The importance of fats

The world today is full of mixed messages on fat.  From diets that focus exclusively on the lowest possible fat intake (e.g., the “low fat diet”) to other diets that focus on the highest fat intake and lowest carb intake possible (e.g., the “Ketogenic diet”).  Now these various diets have their uses, for example a low-fat diet may be required temporarily to help lower cholesterol as part of lifestyle changes (before using a pharmacological treatment) and the ketogenic diet has been shown to help people with uncontrolled epilepsy.  But both, should be used on a short-term basis. 

Regardless of the diet chosen, the fact of the matter still resides in where you get your fat from.  Quality of fat makes the difference.  Our bodies require 20-35% of our daily intake to come from fat.  One gram of fat has 9 calories, higher than protein or carbohydrates which each have 4 calories per gram. This means in a 2000 calorie diet; 400 to 700 calories should come from quality fat sources.  The average North American consumes much higher amounts of fat then the recommended 20-35%, and the wrong sources of fat.  Therefore, higher calories than needed and added toxicity to the body.  Which contributes to the growing obesity problem in these countries.

How does our body use our fat intake?  Fat has three primary functions in our bodies.  First fats (also called lipids) are an energy source.  Our bodies can use our fat stores as energy sources (this is why we as humans, can do things such as endurance sports – Ironmans, marathons, ultra marathons, multi-stage races, long distance cycling, mountain biking, etc.).  Secondly fat provides a protective shield around our organs which protect them from trauma/injury and cold.  And third, but very, very importantly fats are an important part of the cell membrane.  Every cell in our body and therefore every tissue and organ require fat for homeostasis (health).  Fats are needed to absorb vitamins A, D, E and K in the body.  Without fats, we become deficient in these.  It won’t matter how many supplements you take, if you don’t have fats, you won’t absorb them.

As mentioned earlier the quality and source of fat makes all the difference.  Saturated fat from high quality animal sources (e.g. grass fed-beef, organic pasture raised chickens and eggs, organic dairy products, raw or not ultra-pasteurized milk and coconut oil) are healthy options in comparison to sources such as process foods like a bag of chips, fast food and deep fried foods.  We need both saturated and unsaturated fats in our diets.  Unsaturated fats from oils like hemp seed, flaxseed, olive oil, fish oils and avocado oil, to name a few are good sources.  The true fat to avoid is trans-fats which are often found in processed foods, margarines and hydrogenated foods.   Not all fats are created equal.  Found in nature and expressed as naturally as possible is the best source of fat.  If it does not come from nature, if it is not created or raised in accordance with nature, then it is not healing us, fueling us or leading us into health.