High saturated fat diets DECREASE heart disease risk factors

This study was published in Nutrition and Metabolism 2006, 3:7

Study title and authors:
Comparison of isocaloric very low carbohydrate/high saturated fat and high carbohydrate/lowsaturated fat diets on body composition and cardiovascular risk
Manny Noakes, Paul R Foster, Jennifer B Keogh, Anthony P James, John C Mamo and Peter M CliftonCSIRO Health Sciences and Nutrition, Adelaide, Australia

This study can be accessed at: http://www.nutritionandmetabolism.com/content/3/1/7

The objective of this study was to compare, the effects of a high saturated fat very low carbohydrate diet to 2 low saturated fat high carbohydrate diets on body composition and cardiovascular risk in 83 subjects average age 48 years.

The diets composed of:

(i) High saturated fat/very low carbohydrate diet: (4% carbohydrate, 35% protein, 61% fat, of which 20% was saturated)

(ii) High unsaturated fat diet: (50% carbohydrate, 20% protein, 30% fat, of which 6% was saturated)

(iii) Very low fat diet: (70% carbohydrate, 20% protein, 10% fat, of which 3% was saturated)

The study found:

(a) Subjects lost more weight on the high saturated fat/very low carbohydrate diet compared to the other 2 diets.

(b) (The good) High Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol increased on the high saturated fat/very low carbohydrate diet, relative to the other 2 diets.

(c) (The bad) triglycerides were lowered on the high saturated fat/very low carbohydrate diet, but actually increased on the other 2 diets.

(d) The high saturated fat/very low carbohydrate diet lowered (the bad) fasting insulin levels by 33%. The high unsaturated fat diet lowered fasting insulin by 19% and the very low fat diet had no effect.

(e) The high saturated fat/very low carbohydrate diet also provoked significantly lower post meal glucose and insulin responses than the very low fat and high unsaturated fat meals.

The study shows that high saturated fat/very low carbohydrate diets decrease heart disease risk factors.

 



High saturated fat diet can lower the risk of heart attack and stroke

This study was published in Lipid Insights 2011 August 23; 2011(4): 7–15

Study title and authors:

Dietary Carbohydrate Modifies the Inverse Association Between Saturated Fat Intake and Cholesterol on Very Low-Density Lipoproteins

A.C. Wood, E.K. Kabagambe, I.B. Borecki, H.K. Tiwari, J.M. Ordovas, and D.K. Arnett

Department of Epidemiology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, School of Public Health, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA.

This study can be accessed at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3170517/?tool=pubmed

Having high triglyceride and high Very Low Density Lipoprotein cholesterol levels means you may have an increased risk of coronary artery disease, which can lead to a heart attack or stroke.

The study investigated the relationship between dietary saturated fat, and triglyceride and Very Low Density Lipoprotein cholesterol levels in 1036 men and women, average age 49.

The study found that: The higher the saturated fat intake in the diet, the lower the triglyceride and Very Low Density Lipoprotein cholesterol levels when subjects consumed a low carbohydrate diet. This was not the case at higher intakes of carbohydrate.

To conclude: The study shows that a high saturated fat diet can decrease risk factors pertaining to heart attack and stroke when consumed with a low carbohydrate diet.

 





What advice should the American Heart Association be giving regarding saturated fat?

The following paper was published in Current Atherosclerosis Reports 2011 Sep 8.

Study title and authors:

Effects of Diet on High-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol.

Siri-Tarino PW.

Atherosclerosis Research, Children's Hospital Oakland Research Institute, 5700 Martin Luther King Junior Way, Oakland, CA, 94609, USA, psiri@chori.org.

This paper can be accessed at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21901431

The American Heart Association give the advice that high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) is the "good cholesterol" and may help to prevent heart disease.

In this paper Siri-Tarino reviewed the effects of various diets on HDL-C levels.

Siri-Tarino found:

(a) Added sugars were associated with decreased HDL-C levels.

(b) HDL-C levels were increased by 4-5% with weight loss, omega-3 fatty acids, and a Mediterranean diet pattern.

(c) Replacement of dietary carbohydrate with polyunsaturated fats is associated with a 7% increase in HDL-C.

(d) Replacement of dietary carbohydrate with saturated fats is associated with a 12% increase in HDL-C. (Monosaturated fats effects were inbetween the polyunsaturated and saturated values)

On their own website the American Heart Association say that HDL-C is the "good" cholesterol which may help to prevent heart disease, and the scientific evidence says that consuming a high saturated fat diet will lift your HDL-C levels more than any other type of diet - so shouldn't the American Heart Association be telling us all to eat a high saturated fat diet?

