Fats

1. Introduction

Fat makes up a larger caloric portion of the American diet than any other foodstuff. The average American’s food intake is 40% fat. He eats animal foods rich in fat; he tosses his salads in fat; and he spreads his bread with fat. When he eats out, he patronizes fast food restaurants that deep-fry and grill-fry most of their food in fat.

He lives off the “fat of the land” and “high on the hog,” and he suffers from some of the most serious health problems in the world. His arteries become clogged with cholesterol, his breathing becomes short and he dies in what should be his prime years.

Fat is not the only culprit in the American diet, and indeed fat is not “bad,” just as proteins and carbohydrates are neither good nor bad. Fat is needed in the diet. It is present in every food we eat—even cucumbers, watermelons and apples have fat.

It is the particular sources from which people get their fat and the way in which fat is utilized in the diet that is “bad,” or at least unhealthy.

What you will learn in this lesson is what fats are, how the body uses them, how they are digested and how they should be obtained in the diet. This is the type of understanding we need to evaluate intelligently the role of fats in the human diet.

2. What Are Fats?

2.1 Basic Composition

Fats, or hydrocarbons, are one of three food categories, the other two being proteins and carbohydrates.

Fats are composed of the same three elements as carbohydrates—carbon, oxygen and hydrogen. However, they are much poorer in oxygen and richer in carbon and hydrogen than are carbohydrates. Because of this higher carbon and hydrogen content, fats have a greater heat or energy equivalent than carbohydrates.

The fats found in plants are manufactured from water and carbon dioxide with the aid of chlorophyll, much in the same manner that the carbohydrates in a plant are produced. The fats found in humans and animals come from two sources: 1) from the fats in the diet and 2) from the metabolism of excess carbohydrates into fat. The greatest amount of fat in the body usually comes from carbohydrate metabolism.

As far as the human digestive process is concerned, fats are composed of two components: 1) glycerin (or glycerol) and 2) fatty acids.

Glycerin is the energy source of fats and is metabolized much in the same manner as are the carbohydrates. The glycerin is broken down into sugars which may be used by the body for fuel.

The fatty acids are often spoken of as chains of hydrogen, carbon and oxygen atoms. Simplistically speaking, the fatty acids are to fat what the amino acids are to protein. These chains of fatty acids have links within them where additional hydrogen, oxygen or carbon atoms may be attached to the chain.

If hydrogen is attached to these links, the fat becomes it more solid. This is called hydrogenated fat.

All the solid vegetable fats, such as Crisco, margarines, etc., are hydrogenated. If oxygen is attached to one of, these fatty acid links, the fat becomes rancid. Thus, fats left exposed to the air begin to oxidize and become rancid rapidly.

2.2 Unsaturated, Saturated and Hydrogenated Fats

Fat that is unsaturated is composed of fatty acids in which one or more of the carbon atoms in the chain do not have all of their accompanying hydrogen atoms. In other words, unsaturated fatty acids have open available links in their chains.

These open links in fatty acid chains are important. The body is able to combine various nutrients with the fatty acid chains through these open links. This combination of nutrients and fatty acids allows both of them to be transported through the body where they can be used in building cell structure.

Animal fats contain very little unsaturated fats. The chief sources of unsaturated fatty acids are nuts and seeds. Almost all vegetable fats in their natural state have a high proportion of unsaturated fatty acids.

The term polyunsaturated means that there is a large number of fatty acids which have two or more open links in their chains. These vegetable polyunsaturated fats are used in making margarine and shortening. This is done by the process of hydrogenation.

Hydrogenation causes liquid fats to become solidified by introducing hydrogen atoms into the open links of the fatty acid chains. If a fat becomes completely hydrogenated, it is rock-hard. The process is controlled, however, so that varying consistencies of hydrogenated fats can be produced.

The hydrogenation process consists of heating the fats and oils to a temperature of 212 to 400 degrees. Hydrogen is then mixed in, along with Some catalytic agents, such as nickel or platinum. The fatty acids then take on the hydrogen atoms and begin to solidify.

