Saturated fats in foods-Are they villains or just harmless players?

Thousands of treatise have been written, millions of words printed, umpteen number of seminars and workshops organized and many national and international advisories issued regarding the dangers inherent in consuming diets rich in saturated fats. Practically every school going child has been indoctrinated into believing that saturated fats are not good for health and almost every nutrition and health expert of some standing "villainize" these fats endlessly with no respite. Can we hold all of them irresponsible in making such claims during the last 3 decades? One cannot help getting a feeling that they are all prisoners of the big hype created against saturated fats based on inadequate interpretation and improper appreciation of the knowledge already available. It is good that this record of denunciation is being set right by recent massive studies to decide once for all whether saturated fats are really as bad as it has been made out to be.

According to new studies surfaced during the last 2-3 years saturated fat when consumed as a part of a balanced diet can never be harmful to the body though on a nutritional scale unsaturated fats may score over the former. Dramatic shift in the attitude of Westerners towards saturated fats in favor of their  unsaturated counterparts during the last 3 decades, did not bring down the incidences of diseases like CVD, Blood Pressure, Obesity and Diabetes among the population there! On the contrary this shift in dietary changes in favour of unsaturated fats containing MUFA and PUFA with emphasis on Omega-3-acids has increased the obesity and over weight population to a record high of 35% of the total population in a typical wealthy country like the US! Against this background can any one claim that consumption of more unsaturated fats has contributed to this epidemic? The lesson one has to draw is that diet needs to be considered in a holistic way, not based on the presence or absence of one particular ingredient such as saturated fat.  

One of the defining moments in the history of American dietary habits was demonizing saturated fats which led to a situation when industry literally went over board, curtailing and eliminating fats altogether from their products. Instead of fats, the new range of products contained more sugar and highly refined carbohydrates to replace the pared down fat ingredients. One of the consequences was that these products were not able to create necessary satiety in the consumer, to stop him from eating more, leading to the phenomenon of binge eating and uncontrolled weight gains. The industry did not stop at that and went on creating more and more eye catching products with high sensory attraction to tickle unsatiated consumers who responded to this by buying such products more frequently. It is said that a consumer can eat a product containing no fat almost double the quantity compared to a normal product with normal fat concentration! This is how the history of American obesity epidemic is going to be written for posterity. Can we claim that saturated fats caused this? Positively not! 

Health pundits are now more or less agreed that saturated fat when consumed from a mixed diet in which carbohydrate components are derived from whole cereals, unprocessed legumes, fruits and vegetables can never cause those diseases from which world is suffering to day. When discussing about fat,  one should not forget to mention the role of trans fats which are created by man in food products, by bad processing practices and which is really considered harmful to human body without any doubt. Where does it come from? Many creamy products to which people including kids are addicted, use hydrogenated fats made from liquid oils through catalytic saturation using heavy metal catalysts. It is rather mysterious why no country in the world has banned production of hydrogenated fats which during its process of manufacture generate trans fatty acids. The policy of restricting its presence to certain levels came rather late after some procrastination and mandatory declaration of the same on front of the pack labels are right steps that can contribute to better health of the consumers.

Though the above commentary makes it clear that consumers should not abhor saturated fats altogether, further work with human subjects through well designed clinical trials can confirm the above facts beyond a shadow of doubt. Mean while if one wants to continue to use liquid oils in preference to saturated fats like Palm oil or coconut oil they are free to do so, probably for a better health index. Recent publication about the beneficial effect of a blend of raw sesame oil and refined rice bran oil.on human beings, in terms of lowering cholesterol levels and reducing blood sugar levels is refreshing in these days of fat bashing! These findings clearly bring out that unrefined foods, as natural as possible can be the game changer for the survival of humanity with sound health.  

It is good that the world is slowly coming to the realization that low fat foods do not achieve much in terms of health and probably lower consumption of refined carbohydrates like white sugar, HFCS, refined grain flours and restricting salt intake would do more good in the long run. A low fat product loaded with refined carbs and salt may put the consumer in the comfort zone without realizing that such diets can be more harmful that saturated fats. Those advocates who promote low fat and zero fat consumption must realize that there are many fat soluble ingredients including vitamins, some micro nutrients and a variety of plant derived health protectants that will not get access to the blood stream unless adequate fat is present in the diet consumed every day. The ultimate "mantra" for good health is live like a normal human being as our ancestors lived by adopting a diet which is based on natural, unprocessed and unrefined food components as much as possible without caring whether they contain saturated fat or not!  

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

THE PUFA MUDDLE-CONFUSION WORST CONFOUNDED!

It was poly unsaturated fatty acids ( PUFA) that made news in eighties and nineties and tons of money were made by the health food industry touting their virtues. Then came Linoleic Acid ( ALA) a n-3 fatty acid and Linolenic Acid (LA), a n-6 fatty acid, both branded as essential fatty acids. They were declared as most important PUFAs that humans should have through their diets and more money is made by same health food lobby. Now we have the Omega-3 fatty acids fad and if the emerging reports are to be believed, all the ills of modern world can be overcome if every food is laced with this PUFA from fish, not from any other sources!

