Fat Over Sugar

Eat Less Fat. Fat is bad for the heart. Fat makes you fat. Yet contrary to what we are told and our obsession with low fat diets, Americans are gaining more weight with every passing year and the rate of heart disease in this country outpaces others. So, is fat really our #1 enemy?

The American Diet and our Sugar Obsession

Sugar is everywhere in our food system. Take away the obvious places like desserts, you can find it added to cereals, crackers, chips, juice, jarred pasta sauce, frozen dinners, dairy products, chicken broth, pretty much any packaged product often contains added sugar. American's taste has become accustomed to sweet flavors so when something doesn't have sugar added to it, it may taste bland, maybe even bitter to some. Sugar has proven to be addictive.  It affects the same part of the brain as cocaine, making it addictive and difficult to detox for many.

Why is it in so many foods compared to the foods of yester-year? One theory is that we have put ourselves into a low-fat kick.  By removing the natural fat from foods, we also removed a lot of the flavor, resulting in a bland product. So, companies began adding sweeteners to their foods in order to appeal to consumers. It's also one of the cheapest ways to add flavor to food as sugar is quite inexpensive. The domino effect began. We became accustomed to sweet foods so other companies had to begin adding sugar or more sugar to their foods. It's become a downward spiral.

Now, when many Americans eat something that has zero added sweeteners and it's low fat, it tastes boring and flavorless.

Sugar: The Real Cause of the Obesity Problem

Basic Rule of Thumb: Sugar is purely empty calories. There is zero nutritional value with sweeteners of any kind unlike fat which provides slow burning energy, food for the brain, it helps absorb certain vitamins for healthier skin, hair, bones and digestive help.

Sugar is simple energy and burns through the body quickly, which doesn't provide the long lasting energy you need therefore causing you to need more food. To compound the issue, what you don't use, your body stores as fat for future energy use. Sadly, Americans eat more calories than they need in their sedentary lifestyle so all those empty sugary calories are stored as fat, causing the obesity problem in our country to increase.

Because fat burns more slowly and efficiently, we don't have a need to eat as much, therefore not needing as many calories as our sugar-eating counterparts do. And we gain more nutrients eating fat, too!

Not All Fats Are Created Equal

When you reach for fat, reach for fat that comes from whole foods. This means good quality animal fat such as whole fat dairy, ghee, tallow, and really, animal fat in general is all pretty good in moderation! This is saturated fat. The fat in coconuts and avocados also contain healthy fats. Having avocado on toast in the morning is a great start to the day!

Fats from nuts and seeds are good, too as long as the oil isn't pressed from them. Eating nuts and seeds are quite healthy because it's a whole food. However, eating the extracted oil from them is now linked to heart disease and cancers due to the extraction process killing the nutritional content of the oils and turning the healthy fat into trans fat (a fat that you must avoid to maintain a healthy body).

How To Embrace Healthy Fats

To start, throw out all your cooking oil like canola and soybean oil immediately. Use only olive oil, coconut oil, ghee/butter, and avocado oil to cook.

Next, don't be afraid of dairy fat, that is, if you eat dairy. The yogurt will be fuller in flavor, the milk will be creamier, and and the cheese will be meltier! It'll also help slow your digestion down, making you feel full longer which also helps release energy at a slower, consistent pace (think long distance running) versus sugar that gives you bursts of energy (sprinters).

Don't shy away from animal fat either. While it's important not to over indulge in meat, it is important to eat animal fats in moderation.  They provide all sorts of goodness that your body needs such as slow-release energy, vitamin A, K2 and even the ever-important vitamin D, which most Americans are lacking.

Keep in mind however, the best time of day to avoid a high fat meal to avoid weight gain is during an after dinner meal.  Avoid cheeses, late night desserts, anything that has a higher fat content. This is because your body slows down and doesn't require as many calories to sleep, which in turn, causes your body to store that energy for later use.  In reality though, it tends to be stored as extra weight that doesn't burn off as quickly. So, if you get the munchies after dinner, reach for lighter fair like popcorn, fruit and veggies, or even a bowl of plain oatmeal!