Did anyone else have the pleasure of watching A Current Affair last night where they did a story blatantly advertising Flora Proactive (margarine). They are using a town and getting elderly people with high cholesterol levels to take at least 25gms of margarine a day for it to be truly effective at lowering their cholesterol; otherwise they will apparently need to go on the cholesterol lowering drugs. They are all super proud of the results that their cholesterol is lower. Let’s just ignore these facts shall we?
Healthy, natural saturated fats such as coconut oil, organic grass fed butter and animal fats do not cause heart disease. The study that everyone uses to prove that saturated fats are the enemy was done by Ancel Keys who cherry picked 7 countries out of the 22 studied to prove what he wanted to prove. In fact they are essential for good health. Saturated fats actually make up 50% of our cell membranes and are vital for the stiffness and integrity of the cells. It goes much deeper than this- saturated fats are vital for healthy bones. Our bones require saturated fats in order to effectively absorb calcium and other minerals. These amazing fats also enhance the immune system, contain antifungal and antimicrobial properties and are protective against harmful microorganisms in the digestive tract. Even more amazing is that they are the preferred foods for the heart. The fat around the heart muscle is saturated fat and in times of stress the heart will draw on these reserves of saturated fat.
Cholesterol is actually not some crazy evil substance in our bodies, funny that really, fancy our bodies actually having intuitive and protective properties! The public has been sorely misinformed about the role of cholesterol. Cholesterol does not cause heart disease, it is actually an antioxidant that acts as a weapon against free radicals in the blood, it also sets about healing arterial damage.
High levels of cholesterol actually indicate that the body needs cholesterol to protect itself from high levels of altered, free radical-containing fats. As Sally Fallon says “Just as a large police force is need in a locality where crime occurs frequently, so cholesterol is needed in a poorly nourished body to protect the individual from a tendency to heart disease and cancer. Blaming coronary heart disease on cholesterol is like blaming the police for murder and theft in a high crime area.” The real truth is that the CHOLESTEROL in your diet actually has very little, yes very little effect on your blood cholesterol levels. Around 80% of the cholesterol in your body is made in your liver from excess calories and carbohydrate. That’s CALORIES and CARBOHYDRATES- cereal, bread, pasta, sugary processed foods etc.
The real cause of heart disease is not healthy, natural saturated fats, nor is it cholesterol. There are actually a number of factors involved which correlate directly with the modern diet. As we cut out animal fats, coconut oil and butter and introduced highly processed vegetable oils, margarine and low fat diets combined with a huge amount of carbs and sugar, cardiovascular, cancer and chronic degenerative illness absolutely skyrocketed. Eating in this way has led to particularly low levels of protective magnesium and iodine and vitamins such as A, C and D which are needed for the integrity of the blood vessel walls as well as antioxidants like selenium and vitamin E which protect us from free radicals but most notable is the disappearance of healthy, natural saturated fats which once protected us against the kinds of viruses and bacteria that lead to the onset of heart disease causing pathogenic plaque.
Prevention of heart disease WILL NOT be achieved by lowering cholesterol, either with drugs or substances such as margarine. The answer is to consume a diet which provides the protective fats and vitamins B6 and B12- these are mainly found in animal products (organic, grass fed is always best), by boosting thyroid function- as hyperthyroidism leaves individuals particularly susceptible to infections, heart disease and cancer (this can be done by using pure natural salts such as Celtic or Himalayan sea salt which is naturally high in Iodine, NOT TABLE SALT). We must avoid vitamin and mineral deficiencies by consuming organic vegetables and fruits and using wholefood supplementation where appropriate and we must seriously limit if not eliminate highly refined and processed carbohydrates like cereal, bread and pasta (of which we are told to make the bulk of our diet) and sugar which causes inflammation in the body, as well as removing free radical containing vegetable oils and partially hydrogenated substances such as margarine that cause our bodies to require constant repair. MARGARINE IS NOT THE ANSWER!
Sign and share the petition for the health of your loved ones and all Australians. http://www.change.org/en-AU/petitions/heart-foundation-stop-endorsing-unhealthy-margarines-and-immediately-review-the-tick-of-approval-program
References- The Cholesterol Scam Report by Cyndi O’Meara, Cholesterol: The Real Truth by Dr Sandra Cabot, Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon and Mary Enig PhD
So frustrating!!!!!!
Very very disheartening.