by Susan Andresen

Created on: December 06, 2007

We are afraid of eating fat-any fat. We have thought eating fat would make us fat and raise our cholesterol, feeling guilty about enjoying fatty foods. The truth is we need fat.

Our bodies feel safe and secure with fat in our food so if we don't get enough our brains can't stop thinking about ways to get it. This is why most low-fat diets don't work, at some point our need for fat kicks in and we binge. Eating fat in combination with carbohydrates slows digestion and signals the brain that we are full so we stop wanting more. Fat substitutes won't work, the brain sends a signal of "still hungry" to the stomach.

Low-fat, High-carb Diets

The subject of low-fat diets has been around for over thirty years and our cholesterol levels are rising, not falling. Low fat diets disrupt our normal endocrine balance. When the body thinks we are in a state of famine the liver steps in to make cholesterol to guarantee we maintain a baseline level. The high levels of insulin that are released in most low-fat, high-carb diets trigger the body to send excess blood sugar to the liver to make cholesterol and triglycerides, which are used for energy and fat storage. The liver makes 75% of the cholesterol you need. The rest you eat in foods like butter, meat, whole-fat dairy products, shellfish and eggs.

If you make up the cholesterol calories with carbs and sugar your metabolism goes into famine mode and the liver overproduces cholesterol to make up the difference and stock up. This overdrive can't shut off until you start eating cholesterol again.

Early ancestors were lean, fit and free of coronary heart disease. There physical fitness was due in part to their lifestyle. They had to hunt and gather their food and water. Their diet consisted mainly of fruits, vegetables, nuts, lean protein and little saturated fats, no trans fats and no refined grains and sugars. The animal meats then were different from the meats we eat today. Those animals grazed on algae, plants and grass. Today's animals are corn and grain fed. The average American diet today is high in saturated foods, trans fats and foods rich in grains and refined sugars. The combination of sedentary life style and the modern diet is the prime cause for an epidemic of obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes and coronary heart disease.

Good Fat vs. Bad Fat

Saturated fat has been called the "bad" cholesterol. It has been blamed for making blood platelets build up on arterial walls, raising blood cholesterol and causing atherosclerosis.

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