I have always wanted to wait inside a Burger King until a person orders something unhealthy off the menu before making a stand. I would proceed to charge frantically down the aisles, shouldering chairs, tables, and people out of the way just in time for the food to arrive. As they looked on in horror I would fling the burger from their hand with a resounding smack to send it flying across the room amidst a sea of onlookers. .. All the while shrieking “Don’t you know how much saturated fat is in that”.

Well guess what- researchers are now saying that you can no longer do so- at least not in the name of sat fats. (Granted, if the opportunity ever arose I may still have to go through with it, but at least after reading this I can apologize for the warning.)

Among all the conflicting advice that deals with fat intake, one thing usually remains a constant- avoid saturated fats! Often linked to heart disease, high cholesterol, obesity, and tons of other horrors in the health community, saturated fats have been shunned and limited in progressively larger numbers. But why?

Then again, all fats used to be synonymous with obesity and premature death, now sources like Omega-3′s and polyunsaturated fats are celebrated for restoring longevity and improving body composition. So why then is it such a shock for saturated fats to break free of the negative stereotypes that surround them?

Why are Saturated Fats the Enemy?

The unpleasant image of sat fats can be traced to studies from the 1950′s to investigate the growing numbers of American deaths from heart disease. After researching a small sample of nations it was hypothesized that the increase in deaths were due to diets high in fat. It is important to note that this faulty reasoning was based only on the fact that some countries with higher death rates also happened to eat more saturated fat. There is no actual correlation between the two, and indeed those deaths could have been caused by a variety of other factors. (If that isn’t enough, it was soon shown that the sampling of nations was wrong and many countries with high sat. fat intakes in fact had lower rates of heart disease.)

The next attempt was to prove that saturated fats led to unhealthy cholesterol levels, but this too has been deemed untrue. Of the three forms of saturated fat that can actual come from your diet (in any real amounts), one is actually converted to healthy fat sources like those in olive oil, and the other two are known to raise total cholesterol levels – but the increase in good cholesterol (LDL) actually outweighs the increase in bad cholesterol ( HDL). By following this, it seems that saturated fats not only have no negative effect on cholesterol levels, but they may actually have a positive one.

Prove It…

Perhaps the most blatant example to disprove this incorrect hypothesis is that of the Masai tribes of East Africa. Their diet consists solely of red meat and milk, and yet somehow they have far healthier hearts and much lower cholesterol levels than the majority of people in the West. What’s more, it has been proven that it is not a genetic feature, as those same Masai lost these advantages upon relocating to a more Western-influenced city and altering their diets accordingly. (All that can be concluded from this is that a diet high in saturated fats does not necessarily imply additional health risks.)

Studies on low carbohydrate diets have cleared this up even more, as many of them place no restrictions on saturated fats- and yet manypeople improve LDL levels and lower HDL while sticking to it. In the bodybuilding community saturated fats have long been celebrated for their ability to raise testosterone levels and increase or maintain strength, especially while dieting. It has also been shown that saturated fats can protect the liver from alcohol and other toxins, assist with bone health, and enhance the immune system.

What Does This Mean?

No, I am not reccommending a diet high in saturated fats, far from it in fact. But the fact remains that there is a host of evidence to show that the long-believed claims of saturated fats being harmful is not only unsupported, but faulty. Whats more, there are plenty of bodily functions and processes that rely on saturated fat as a necessity. Doctors are reluctant to state that saturated fats are actually good for you, but they are quick to point out that they do have their benefits and should not be avoided altogether.

Obviously these premises are highly controversial, as they seem to go against what has been almost common knowledge for American health standards (the FDA in fact just lowered the recommended daily sat. fat intake). The bottom line is that moderation is key, with not just fats but with all facets of your diet. Don’t go overboard on any one nutrient, but at the same time don’t cut it out altogether. If it comes from natural sources, chances are it serves a purpose.