Hey Steve Over Here

Here again we find ourselves in the common dilemma that embraces most Americans each day.  What is good for me and what is bad for me, do I eat this or that, how do I figure all this out.  In this age of growing nutrition fads, it is hard to tell what is good and what is bad for you.  Remember Jim the 47yr old former weight lifter?  We attempted to set him up with a great program and even planned to monitor his success. So now meet Steve.  As we watch the fitness field grow, we find ourselves surrounded by many “Fitness Professionals”  who make extravagant claims on a day to day basis to the uneducated masses.  By soliciting what is believed to be the good knowledge necessary for a long and healthy life, they open us up for serious health risks.  This is largely due to the fact that most “professionals” give out the wrong information.   It would seem that once again we are having the argument of Good Cholesterol ( HDL) versus bad Cholesterol LDL), again, and as usual the client has gotten the wrong information.  It is imperative that we as nutrition specialist and fitness trainers understand this, if you are giving out this information and unaware of the correct response then consult a professional.  Steve is a 50 y/o, who recently consulted with a personal fitness trainer about what he should be eating.  During the visit he was informed that fat and high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol in the diet are generally harmful to cardiovascular health.  This advice is very sound to the uneducated ear, those of us who rely on our “professionals” to give us clear and sound information concerning ourselves and healthy living.  This advice is terribly wrong.  We will actually discuss a few types of fats.  Let’s start with the fats Steve was told not to eat by his fitness instructor - good fats.  These are the unsaturated kind that helps fight the very diseases that consuming excess fat was said to cause. These unsaturated fats are divided into Monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats, and both types are thought to have beneficial effects on cholesterol levels.     Monounsaturated fats help lower LDL (bad) cholesterol while also boosting HDL (good) cholesterol.  Polyunsaturated fats are also thought to help lower total and bad cholesterol. But monounsaturated fats are favored over polyunsaturated fats because some research suggests that polyunsaturated fats are less stable, and can reduce levels of good cholesterol as well as bad.  But let's not ignore polyunsaturated fats. These are often a good source of omega-3 fatty acids, found mostly in cold-water fish, nuts, oils and seeds, and also in dark leafy greens, flaxseed oils and some vegetable oils. One kind of omega-3 fatty acid is an "essential fatty acid," which cannot be manufactured by our bodies, so eating these foods is the only way to get them. Omega-3 fatty acids are thought to lower blood pressure, combat LDL (bad) cholesterol, fight inflammation and protect the brain and nervous system.  Most cooking oils are made up primarily of unsaturated fats. When it comes to choosing cooking oils, each type of cooking oil varies in its ratio of monounsaturated to polyunsaturated fats. Two oils stand out for their high levels of monounsaturated fats: canola oil and olive oil. Other than nonstick cooking spray, these two oils should be in your pantry.  At the end of the day, a good fat is still a fat in terms of calories. Any labels on cooking oil that describe the oil as "light," are referring to the taste or color, not the fat or calorie content. All oils are 100 percent fat and are worth around 120 calories per tablespoon.  Then there are the bad fats—those artery-clogging saturated fats from meat and dairy products. These fats are solid at room temperature. Saturated fats not only clog our arteries, they also directly raise total and LDL (bad) cholesterol levels. Avoid them as much as possible. But, we are told, some saturated fats may not bad at all: some argue that coconut oil and palm oil may actually be beneficial because their particular fatty-acid make-up means they are metabolized differently in the body. So it could be that plant-based saturated fats may be more beneficial, or at least more neutral, than we think, but there is no broad consensus on this yet. And while coconut oil and palm fruit oil have been rehabilitated in the eyes of some, there are fewer proponents of palm kernel oil.

 

Reference:

Fiona Haynes (Fitness and Nutrition Going Hand in Hand)

Lopez-Miranda, J., Badimon, L., Bonanome, A., Lairon, D., Kris-Etherton, P.M., Mata, P. et al. (Monounsaturated Fat and Cardiovascular Risk. Nutrition Reviews, 64(10), S2-S13.)

Pignone, M. (Low-Total-Fat Diet Did Not Reduce the Risk of Cardiovascular Events. Clinical Diabetes, 24(3), 143-145)

Byrd-Bredbenner, C., & Finckenor, M. (Journal of Nutrition Education, 32(1) American Dietetic Association: Fiber Facts.  Plant this idea: Fill up on fiber

American Heart Association. (2007) Cholesterol: AHA Scientific Position