Dietary Fats: From Enemy To Friend

Author: Mark Velov Time for reading: ~1 minutes Last Updated: August 08, 2022

In this article, learn more about Dietary Fats: From Enemy To Friend. Scientists from various fields argue about the value of ketogenic diets.

For decades, dietary advice has been based on the premise that high fat intake causes obesity, diabetes, heart disease and possibly cancer. Recently, however, evidence of the adverse metabolic effects of processed carbohydrates has led some experts to regain interest in low-carbohydrate and high-fat ketogenic diets .

In a review published in the renowned journal Science , scientists from various fields and institutions - some from Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health , others from Boston Children's Hospital , others from Ohio State University , etc. - decide to compare their knowledge on these issues and to find, if possible, some intersections. While belonging to different research fields inevitably means that they will also defend different positions on the issue, they all agree on a few key points. According to them, for example, the quality of nutrients is most important and good health is achieved in a wide range of ratios between carbohydrates and fats.

In general, everyone would benefit from replacing saturated fats with natural unsaturated fats and foods such as avocados, nuts and seeds. Scientists also agree that it is better for people to take advantage of unprocessed carbohydrates . Additionally, trans fats, which are found in some breads, cakes, sweets and fried foods, should be cut off from the diet if possible. The researchers conclude that biological factors necessarily influence how an organism responds to a particular diet, so that a diet cannot be one size fits all.

While these points are a way of overcoming the "food wars", not to mention some differences. For example, the conflict between scientists is most pronounced in view of the potential benefits of the popular keto diet: for example, is it characterized by beneficial metabolic effects that go beyond simply limiting carbohydrates? Also, some members of the team are not yet sufficiently convinced of the benefits in patients with diabetes, so they need additional clinical evidence.

Dietary Fats: From Enemy To Friend

Related Articles