 



Dietary fat has no bearing on cholesterol levels

This post includes a synopsis of a study published in the British Medical Journal 1963;1:571-576  2 March 1963 and a recipe for roast leg of lamb with spring onions and mint.

Study title and authors:
DIET AND PLASMA CHOLESTEROL IN 99 BANK MEN

Books:

J. N. MORRIS, D.Sc., F.R.C.P. JEAN W. MARR J. A. HEADY,. Ph.D.

Social Medicine Research Unit of the Medical Research Council, London Hospital
G. L. MILLS,* Ph.D. Courtauld Institute of Biochemistry, Middlesex Hospital. London
T. R. E. PILKINGTON,* M.D., M.R.C.P. Medical Unit, St. George's Hospital, London

This study can be accessed at: http://www.bmj.com/content/1/5330/571.full.pdf
 
The study investigated the relationship between dietary fat intake and cholesterol levels. The study included ninety-nine British bank men aged 40-55, whose individual diets were studied by the week's weighed method, showed a wide range in food intake and in casual plasma cholesterol. Total fat-consumption varied from 84 to 189 g. a day, that of animal fat from 55 to 173 g. a day. The cholesterol level varied from 154 to 324 mg./100 ml.
 
The study found there was no association between the amout of fat the men ate and their individual cholesterol levels.
 
To conclude: This study shows that dietary fat has no bearing on cholesterol levels.

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Recipe of the day

Roast Leg of Lamb with Spring Onions and Mint

Serves 8

Food Mall: Semi-Boneless Leg of Lamb

Ingredients:

1 (4-pound) semi-boneless leg of lamb

6 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons fennel seeds
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 tablespoon cracked black pepper
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 bunch spring onions or 4 large leeks, white and light green parts only, roughly chopped
1 large bulb fennel, cored and thinly sliced
1/4 cup white wine or water
1/2 cup chopped fresh mint

Method:
Preheat oven to 475°F. Place lamb in a roasting pan fitted with a rack.

Put garlic, fennel seeds, salt and pepper in a food processor. Pulse until coarsely ground, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl several times. Transfer mixture to a small bowl and stir in a tablespoon of the oil. Rub mixture over lamb.

Roast lamb 10 minutes. Lower oven temperature to

300°F and continue roasting until lamb reaches desired doneness, about 1 1/2 hours for medium. Transfer lamb to a cutting board and let rest 15 minutes.

While lamb rests, heat remaining 2 teaspoons oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and fennel and cook 2 minutes. Add wine, cover, and continue to cook until vegetables are very soft, about 10 minutes more. Season to taste with salt and stir in mint leaves. Carve lamb and serve slices with spring onion mixture.

Roast Leg of Lamb

Cholesterol levels are not related to dietary intake

Books:

This post includes a summary of a study published in Pediatrics 1978 Mar;61(3):354-9 and a recipe for roasted throw together.

Study title and authors:

Nutrient intake and serum cholesterol level in normal children 6 to 16 years of age
Weidman WH, Elveback LR, Nelson RA, Hodgson PA, Ellefson RD.

This study can be accessed at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/205827
 
A study of 103 healthy, schoolchildren who were between 6 and 16 years of age revealed no correlation between cholesterol levels and the daily amount of total calories, cholesterol, fat, saturated fat, or sugar in the diet.

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Recipe of the day

Roasted Throw Together

Ingredients:

◦1 lb. Italian sausage,

Food Mall: Italian Sausage

◦2 onions, sliced

◦1 8oz. package mushrooms, halved

◦1 apple, chopped large

Method:

Get your oven to 450ºF. We’re going to build “layers” so that the fat from the sausage will seep down onto the other ingredients and there’s no need to add any additional fat. In a roasting pan, in this order, add: onions, mushrooms, apples and then the crumbled sausage. Place in the oven and roast until everything is softened, browned and cooked through–about 30 minutes. Make sure to mix things around about half way through.

Roasted Throw Together



No association between high intakes of dietary fat and cholesterol levels

This post includes a synopsis of a study published in the Journal of Nutrition 120:1433-1436, 1990 and a recipe for chili.

