. Denmark has regulated the use of artificially produced trans fatty acids since 2004. The limit is now 2 g of trans fatty acids per 100 g. Before 2004, there could be up to 60g of trans fatty acids per 100g in certain foods. Naturally occurring trans fatty acids are not regulated as they are not considered to pose the same risk.
When it comes to cardiovascular disease, it turns out that fat alone is not the culprit. It's all about what else you eat. The effect of cutting down on saturated fats to prevent cardiovascular disease is entirely dependent on what you replace the fat with.
As mentioned above, the once much maligned saturated fats are not necessarily inherently unhealthy and associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease if consumed in limited amounts, along with healthy unsaturated fats and without a high-glycemic, starchy diet (ref. 2-5). You can read more about high-glycemic diets (high GI diets) here and find a list of high and low-glycemic diets here.
If the saturated fats in the diet are replaced with carbohydrate-rich, starchy foods such as white bread, pasta or rice or sugary foods, the risk of cardiovascular disease increases!
However, if they are replaced with omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n3-PUFA), there is an overall trend towards a lower incidence of cardiovascular disease. However, the results of the studies are not entirely clear-cut, and it is exciting to follow what is currently happening in research with regard to the upcoming recommendations - especially regarding which fats you should consume in relation to what else you eat; especially the quantity and quality of carbohydrates.
Since people don't compose their diet based on the amount of protein, fat and carbohydrates, but eat meals with mixed foods that contain a good combination of everything, the dietary guidelines should be easy to follow. The overall recommendation is therefore:
Many people don't become overweight from eating a high-fat diet, but rather from consuming refined sugar (in sweets, bread, cakes, drinks, etc.), processed carbohydrates (bread, pasta, etc.) and starchy foods (white potatoes, bread, pasta). Many people are unaware of the hidden sugars they consume, such as those found in many juices, rye bread, fruit, juice, etc.
In addition, calorie overconsumption is a problem for many. Unhealthy foods are typically high in calories and don't fill you up. So, if they are part of a daily diet, it's easy to consume too many calories.
A woman with an average activity level should consume around 1200-1400 kcal, and a similarly average active man should typically consume around 1600-1800 kcal. However, there is a lot of individual variation based on gender, age and activity level and the need to change body composition.
Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin and hormone that is important for virtually all physiological processes in our body - including the risk of developing cardiovascular disease. Low levels of vitamin D have been shown to be associated with high blood pressure, inflammatory processes and metabolic syndrome. Low vitamin D levels have also been shown to be associated with a higher incidence of cardiovascular disease and the number of 'events', i.e. acute blood clots, as well as higher mortality from these.
We get vitamin D partly from fish in our diet and partly from the sun's rays. If you don't eat fish at all, fish oil is recommended, and if you don't get enough of nature's sunlight for various reasons, you should supplement with vitamin D pills.
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