The reported recommendations of American Heart Association (AHA) to consume more Omega-6 fatty acids(n-6 acids) make the nutrition related to essential fatty acids topsy turvy. Until recently excessive consumption of n-6 acids in the diet was considered dangerous with an array of diseases being attributed to it. Linoleic Acid, the torch bearer amongst n-6 acids, present in many vegetable oils, tree nuts and plant seeds, is supposed to be converted to physiologically active arachidonic acid which is the precursor for prostaglandins. Palm oil, Soybean oil, Rapeseed Oil and Sunflower seed oil with an annual production of 100 million tons (mt) provide 32 mt of n-6 fatty acids and 4 mt of its n-3 isomer. Hitherto nutritionists were swearing that an ideal diet should have n-6 acids and n-3 acids in the ratio of 4 to 1 where as in a typical western diet the ratio ranges from 10 to 1 at the lower level to as high as 30 to 1 at the other end of the spectrum. The reasoning for the change in the stand of AHA is that n-6 fatty acids give both pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory compounds in the body and therefore outweigh any negative consequences that may arise due to any excess consumption. Their recommendation calls for 5-10% of calories to be derived from n-6 fatty acids which works out to 12-22 g intake per day replacing the saturated fats and trans fats in the diet for an adult.

According to those opposing high intake of n-6 fats and espouse more consumption of n-3 fats, all the ills of the modern world can be attributed to drastic changes taking place in the diets of the population as a result of increasing demands for foods. Emphasis seemed to have shifted since the last 5 decades on cutting down carbohydrates, proteins, fats, cholesterol, saturated fats and trans-fats. It is not realized that the key to good health lies not in ruthlessly cutting down on fats in the diet but eating the best possible fats suitable for the human body. Their judgment is that n-3 fats are critically needed for brain functions and protection against CVD and other disorders. n-3 fats, also called Omega-3 fats, is synthesized from CO2, water and sun light in the chloroplasts of terrestrial plants and marine algae. During olden days animals raised in open farms exposed to sun light and feeding on grass and other forage materials yield milk and milk products like butter, cheese etc rich in n-3 fats. But the modern farming systems fatten cows using feed stocks containing grains like corn and soybean and use antibiotics and growth hormones to get them to the slaughter house in 1 year as against 4-5 years under the old open farming system.

n-6 fats are supposed to contain more rigid fatty acids that give the cell its structure while n-3 fats being more fluid help the body fight inflammation better. Oils from Soybean, Corn, Cottonseed and Canola, all seed oils constitute 96% of the edible oils consumed in the US. Seed oils are increasingly being implicated in diseases like Alzheimer's, CVD, Cancer, Diabetes and Obesity. The radical shift in the ratio of n-6 to n-3 fats from 1:1 at beginning of the last century to 20:1 to day is one of the most dramatic changes that accompanied the increased incidence of many modern day diseases. Powerful pleas are being made for including fish as a 'must' component of regular human diet, if we have to reverse the present trend of continuing onslaught of life style disorders. Already the industry is gearing itself to meet the expected demand for Omega-3 acids from the food industry which wants to fortify many processed foods with fish PUFA. With modern edible oil refining technology of decolonization and deodorization, fish oil can be converted into a water like product and further encapsulated for protection from oxidation and incorporation in many dry products. These fortified foods, positioned as 'super foods' in the markets, ranging from fruit juices to every day bread, have become money-spinners in no time!

The layman consumer is totally lost regarding the implications of all these claims and counter claims. There are al least 10 versions of PUFAs available from different foods. Firmly believing in the concept of PUFAs many consumers cultivated the practice of consuming PUFA rich foods including Flax seed which has more than 85% PUFAs. When Omega-3 fatty acid concept emerged, ALA was courted as the savior for keeping good health. The startling claim that only 1-5% of ALA consumed is converted into readily usable form of Omega-3 Acids like docosahexaenoic acid ( DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid(EPA) by the body further raises alarm in the minds of the consumer. Added to this, the two fatty acids DHA and EPA are readily available only in fish and algae making the life of vegetarians miserable! A moot question is how those not consuming fish or Algae have been surviving for centuries so long without suffering from the tragic health problems of to day? Whether ratio of n-6 to n-3 imply that simple n-3 acid like ALA is not adequate but it has to be in the form of DHA or EPA? Added to this worry is the current belief that n-6 acids are not convertible to n-3 acids while reverse is possible in human body. Probably these mundane questions may not be critical for fish eating populations but are important in addressing the concerns of countries like India where majority of the population is vegetarian by nature or by compulsions. Indian Council of Medical Research, Ministry of Health must bring out clarity on this issue for the benefit of the consumers in the country.


V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/