Eat Fat to Lose Fat

Carrying on from our discussion of butter, the next logical topic is...fat.  "Fat" is an evil word that has been demonized for the last...oh, 50 years or so.  The first thing you readers need to understand is that there are good fats, and there are bad fats. This post will concentrate on good fats.  Bad fats will come later.



If you want to read a little more about good fats (and bad fats, and why you should avoid them), get this book by Sally Fallon.  It will change your life.

Ok then.

Good fats:
~butter
~eggs
~whole fat dairy products
~animal products
~lard and tallow
~nuts and seeds
~avocados
~coconut oil
~olive oil (in moderation) and
any other naturally occurring, unprocessed fat.  Vegetable oils you buy in the supermarket are NOT good.  That's all I'm going to say about them right now.

All of these things will NOT raise your cholesterol.  They will NOT cause heart attacks and strokes.  A massive amount of brainwashing and propaganda has been undertaken and, for the most part, has been successful.  A large part of it is related to the drug industry and sales for Lipitor and the like.  As well, the corn, soy and canola industry have a HUGE part in this scam.

The Lipid Hypothesis
In a nutshell, the lipid hypothesis is the theory that if you eat saturated fats, you get fat, your cholesterol goes up, blah blah blah.  It's simply not true.  I'm not going to re-hash what a hundred other scientists, doctors, and authors have already done...if you are interested in learning more about this theory, and the proof/evidence that it is wrong, here are some links.

Smart Heart Living: The Lipid Hypothesis

The Blog of Michael R Eades, MD: The Lipid Hypothesis  (this guy is brilliant, sign up for his newsletter)

Wall Street Weather: Surprise!  Your Brain Needs Cholesterol (discusses the fact that most of the brain is made of/requires cholesterol to function.  So cholesterol, also demonized, is not bad either..duh)


Why Good Fats Are So Good
Much like butter, good fats carry with them essential fatty acids, vitamins and minerals, and other components necessary for good health and prevention of disease.  You simply cannot obtain some of these benefits from a vegetarian diet, sadly....but that too is another topic for another day.

People who eat sufficient amounts of good fats have healthy teeth and bones, glowing skin, bright eyes (and good vision!), shiny hair...they're smart, rarely ill, and likely have strong immune systems.  Their intestinal tracts are healthy, they likely have healthy body composition, and more.

Why You Need to Eat Fat to Lose Fat
Fats satiate hunger - you eat fat, you feel full, you eat less.

Here is a great article from The Coconut Research Center - The Fat That Can Make You Thin on why you need to eat fat to lose fat.

Speaking of coconuts, here's another great book.  Co-written by Sally Fallon and Marg Enig, this book discusses bad fats and good fats and how to use coconut oil to cook and lose weight.  

Please leave a question, or comment if you have any testimonials about how you ate fat and lost weight!!!

Edited to add: this post is part of Real Food Wednesday at Kelly the Kitchen Kop.  Go check out some of the other Real Food posts for this week!

Go check out Fight Back Friday over at Food Renegade for some more awesome info on how to eat well!