9. The Big Fat Lie
For decades, fat has been seen as the “bad” component of the diet.
Low- and no-fat has become synonymous with being healthy. These
ideas, of course, are untrue. In fact, fat is one of the most beneficial
substances in your diet, and is often the missing ingredient in devel-
oping and maintaining optimal health and human performance. But
an ongoing, well-financed misinformation campaign against fat has
misled the public to an epidemic of fat phobia. Just think of the bil-
lions of dollars spent each year on low-fat and fat-free foods and
you’ll understand why you might not have been told the whole truth
about fat. In addition, this anti-fat campaign has contributed to actu-
al deficiencies in fat that have contributed to various diseases. The
bottom line on dietary fat: Too much or too little is dangerous. It’s
simply a question of balancing your intake.
First, let’s define fat — a term that also includes oil. Fats are found
in concentrated forms such as vegetable oils, butter, egg yolk, cheese
and other naturally occurring foods, and in less concentrated forms
that make up the content of almost all natural foods. And some foods
contain very small fat components that are as essential as all other
nutrients.
Virtually all natural fats are healthy. As noted above, eating a bal-
ance of fats is most important. In general, eating too much of one type
of fat, such as too much saturated fat from dairy products or too much
omega-6 fat from vegetable oil, is an example of a fat imbalance that
can adversely affect health. In addition, eating “bad” fats — those that
are artificial and highly processed, such as trans fat and overheated
fats in fried foods, can cause serious health problems. Foods such as
chips, French fries and fried chicken, to name just a few, are examples
of those containing bad fat.
Dietary fats have been a staple for humans throughout evolution.
Ironically many people are learning of the true importance of fats in