I always seem to harp on carbs. Some people like to mimic me by saying “Carbs, carbs, carbs, carbs, carbs!” I guess that can be annoying. But, believe it or not, I do know there is more to a healthier diet than just avoiding excess and fake carbs.
Believe it!!
What could it be you ask??
How bout avoiding fake fats, otherwise known as, aka on social media #FakeFats
Next question then should be: "What are #FakeFats ?”
It helps to think about #FakeFats in the diet this way.
If your great-great-great-great-great grandparents didn’t or more likely couldn’t eat it because it was not available back then, well, then you should probably NOT eat it either. When it comes to a healthy diet, technology/industry/food processing has NOT improved what we eat.
Next next question:
What fats are OK or actually healthy to eat?
I call them #RealFats that have always been found in nature that can be eaten with minimal to no processing.
These fats include:
All natural fats found in meat, chicken, fish, eggs, cheese and dairy, barring individual food allergies/sensitivities.
Next next next question:
What about added fats or cooking fats? Are they safe and healthy?
The answer is usually Yes, but that does not mean to load up extra with these. It's best to get the super majority of your daily dietary fat intake from naturally occurring fats in the foods, as opposed to adding a whole bunch more.
Next next next next question:
What are the added natural fats that should be safe as long as not used in excessive amounts?
The natural added fats used in cooking can include butter, olive oil, coconut oil, ghee and cream. All of these were available to use in cooking by your great-great-great-great-great grandparents and since we are here today reading this, I assume they were healthy and not harmed by their diet back then. Other less used but usually ok to use include beef tallow, chicken fat, duck fat…, so animal fat.
Next next next next next question:
What fats should you avoid?
Absolutely avoid margarine or anything that says “hydrogenated”.
Avoid all vegetable and seed oils. Yep I said avoid vegetable oils as they were actually NOT a part of the diets of your great-great-great-great-great grandparents.
Let’s do a thought experiment.
Do you remember the ad 40 years or so ago for corn oil?
“You call it corn. We call it maize.”
What about the "butter"- "Parkay"? ad?
I do and the ads worked so well it influenced a whole generation to believe natural fats like butter were harmful and the new and technologically and chemically altered (hydrogenated) fats never before consumed in large quantities were now somehow healthier for us. It's kind of like we ignored evolution and instead centered on chemistry. Now you may not know this but I was a Chemistry major in college. I learned a whole bunch, especially problem solving skills which I still use today. But one thing I never did was ever think of eating anything from the chemistry lab. Margarines and most vegetable and seed oils come from chemistry processing labs.
I don’t know many people who didn’t switch from butter to margarine back in the 70s.
Quick plug for our new subscriber chat. This works like a chat group as opposed to a blog. If you like real time conversations you should give it a try. When you join, give a hello shout out so I know you are there.
In the future I may add some real time chats preannounced so you can join in.
Now let’s finish the thought experiment.
If we should only eat something that our great-great-great-great-great grandparents could eat, could they have eaten corn oil? Many recipes ask for 2-3 tablespoons of corn or vegetable oil. Think about this. How many ears of corn would it take to extract 2-3 tablespoons of corn oil? I’ll bet you that you could never eat enough corn in one sitting to get the 2-3 tablespoons of corn oil. So why then would we use corn oil in our recipes when we have never before ever eaten corn oil in that amount before? The same thought experiment goes for other vegetable oils as well as seed oils.
How many of you eat cotton seeds? - Then why would you eat anything with cottonseed oil?
Do you eat safflowers?
Do you eat rapeseed otherwise known as canola oil?
It's almost like we were sold a bill of goods from the food processing industry and the grand experiment of the past 40-50 years of #FakeOils was begun, and sorry to say, the experiment failed miserably in terms of our health.
Next next next next next next question:
What should we use and eat?
Stick to butter and fruit oils such as olive, coconut and avocado oils.
How to make butter
Stick to the natural fat in the meat, chicken, fish and eggs that you eat.
Don’t fear the natural fat.
Don’t fear saturated fat regardless of what you hear from the traditional media and government operatives trying to sway your opinion.
Lastly as this has gone longer than expected:
Yes, avoid excess carbohydrates.
But also avoid the #FakeFats
Your health, metabolism and vitality will thank you?
Yes I follow that regime
People eat what they can afford though. I still haven't gotten used to the taste of real butter, Parkay was delicious. If you've never known the joy of a tub of Country Crock and a fresh baguette off the bakery aisle's evening markdown rack, it's well worth cutting life a little shorter for 👍