Let's make one thing clear - when someone is going to lower carbohydrate content in their diet, they should replace it mostly with fat, not protein. Eating a lot of protein with little fat and carbs may be a short term strategy for initiating fat loss, but not a healthy way of eating in the long run. A lot of people, who are willing to try or have already felt the benefits of low-carb/high-fat eating, are scared of hurting themselves, because the common knowledge is that saturated fat and cholesterol cause heart disease by clogging arteries. In reality, that is as far from the truth as Planet Earth is from the Sun!
Saturated fat (SF) and cholesterol (CH) are both important components of healthy cell membranes - SF makes them optimally rigid and without CH our trillions of cells would collapse into jello-like substance. Unlike polyunsaturated fatty acids, saturated fatty acids do not oxidize easily, because they have a very stable molecular structure. By the way, atherosclerotic plaque found on the walls of arteries is made up mostly of unsaturated fatty acids.
By minimizing SF intake, it is impossible to get enough fat soluble vitamins. A lot of nutrients found in vegetables go to waste if not prepared with fat - and by fat I mean SF, because only saturated fatty acids have the ability to resist heat and thus not oxidize. Moreover, energy provided by fats is long-lasting and does not result in an energy crash. And SF is the most satiating macronutrient of all!
CH is vital for healthy brain function and it protects against depression. It acts as a powerful antioxidant, even protecting us from cancer. Without CH our skin is incapable of synthesizing vitamin D from sunlight. With too little CH, our bodies cannot make new cells and repair old ones quickly enough, which means accelerated aging. In addition to being a building material for cells, cholesterol is used by the body to synthesize hormones we need for fighting stress and simply living a normal life. That is why a stressful lifestyle raises CH levels in the blood - we need more CH to cope with increased demands. Older people have higher CH levels, because their lifespan has created more cellular damage compared to younger people - thus its unwise to lower their CH with drugs. By the way, people with higher CH levels live longer than people with lower CH levels.
Because CH is such a valuable substance, manufacture of this complicated molecule in the body is highly regulated: production increases when you eat little of it and decreases when you eat large amounts.
So why do we have such a fear for SF and CH? Why are we being told that they are harmful and dangerous? [...]
Saturated fat (SF) and cholesterol (CH) are both important components of healthy cell membranes - SF makes them optimally rigid and without CH our trillions of cells would collapse into jello-like substance. Unlike polyunsaturated fatty acids, saturated fatty acids do not oxidize easily, because they have a very stable molecular structure. By the way, atherosclerotic plaque found on the walls of arteries is made up mostly of unsaturated fatty acids.
By minimizing SF intake, it is impossible to get enough fat soluble vitamins. A lot of nutrients found in vegetables go to waste if not prepared with fat - and by fat I mean SF, because only saturated fatty acids have the ability to resist heat and thus not oxidize. Moreover, energy provided by fats is long-lasting and does not result in an energy crash. And SF is the most satiating macronutrient of all!
CH is vital for healthy brain function and it protects against depression. It acts as a powerful antioxidant, even protecting us from cancer. Without CH our skin is incapable of synthesizing vitamin D from sunlight. With too little CH, our bodies cannot make new cells and repair old ones quickly enough, which means accelerated aging. In addition to being a building material for cells, cholesterol is used by the body to synthesize hormones we need for fighting stress and simply living a normal life. That is why a stressful lifestyle raises CH levels in the blood - we need more CH to cope with increased demands. Older people have higher CH levels, because their lifespan has created more cellular damage compared to younger people - thus its unwise to lower their CH with drugs. By the way, people with higher CH levels live longer than people with lower CH levels.
Because CH is such a valuable substance, manufacture of this complicated molecule in the body is highly regulated: production increases when you eat little of it and decreases when you eat large amounts.
So why do we have such a fear for SF and CH? Why are we being told that they are harmful and dangerous? [...]
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