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If there’s one issue that we should be talking about, it’s the traditional food pyramid. The first problem with it is how carbohydrates are shown to be a fundamental part of our diet. The second is that fats are not given the proper respect nor placement on the pyramid. The industrial food industry has frowned upon the consumption of fats for years and has falsely warned people about it’s link to cardiovascular diseases. In addition, they’ve championed sugars and carbohydrates.

Because of this, it’s hard to change the public’s perception of the role fats play in our lives. For years, different studies regarding their benefits have been silenced or downplayed and at the same time, other studies have been financed to demonize them, leaving us with misleading information. The industry has been built around sugar and other additives making it difficult, if not impossible, to purchase any store-bought products without refined white sugars. However, from time to time research emerges that sheds some light on the subject. The last one was done by a scientist named David Diamond from the University of Florida who is an expert in heart diseases along with five other cardiologists. 

Cardiologists Are Clear

The text, published in the British Medical Journal, not only delves into the fact that saturated fats do not increase bad cholesterol nor harm our heart, but it also looks at things from a different approach. Cutting out simple carbohydrates from our diet is beneficial in preventing cardiovascular diseases. Diamond’s research isn’t the only recent study to have found this. The journal of the American College of Cardiology, emphasizes what we already mentioned early, that the “fat hoax” regarding the recommendation to not consume saturated fats has survived over time despite the fact that there is evidence proving this theory to be incorrect. 

Diamond and his team have come up with another new idea that hints at the power and interests of some theories explaining why they’ve been promoted and repeated over time. He says that linking cholesterol with heart disease has been very profitable. A study conducted provided data on people with hypercholesterolemia who did not develop heart disease thanks to giving up sugar and smoking. So why has so much effort gone into criticizing cholesterol? Diamond clarifies this by explaining how it’s very economically beneficial for the industry to market and sell products that claim to help lower cholesterol as the underlying message has been that it’s detrimental to our cardiovascular health.  

What The Industry Has Been Trying To Silence For Years 

These have been the most recent studies, however, if we go back five years, we will see another turning point regarding the fat myths fabricated by the industry. In 2015, the American Medical Association forced the US government to modify its recommendations in order to limit the consumption of saturated fats. Which was on top of articles in The New York Times about the pressure of the Sugar Association to finance articles promoting the idea that: fats are bad. Why? Could it be because if we don’t give our body fats, we will be left with no energy other than that from refined sugars and flours? Of course it is! And as we already know, this kind of energy supply doesn’t last causing us to need to consume more of these industrial products which is what they want.

If we continue to travel back in time we can find other publications from experts who’ve tried to expose the lie we’ve been told about fats. Cases like that of Dr. Yudkin, one of the most well-known nutritionists in the UK during the ’50s and ’60s who was humiliated and ostracized thanks to the power and influence of the sugar industry due to his fight against sugar and low-fat diets.  Instead around that same time, they promoted the voice of another researcher at the University of Minnesota, Ancel Keys, who was funded by the emerging sugar lobby. Keys was starting to spread the theory that fat consumption was directly related to cardiovascular diseases. 

One thing is scientifically clear, the only essential micronutrient our bodies need is fat not carbohydrates; this is an indisputable fact. Fats are essential for vital functions to develop correctly. On top of that, they leave us feeling full, and are a good source of protein and long-lasting energy. Whereas simple carbohydrates, pushed by the food industry only cause our bodies to suffer from constant spikes in our blood glucose levels. 

Did you find this article on fats interesting? Then don’t miss out on these other posts: 

Wrongly Blamed: Fats

Fats or Carbs, Which Give Us More Energy? 

Fats: A Source of Energy 

No More Diets: The 4 Pillars To Healthy Eating