by Liz Pavek
In "Separating Fat From Fiction," I expressed and illustrated the essential nature of sufficient amounts of natural saturated fats in the diet. But most of us have been led to believe that saturated fats are the killers, and that we should eat a diet rich in UNsaturated fats, like corn and soybean oil, safflower oil, canola or sunflower oil, and any foods made from them, such as shortening and margarine, and including commercial bakery goods, prepared meals, and most snack foods. There's only one thing wrong with this idea, and that's that the people who emphasize this diet are misled about the facts about unsaturated fats. Here are a few, just to get you started:
You will be amazed to learn that large amounts of unsaturated fats are not essential to the human diet. What few milligrams of unsaturated essential fatty acids that are required by the body can be found in a healthy, nutrient-dense diet that includes whole, minimally processed raw grains and fresh vegetables. Unsaturated fatty acids neutralize many enzymes the body uses to carry out the functions of life. Without enzymes, there is no life, because enzymes are the "Little Engines That Could." Except, they can't if they are swimming in a sea of unsaturated or hydrogenated fatty acids.
Polyunsaturated fatty acids are also very detrimental to the white cells in your blood, which are part of your immune system. Unsaturated fatty acids actually suppress the immune system, so if you are on a diet that is high in these unsaturated fats, you are going to get sicker, oftener. They are so effective at suppressing the immune system that they are actually used to prevent rejection of transplanted organs.
Polyunsaturated fatty acids suppress the thyroid and can cause hypothyroidism. When the thyroid is prevented from producing sufficient thyroid hormones, the other hormones quickly arrive to fill the gap. Estrogens are especially aggressive. Without thyroid hormone, progesterone cannot be made by the body. Progesterones are anti-aging hormones, and include pregnenolone, progesterone, and DHEA.
The polyunsaturated fats do not have to be refined in order to do their damage. This includes flaxseed, fish (mixed with soybean oil), Evening Primrose, and borage oil supplements. The only oils liquid at room temperature that are fit for human consumption are extra virgin olive oil and coconut oil. (Cold-water fish like salmon and cod are excellent sources of essential fatty acids. Vegans and strict vegetarians cheat themselves of essential nutrients by eschewing these oils, which, strictly speaking, don't contain any flesh.)
The polyunsaturated fatty acids also suppress the natural respiration of the cells. Mitochondria are the little "furnaces" inside each cell that provide it with the energy to replicate, to respire and to perform its duty, whether it be a skin cell from the arm, a cell from the lining of the stomach, or a sperm cell. When the mitochondria are starved of energy by lost receptors (as in the case of hyperinsulinism) or weakened by stress, disease, and other negative situations, the cells are prevented from doing what they are designed to do, and few things stress them like the polyunsaturated fatty acids do.
Diets high in polyunsaturated fatty acids can lead to insulin resistance hypoglycemia and Type II diabetes, and exacerbate all the symptoms of these conditions.
Polyunsaturated fatty acids also cause aging and promote disease. By inhibiting the thyroid's production of thyroid hormones, the "estrogenic" action of the fatty acids leads to "liver spots" and cause clots to form in the blood. They can even promote seizures and block the ability of the brain to develop and to think.
Cancer cells prefer an environment rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids: They actually need them to live. The cancer cells stimulate the unsaturated fatty-acid removal from storage so they can draw on it for their life.
Unsaturated fatty acids also age the skin, and "age spots" are encouraged by the presence of polyunsaturated fatty acids in the diet over a long period.
(This information was inspired by an article in the January 2000 issue of the "To Your Health" newsletter from Lita Lee, Ph. D, Box 516, Lowell, OR 97452)