Separating Truth From Myth In Nutrition
Posted: Saturday, May 03, 2008
by Dr. Suzanne Skinner
Myth: Heart disease in America is caused by consumption of cholesterol and saturated fat from animal products.
Truth: During the period of rapid increase in heart disease (1920-1960), American consumption of animal fats declined but consumption of vegetable fats increased dramatically. (USDA-HNI)
Myth: Saturated fat clogs arteries.
Myth: Vegetarians live longer.
Truth: The annual all-cause death rate of vegetarian men is slightly more than that of non-vegetarian men (.93% vs .89%); the annual death rate of vegetarian women is more than that of non-vegetarian women (.86% vs .54%) (Am J. Epidemiol 1973 97:327)
Myth: Vitamin B12 can be obtained from certain plant sources such as blue-green algae and soy products.
Truth: Vitamin B12 is not absorbed from plant sources. Modern soy products increase the body's need for B12. (Soybean Chemistry & Technology Vol 1 1972)
Myth: For good health, serum cholesterol should be less than 180 mg/dl.
Truth: The all-cause death rate is higher in individuals with cholesterol levels lower than 180 mg/dl (Circulation 1992 86:3)
Myth: Animal fats cause cancer and heart disease.
Truth: Animal fats Contain many nutrients that protect against cancer and heart disease; elevated rates of cancer and heart disease are associated with consumption of large amounts of vegetable oils.(Fed Proc July 1976 37:9)
Myth: Children benefit from a low-fat diet.
Truth: Children on low fat diets suffer from growth problems, failure to thrive and learning disabilities. (Food Chem News 10/3/94)
Myth: A low-fat diet will make you "feel better . . .and increase your joy of living."
Truth: Low fat diets are associated with increased rate of depression, psychological problems, fatigue, violence and suicide. (Lancet 3/2/92 v339
Myth: To avoid heart disease, we should use margarine instead of butter.
Truth: Margarine eaters have twice the rate of heart disease as butter eaters. Nutrition Week 3/22/91 21:12)
Myth: Coconut oil causes heart disease.
Truth: When coconut oil was fed as 7% of energy to Patients recovering from heart attacks, the patients had greater improvement compared to untreated controls. Coconut oil may also be one of the most useful oils to prevent heart disease because of its anti-viral and anti-microbial characteristics. (JAMA 1967 202:1119-1123)
Myth: Americans do not consume enough essential fatty acids.
Truth: Americans consume far too much of one kind of EFA (omega-6 EFAs found in most polyunsaturated vegetables oils) but not enough of another kind of EFA 3 (omega-3 EFAs found in fish, fish oils, eggs from properly fed chickens, dark green vegetables herbs such as purslane, and oils from certain seeds such as flax and chia, nuts such as walnuts and in small amounts in all whole grains). (Am J Clin Nutr 1991 54:438-63
Myth: A vegetarian diet will protect you against atherosclerosis.
Truth: The International Atherosclerosis Project found that vegetarians had just as much atherosclerosis as meat eaters. (Lab Invest 1986 18:465)
Myth: Low-fat diets prevent breast cancer.
Truth: A recent study found that women on very low-fat diets (less that 20%) had the same rate of breast cancer as women who consumed large amounts of fat. (NEJM 2/8/96)
Myth: The "cave man diet" was low in fat.
Truth: Throughout the world, primitive peoples sought out and consumed fat from fish and shellfish, water fowl, sea mammals, land birds, insects, reptiles, rodents, bears, dogs, pigs, cattle, sheep, goats, game, eggs, nuts and milk products. (Abrams; Food & Evolution 1987)
Confused About Fats ?
These traditional fats have nourished healthy population groups for thousands of years: Butter and other animal fats Coconut, palm and sesame oils Extra virgin olive oil Sesame and peanut oils Cold pressed flax oil Fish and fish liver oils These newfangled fats can cause cancer, heart disease, immune system dysfunction, sterility, learning disabilities, growth problems and osteoporosis: All hydrogenated fats Soy, corn, and safflower oils, Cottonseed oil Canola oil All fats heated to very high temperatures in processing and frying
Coronary Heart Disease:
What The Experts Say
"In Framingham, Massachusetts, the more saturated fat one ate, the more cholesterol one ate, the more calories one ate, the lower people's serum cholesterol ...we found that the people who ate the most cholesterol, ate the most saturated fat, ate the most calories weighed the least and were the most physically active." William Castelli,Ditector
The Framingham Study
The diet-heart hypothesis has been repeatedly shown to be wrong, and yet, for complicated reasons of pride, profit and prejudice, the hypothesis continues to be exploited by scientists, fund-raising enterprises, food companies and even governmental agencies. The public is being deceived by the greatest health scam of the century." George Mann, M.D. Renowned Researcher
"An analysis of cholesterol values . . . in 1,700 patients with atherosclerotic disease revealed no definite correlation between serum cholesterol levels and the nature and extent of atherosclerotic disease." Michael DeBakey, M.D. Famous Heart Surgeon
"The relevant literature [on CHD] is permeated with fraudulent material that is designed to convert negative evidence into positive evidence with respect to the lipid hypothesis. That fraud is relatively easy to detect." Russell L. Smith, Ph.D. Author of authoritative study on CHD
A housewife complained "Its unjust
That I must buy foods with distrust,
For if I am unable
To translate each label,
I soon may be biting the dust !"
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