There is now strong evidence that carbohydrates are the baddies in the war against obesity, heart disease and diabetes. So where does this leave the well established theory about saturated fat and how it not only increases our weight but is also responsible for heart disease?

In a nutshell research is now telling us to do the opposite to what we have been told to do in the past in order to stay healthy. Back in the 70′s when the treatment of cholesterol became popular; doctors took a very simplistic view believing that dietary saturated fat led to body fat. You only have to look around you to see that the eating recommendations that occurred as a result of this theory have had devastating effects upon our health and the prevalence of diseases such as obesity, heart disease and diabetes.

Saturated fat was once blamed for heart, cholesterol and obesity problems and we were encouraged to eat less meat and more carbohydrates (e.g. bread, cereals). But now multiple studies are revealing that this was all wrong! One such 2010 study reviewed the evidence around this subject (Astrup, A. et al, Am J Clin Nutr:2011 Jan 26) and found that “replacing saturated fat with carbohydrates does not reduce the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD), and may even increase the risk”. (Dairy Nutrition News April 2011) Read the rest of this entry »