Most Americans eat a diet low in fat or high in rancid or hydrogenated fats.  On a cellular level, why is a poor or low fat diet detrimental to health?

Lipids, or fats, include triglycerides, phospholipids, steroids, fatty acids and fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E and K).  Most fats get a bad reputation based on the “lipid hypothesis” which was proposed by researcher Ancel Keys.  The “lipid hypothesis” was, or is to some people, a theory of the direct relationship between the amount of saturated fat and cholesterol in the diet to the incidence of coronary heart disease- starting back in the 1950s.  There is little evidence to support this theory but still to this day people are still confused and afraid to consume healthy fats- as well as the misunderstanding of what are healthy fats and essential fats.

Fat is an essential to human health.  Especially Essential Fatty Acids as Omega 3 fatty acids.  Omega 3 fatty acids sources include fatty fish oil, walnuts and flaxseed. Essential fatty acids cannot be made in the diet so we need to include these sources noted above daily. Essential fatty acids may provide a protective effect against heart disease and strokes, decrease bone lose, reduced inflammation, promote wound healing, improve certain skin disorders and improve mental functions.

Triglycerides are mainly saturated fats and found in meat, full fat dairy sources and tropical plants of coconut, palm and cocoa.  Even the chemistry book we are reading tells the readers that “diets that contain large amounts of saturated fat are associated with disorders of heart disease and colorectal cancer”. –source “Essentials of Anatomy and Physiology”.  No wonder we are so confused how to eat to optimize our health!

At a cellular level, saturated fats play an important role in our body’s chemistry.  According the Sally Fallon in “Nourishing Traditions”- she explains:

• Cell membranes are approximately 50% saturated fatty acids
• Saturated fats give cells the stiffness and integrity to allow proper function
• Linolenic Acid = Omega 3 Fatty Acids
• Gamma-linolenic acid (GLA) is a long chain saturated fat is used to produce substances, as prostaglandins- localized tissue hormones, that regulate many processes at the cellular level
• Very long chain fatty acids, as AA and DHA, are important to the function of the nervous system
• Phospholipids make up much of the cell membrane surrounding each cell
• Antimicrobial benefits from animal fats and tropical

Also, the fear of cholesterol is over rated.  We need cholesterol for cell membrane structure for their stiffness and stability.  Cholesterol is a precursor to important corticosteroids- hormones to manage stress and a precursor to producing our sex hormones.  Even more reasons to not be afraid of cholesterol as it is our natural healing substance to repair the damage from free radicals.  Also, cholesterol is a precursor to vitamin D, aids in development of brain and nervous system and helps maintain the health of intestinal walls (or could lead to leaky gut syndrome).

Today the “Standard American Diet” (SAD) includes mostly polyunsaturated oils from commercial vegetable oils often derived from soy, corn safflower and canola.  Instead we should be consuming more naturally occurring fatty acids, saturated and unsaturated, from sources as grass-fed butter, lard, tallows, coconut oil and some olive oil.  Mainstream media continues to scare most people away from naturally occurring fats and create fear of increasing risk of heart disease.  Dive into Sally Fallon’s Nourishing Traditions book and you won’t be afraid of eating fat anymore!