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| Avacado, one of the "good" fats! |
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FATS. . . We Need Them!
By Dr. Regan Golob
We are told to cut down on fat in our daily diets. I don't feel that fats are the health problem they are often thought to be, in fact just the opposite. We need dietary fats to function properly, just not a lot of saturated fats. I was surprised when Snoqualmie Valley Hospital recently issued a statement that it is more important to increase your vegetables than to cut down on fat. Harvard Medical School came out with a study showing that 100% of heart attacks are due to acidosis of the left ventricle, not to atherosclerosis or clogged arteries, or high cholesterol.
If you are going to drink milk ( I recommend that you don't), at least drink whole milk, not skim milk or 2%. The reason is fat has a neutral pH, so it helps dilute the acid from the milk. If possible, drink milk that has not been homogenized. There is an enzyme in milk called xanthine oxidase that normally would be tied up in the fat globules of the milk. When milk is homogenized, it is sprayed at high speed against a surface that breaks up the fat globules into small particles. These smaller fat particles are then absorbed through the lacteal ducts instead of going through the liver, where the xanthine oxidase would ordinarily be harmless. Instead, the enzyme goes through the bloodstream and eats at the walls of the arteries, making them rough. The body tries to smooth them out by coating them with cholesterol, and you end up with high blood pressure and clogged arteries.
Lean meat without the fat is not better for you, it is more acid-forming than marbled meat. I also recommend butter instead of margarine. Margarine is a totally plastic food. Have you ever melted margarine in a pan, then tried to wash it out later? Dr. Andrew Weil, a leading holistic MD, when asked if there was any one food he would never eat, replied, "Margarine." Even though margarine is made from vegetable oils, once these oils are heated or hydrogenated, they become trans fatty acids, which the body can't utilize. It is best to buy unsalted butter, because with salt in it, you cannot tell when it is going rancid. Most people keep butter in the cupboard so it will be soft, and with unsalted butter, you will know immediately if it has gone bad. Store your butter in the freezer, and take out only what you will use in 3 days.
The FDA has now approved a fake fat called Olestra, which adds no fat or calories to food. Trouble is, it causes intestinal problems for many people, and worse, ties up the fat soluble vitamins. These are vitamins A, D, E, and K. A and E are important antioxidants, while D is essential for calcium absorption, and K aids in blood clotting. I think that's a pretty high price to pay just to stay on your diet!
Essential fatty acids, found in many vegetables and vegetable oils and cold water fish like salmon are important. They lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels, aid in the prevention of arthritis, lower cholesterol and triglyceride levels, and are needed for normal brain function. Many of you may recall seeing the movie, "Lorenzo's Oil," about parents' search for a treatment for their son when medicine had failed, and found it in a diet high in essential fatty acids. There was also a recent TV account of a child's seizures being stopped by a high fat diet. The oils I recommend to use are olive oil and sesame oil. Stay away from corn oil, which is high in arachidonic acid which the body uses to mount an infalmmatory response. Avoid canola oil completely, it is a light industrial oil, not a food oil.
Fatty acids also have a positive effect on hormone response. For people, Evening Primrose Oil is a good essential fatty acid supplement, especially for women.
So, beware of your intake of saturated fats, but don't go too far the other way either. Dr. Morter recommends the "20/20 Rule": 20 grams of protein and 20 grams of fat daily. (A boneless chicken breast is 26 grams of protein!) Take your bio-available Dynamite® minerals to maintain your alkaline reserve, and eat lots of vegetables and my carrot salad with olive oil. And when you do have that prime rib dinner, remember to enjoy it!
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