Study title and authors:
The Need for Accurate Nutrition Survey Methodology: The South Carolina Experience
DANIEL T. LACKLAND AND FRANCES C. WHEELER
Center for Health Promotion, South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, Columbia, SC 2920 ÃOE

This study can be accessed at: http://jn.nutrition.org/content/120/11_Suppl/1433.full.pdf+html

The study assessed fat intake and it's correlation well with cholesterol. Nine fat-intake habits were identified from dietary mannerisms involving the consumption of:

Books:

(1) red meat

(2) fat on meat
(3) fried fish/chicken
(4) butter
(5) eggs
(6) whole milk
(7) bacon/sausage
(8) cheese
(9) the use of solid fats when cooking vegetables.

The average number of the nine habits exhibited was four.

The study revealed that the total number of fat-intake habits did not correlate with cholesterol levels, as 27% of the individuals with none of the nine fat-intake habits had blood cholesterol values greater than 6.2 mmol/L (239 mg/100 mL), while only 17% of the individuals with seven habits had the high level of cholesterol.

Lackland concludes: "Results from this study further suggest that there is no association between high intakes of dietary fat and cholesterol levels".

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Recipe of the day

Chili

Ingredients:

2 lbs ground beef

1 large steak cut into chunks

Food Mall: Ground Beef

1 large can crushed tomatoes

1 can diced tomatoes and chilis
1 small can tomatillo salsa
large onion diced
about 2 cups of beef broth
3 cloves garlic minced or about
2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tbs ground cumin
3-4 tbs chili powder
olive oil

Directions:
Put about 2 tbs olive oil in a pan and get it screaming hot. Sear the chunks of steak in batches (don’t crowd or it won’t brown). It doesn’t have to be cooked at this point, just brown and pull it out. Add a little more oil if needed and add diced onion to kind of brown a bit. Add the beef stock and let it cook until it is reduced by half (this gives a really meaty base). Add in ground beef. Stir until it browns a bit. Add garlic, spices, tomatoes, and steak chunks. Simmer on low heat for a couple of hours. It gets better the longer it cooks.



A high saturated fat diet gives protection from heart disease

This post features a synopsis of a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association 1986;256:2540-2544 and a recipe for ginger citrus roast chicken.

Lp(a) Lipoprotein as a Risk Factor for Myocardial Infarction
George G. Rhoads, MD, MPH; Gosta Dahlen, MD, PhD; Kare Berg, MD, PhD; Newton E. Morton, PhD; Andrew L. Dannenberg, MD, MPH
From the Institute of Medical Genetics, University of Oslo (Dr Berg); the Department of Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston (Dr Dahlen); the Honolulu Heart Study, Kuakini Medical Center, and the Population Genetics Laboratory, University of Hawaii, Honolulu (Dr Morton); and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (Dr Rhoads) and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (Dr Dannenberg), Bethesda, Md.

This study can be accessed at: http://jama.ama-assn.org/content/256/18/2540.abstract
                                                                                                                                             Books:

Rhoads notes that Lp(a) lipoprotein is structurally related to (bad) low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL) and is associated with heart disease disease.

To test the generalizability of this association, the study measured serum Lp(a) in 303 Hawaiian men of Japanese ancestry who had suffered a heart attack and in 408 others free from heart disease.

Men who had suffered a heart attack had 24% higher Lp(a) levels than those free from heart disease.

High saturated fat diets lower Lp(a) levels. See here and here.

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Recipe of the day

Ginger Citrus Roast Chicken

This recipe serves 4 people.                                                                    Food Mall: Whole Chicken

Ingredients

•About 5 tbsp coconut oil (or lard, tallow, butter);

•3 lemons or limes (if using limes, use 4);
•2 oranges;
•1 whole chicken (about 4 1/2 pounds);
•3 tbsp grated fresh ginger;
•Salt and pepper to taste.

Technique:
1.Preheat your oven to 425 F. Grate the zest 1 orange and orange lemon and then cut them in quarter.

2.Wipe the chicken dry and place it in a roasting pan.

3.Mix 1 tbsp of the grated ginger with the citrus zest. Rub the citrus mixture in the chicken cavity with some added salt and pepper if wanted. Add the quartered lemon and orange inside the cavity.

4.Juice the remaining lemons and orange with the remaining 2 tbsp ginger and also add the melted coconut oil. Brush the chicken with the mixture.

5.Put in the oven for 15 minutes.

6.After 15 minutes, baste the chicken and reduce the heat to 375 F.

7.After another 25 minutes, baste again, turn the chicken on his breast and cook for an other 25 minutes.

8.At this point, verify the doneness of the chicken by verifying if the juices run clear when you cut the thickest part of the breast. You can also verify with a meat thermometer (should be 160 F in the breast and at least 170 F in the thigh).

