Low Fat?

[doctordun]

Why do the dieticians all preach low fat diets when carbohydrates are our enemy? Fat's don't seem to have any effect on my BS.

[Schlep]

Why do the dieticians all preach low fat diets when carbohydrates are our enemy? Fat's don't seem to have any effect on my BS.

Dr. Bernstein makes one of the most comical comments in his book - he says that eating fats will cause you to get fat is the same thing as saying that if you eat a red apple you will turn red.

I think dieticians are stuck on the food guide because that is what they have been taught.

The diebetic clinic here wanted me to eat 60 to 75 carbs per meal and told me I could not use stevia for a sweetner because it was not approved, I never went back.

IMO

[Kim_in_TN]

I am supposing it's because of the higer probability for weight gain. However, so many foods now have less trans-fats which are supposed to be the "bad" ones. I agree that it is very confusing and overwhelming while trying to choose "safe" foods. Right now I am focusing mostly on carbs and trying to be fairly reasonable about fat gms. I am avoiding fried foods, the obvious poor choice for fat.

[Handybear]

I think once an idea becomes a rule in the scientific arena, no matter how much it is shown to be wrong it is very hard to go back. Fat is not the enemy. Just check out my numbers! I eat foods cooked in coconut oil and olive oil. I eat real butter, and I have real eggs and real meat. Since I have dropped the carbs and increased the fat my numbers have actually improved!

[Schlep]

I agree with Handybear - if it has carbs it has sugar.

[Jan B]

I had a hard time accepting that I'd been possibly led in the wrong direction for a long, long time. I used to fear fat grams. I've switched to low carb (and much more fat), from very low-fat and haven't gained an ounce. I'm much more satisfied, and I swear I'm getting some muscles back. I feel great and it's amazing (but shouldn't be) how very good my numbers are. I rarely see over 100 anymore.

Doctordun - I thoroughly enjoyed reading Good Calories. Bad Calories. by Gary Taube . . . then I finally read Bernstein's updated book. I've always had very low cholesterol . . . looking forward to seeing all my bloodwork in the future.

[doctordun]

Doctordun - I thoroughly enjoyed reading Good Calories. Bad Calories. by Gary Taube . . . then I finally read Bernstein's updated book. I've always had very low cholesterol . . . looking forward to seeing all my bloodwork in the future.

Which book are you folks refering to. It appears there are 2 on his site.

[Jan B]

Which book are you folks refering to. It appears there are 2 on his site.

Dr. Bernstein's Diabetes Solution (Revised & Updated) The Complete Guide to Achieving Normal Blood Sugars. You may also be able to find it at your local library. The library in my small town only had the older version.

[BlueSky]

Why do the dieticians all preach low fat diets when carbohydrates are our enemy? ...
There is a lot of history behind this position. It started in the first half of the last century, when Ancel Keys developed the cholesterol hypothesis. It is the notion that high cholesterol causes heart disease. He maintained that eating animal products, which contain cholesterol, would raise cholesterol levels and lead to heart disease. The hypothesis was based on observational research that has since been discredited. It is also now known that dietary cholesterol does not affect serum cholesterol. Ancel Keys himself acknowledged this in the 70's. But so many people had jumped on the cholesterol-kills bandwagon that it had become entrenched in the conventional wisdom. So what they did was to say that eating cholesterol is actually ok (eggs were un-demonised) but that you must keep away from saturated fat. The reality, though, is that there is no scientific evidence that saturated fat raises serum cholesterol. But animal products continue to be considered as unhealthy, especially if they contain saturated fat.

I have spoken to numerous dieticians, and they all trot out the same line. Consumption of saturated fat must be minimised in the interests of heart health. Studies that show fat to be a healthy food choice are studiously ignored by the fat phobics. Opinion is slowly changing, but dieticians will probably be the last to figure out the truth. I don't listen to them at all anymore. It was only after a lot of research that I was able to get comfortable with Bernstein's position, that fat should not be restricted and is a much better energy source than carbohydrate. I now get 65%+ of my calories from mainly saturated fat and I have never been in better shape.;)

[Old man]

Check this out. Don't know how much scientific scrutiny his opinions will stand, but I'm pretty much sold. However he does lose me somewhat with the chealation talk. It doesn't take very much to impress me.
Dr. James Howenstine -- The Truth About Cholesterol (http://www.newswithviews.com/Howenstine/james23.htm)

[matingara]

Dr. Bernstein makes one of the most comical comments in his book - he says that eating fats will cause you to get fat is the same thing as saying that if you eat a red apple you will turn red.

Hey Schlep! i found this passage (by coincidence) in my copy of Bernstein the other day!

He actually says "tomato", not "red apple".

just for the record...

:D

-- Joel.

[matingara]

Why do the dieticians all preach low fat diets when carbohydrates are our enemy? Fat's don't seem to have any effect on my BS.

since i went low carb my triglycerides are normal for the first time in my adult life!

fat has no effect on my BS either. BUT, fat does have a huge effect on my lipid profile. i.e. fat improves my lipid profile out of sight!

(tell that to a dietitian or a CDE and you will get a lecture like you used to get from your Mom.)

(Tell your GP - and if he agrees (like mine does) - you got yourself a good GP!!!)

:)

-- Joel.