14 years ago
The Truth about Cholesterol and Fats
Cholesterol and fats have gotten a bad rap. But the truth about cholesterol and fats is complicated. There are good and bad fats.
And the cholesterol foods to avoid aren't necessarily foods high in cholesterol.
Cholesterol and fats first went under attack back in the 50's, when scientists discovered a high cholesterol relationship to heart disease. The resulting "expert" advice was to avoid all foods with cholesterol.
But the truth about cholesterol is you make more than you absorb.
What's more, to protect yourself from degenerative diseases, how much fat you eat isn't that important. It's basically the kind of fat you eat that makes all the difference. So, good fat, bad fat, what's the big fat difference?
Understanding the Truth about Cholesterol and Fats
The sterols in cholesterol are health essentials necessary for your brain and building cell walls, sex hormones and the juices that digest fat.
And although high cholesterol in your bloodstream can cause problems, the cholesterol in food isn't nearly the villain you've been led to believe.
Current scientific studies show very little relationship between the cholesterol eaten and blood cholesterol levels. (The only exceptions are for diabetics, who seem to be more sensitive to cholesterol in food.)
The major influence on your blood cholesterol levels is the mixture of good and bad fats in your diet – not the amount of cholesterol in your food.
Bad fats (trans fat and excess saturated fat) increase your risk of disease. But good fats (the polyunsaturated fat in whole grains, nuts and seeds and the monounsaturated fat in olive oil) reduce your disease risk.
So the simple sensible solution is to switch from bad fats to good fats
Cholesterol and fats have gotten a bad rap. But the truth about cholesterol and fats is complicated. There are good and bad fats.
And the cholesterol foods to avoid aren't necessarily foods high in cholesterol.
Cholesterol and fats first went under attack back in the 50's, when scientists discovered a high cholesterol relationship to heart disease. The resulting "expert" advice was to avoid all foods with cholesterol.
But the truth about cholesterol is you make more than you absorb.
What's more, to protect yourself from degenerative diseases, how much fat you eat isn't that important. It's basically the kind of fat you eat that makes all the difference. So, good fat, bad fat, what's the big fat difference?
The sterols in cholesterol are health essentials necessary for your brain and building cell walls, sex hormones and the juices that digest fat.
And although high cholesterol in your bloodstream can cause problems, the cholesterol in food isn't nearly the villain you've been led to believe.
Current scientific studies show very little relationship between the cholesterol eaten and blood cholesterol levels. (The only exceptions are for diabetics, who seem to be more sensitive to cholesterol in food.)
The major influence on your blood cholesterol levels is the mixture of good and bad fats in your diet – not the amount of cholesterol in your food.
Bad fats (trans fat and excess saturated fat) increase your risk of disease. But good fats (the polyunsaturated fat in whole grains, nuts and seeds and the monounsaturated fat in olive oil) reduce your disease risk.
So the simple sensible solution is to switch from bad fats to good fats
Cholesterol and fats have gotten a bad rap. But the truth about cholesterol and fats is complicated. There are good and bad fats.
And the cholesterol foods to avoid aren't necessarily foods high in cholesterol.
Cholesterol and fats first went under attack back in the 50's, when scientists discovered a high cholesterol relationship to heart disease. The resulting "expert" advice was to avoid all foods with cholesterol.
But the truth about cholesterol is you make more than you absorb.
What's more, to protect yourself from degenerative diseases, how much fat you eat isn't that important. It's basically the kind of fat you eat that makes all the difference. So, good fat, bad fat, what's the big fat difference?
Understanding the Truth about Cholesterol and Fats
The sterols in cholesterol are health essentials necessary for your brain and building cell walls, sex hormones and the juices that digest fat.
And although high cholesterol in your bloodstream can cause problems, the cholesterol in food isn't nearly the villain you've been led to believe.
Current scientific studies show very little relationship between the cholesterol eaten and blood cholesterol levels. (The only exceptions are for diabetics, who seem to be more sensitive to cholesterol in food.)
The major influence on your blood cholesterol levels is the mixture of good and bad fats in your diet – not the amount of cholesterol in your food.
Bad fats (trans fat and excess saturated fat) increase your risk of disease. But good fats (the polyunsaturated fat in whole grains, nuts and seeds and the monounsaturated fat in olive oil) reduce your disease risk.
So the simple sensible solution is to switch from bad fats to good fats
Cholesterol and fats have gotten a bad rap. But the truth about cholesterol and fats is complicated. There are good and bad fats.
And the cholesterol foods to avoid aren't necessarily foods high in cholesterol.
Cholesterol and fats first went under attack back in the 50's, when scientists discovered a high cholesterol relationship to heart disease. The resulting "expert" advice was to avoid all foods with cholesterol.
But the truth about cholesterol is you make more than you absorb.
What's more, to protect yourself from degenerative diseases, how much fat you eat isn't that important. It's basically the kind of fat you eat that makes all the difference. So, good fat, bad fat, what's the big fat difference?
The sterols in cholesterol are health essentials necessary for your brain and building cell walls, sex hormones and the juices that digest fat.
And although high cholesterol in your bloodstream can cause problems, the cholesterol in food isn't nearly the villain you've been led to believe.
Current scientific studies show very little relationship between the cholesterol eaten and blood cholesterol levels. (The only exceptions are for diabetics, who seem to be more sensitive to cholesterol in food.)
The major influence on your blood cholesterol levels is the mixture of good and bad fats in your diet – not the amount of cholesterol in your food.
Bad fats (trans fat and excess saturated fat) increase your risk of disease. But good fats (the polyunsaturated fat in whole grains, nuts and seeds and the monounsaturated fat in olive oil) reduce your disease risk.
So the simple sensible solution is to switch from bad fats to good fats