9.When ready, remove from oven and let the chicken rest for 15 minutes.

10.Garnish with extra citrus wedges if wanted on a bed of steamed vegetables or spinach. Use the citrus, coconut oil and ginger cooking juice as a sauce.

Saturated fat lowers (bad) Lp(a) cholesterol levels

This post includes a synopsis of a study published in Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology 1997;17:1657-1661 and a recipe for grilled or fried skirt steak.

Study title and authors:
Plasma Lipoprotein (a) Levels in Men and Women Consuming Diets Enriched in Saturated, Cis-, or Trans-Monounsaturated Fatty Acids
Beverly A. Clevidence; Joseph T. Judd; Ernst J. Schaefer; Jennifer L. Jenner; Alice H. Lichtenstein; Richard A. Muesing; Janet Wittes; ; Matthew E. Sunkin
From the Diet and Human Performance Laboratory, Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, USDA (B.A.C., J.T.-J., M.E.S.), Beltsville, MD; Lipid Metabolism Laboratory, the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University (E.J.S., J.L.-J., A.H.L.), Boston, MA; The Lipid Research Clinic (R.A.M.), The George Washington University Medical Center, Washington, DC; and Statistics Collaborative (J.W.), Washington, DC.

This paper can be accessed at: http://atvb.ahajournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/atvbaha;17/9/1657

High lipoprotein (a) [Lp(a)] cholesterol levels are associated with heart disease. See here and here.
                                                                                                                                           Books:

The study determined the effect on Lp(a) levels by 4 different diets on 29 men and 29 women. The diets consisted of:

(1) A high monounsaturated diet

(2) A moderate trans fat diet
(3) A high trans fat diet
(4) A high saturated fat diet

The study revealed that the saturated fat diet lowered Lp(a) levels significantly (by 8% to 11%) and therefore reduced heart disease risk.

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Recipe of the day

Grilled or Fried Skirt Steak

Ingredients:                                                                                            Food Mall: Beef Skirt Steak

2 pounds beef skirt steak

1 pinch salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Preheat a grill or large skillet for medium-high heat.

Grill or fry steaks for about 5 minutes per side, or to your desired degree of doneness. Remove from the heat, and let the meat rest for 5 to 10 minutes to let the juices settle.

Cut each steak along the grain into 3 or 4 pieces.

Saturated fat helps to reduce heart disease risk factors

This post contains a synopsis of a study published in the Journal of Nutrition 132:715-718, 2002 and a recipe for Italian chicken.

Study title and authors:
Dietary Mono- and Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids Similarly Affect LDL Size in Healthy Men and Women1
Mario Kratz, Esma Gülbahçe, Arnold von Eckardstein, Paul Cullen, Andrea Cignarella, Gerd Assmann, and Ursel Wahrburg
Institute of Arteriosclerosis Research at the University of Münster, Domagkstraße 3, 48149 Münster, Germany
                                                                                                                                             Books:

This paper can be accessed at: http://jn.nutrition.org/content/132/4/715.abstract

The goal of this German study was to investigate the effects of dietary monounsaturated, polyunsaturated and saturated Fats on low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol size. The study included 56 (30 men, 26 women) healthy participants.

First, all participants received a diet rich in saturated fat for 2 weeks and LDL size was measured; they were then randomly assigned to one of three dietary treatments for 4 weeks and again LDL size was measured.


The 3 diets were either:
(i) olive oil rich in monounsaturated fat 
(ii) rapeseed oil rich in monounsaturated fat and polyunsaturated fat 
(iii) sunflower oil rich in polyunsaturated fat 

Analysis revealed a significant reduction in LDL size during the 4 week oil diet phase.

Kratz concluded that all dietary unsaturated fat reduced LDL size compared to saturated fat.

Compared with small LDL cholesterol, having more large size LDL cholesterol gives protection from heart disease and diabetes. See here.

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Recipe of the day

Italian Chicken

Ingredients:
4 pieces chicken                                                                                                 Food Mall: Chicken

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp lemon juice

1 clove garlic, crushed

1/4 tsp dried oregano

1/8 tsp pepper

Instructions:
Mix all in a shallow dish. Add 4 pieces of chicken, turning to coat well.

Cover and refrigerate for 8-12 hours, remember to turn it over occasionally.

One hour before serving, heat oven to 450F. Line a baking sheet with foil, and put chicken on.

Put pan in oven, reduce heat to 325F.

Bake 35-45 minutes.