The heating of the oils during this process destroys any vitamins that might be present. The addition of the hydrogen atoms fills the open links in the fatty acid chains and thus prevents nutrients from binding with the acids. As a result, hydrogenated fats can supply only empty calories and no nutritive value.

Since hydrogenated fats cannot become rancid (nor can they support life), they are manufactured extensively. Margarine, cooking fats, processed cheeses, lard and peanut butter are but a few products subjected to hydrogenation.

The saturated fats are found chiefly in animal fats. Saturated fats are solid at room temperature, unlike the liquid unsaturated fats. Saturated fats are found in animal flesh, dairy products, eggs and coconuts. It should be noted that the saturated fats in coconuts have a different chemical structure.

Like hydrogenated fats, the saturated fats cannot enter into a nutrient bonding within the body. Consequently, they cannot be used effectively by the body in cellular composition than the saturated animal fats metabolism. The saturated fats are usually empty calories that contribute to a fat build-up within the body. They serve no useful function.

2.3 Cholesterol: Villain or Hero?

Accompanying the saturated animal fats is cholesterol, which can be considered a “cousin” to the fat family. Since cholesterol is generally discussed in terms of fats in the diet, this is an appropriate place for its inclusion.

Cholesterol is not a harmful substance as such. The body uses it in all of its tissues. It occurs in the brain, spinal column and skin. Cholesterol is part of the raw materials from which bile salts, sex and adrenal hormones and vitamin D are made. It combines with proteins to enable fats to be carried to the cells.

The liver produces all the cholesterol the body needs for its functions. In an average adult, about 3,000 milligrams of cholesterol are produced each day, regardless if cholesterol is present in the foods eaten or not.

When additional cholesterol enters the body through diet, an excess occurs. Typically, a person consuming animal products ingests about 800 milligrams of cholesterol a day. This extra cholesterol is deposited along the walls of the arteries throughout the body.

As these deposits grow, a condition known as atherosclerosis or “hardening of the arteries” occurs. The arteries become constricted and circulation is seriously impaired. This impaired circulation contributes to a wide variety of problems, including loss of hearing, baldness, shortness of breath, dizziness and heart attacks. All tissues the body are harmed since a reduced amount of oxygen and nutrients reach the cells.

Atheroschlerosis now affects a majority of Americans, regardless of age. Autopsies of infants less than one year old, many of them fed commercially prepared baby formulas, revealed large amounts of cholesterol already deposited within their arteries.

There is absolutely no need for saturated fats or cholesterol in the diet. The body manufactures all of its cholesterol needs. The consumption of additional amounts in the form of saturated animal fats destroys the health of the body at the cellular level.

3. Fat Digestion

Fat digestion takes much longer than the digestion of carbohydrates and somewhat longer than the digestion of proteins. A raw salad consisting of nonstarchy vegetables can be digested within two to three hours. When free fats such as corn, sesame, peanut or other oils are added to the salad, digestion is delayed for another two or three hours.

Coating our food with free oils inhibits the natural digestive processes by preventing digestive juices access to these foods until the oils are digested. Consequently, by the time the oils or fats surrounding the other food particles are digested, the elementary carbohydrates or proteins in the vegetables have begun to ferment (carbohydrates) or putrefy (proteins) in the stomach.

3.1 Fats Require Special Digestion

Free fats, unlike carbohydrates, require special digestive action before absorption. This is because the end products of all digestion are carried in a water medium (that is, the blood and lymph). Free fats are not soluble or transportable in these water mediums until they undergo special changes.

3.2 Tracing Fat Digestion

After fats leave the stomach, they enter the duodenum of the small intestine. Their presence causes the stimulation of the gallbladder, which forces bile down into the small intestine. The bile emulsifies, all the fats in the intestines.

The emulsified fats are then split by enzymes into fatty acids and glycerol. At this point, the fats can be absorbed through the intestinal mucosa. During absorption, the fatty acids and glycerol recombine with a small amount of protein to form microscopic particles of fat called chylomicrons.

The fats in the form of chylomicrons are now soluble enough to enter lymph circulation. The fatty acids are converted to the liver to acetate or ketone bodies as an energy source for the cells.

The fat which is not used immediately for the body’s energy needs is stored primarily in adipose tissue. Adipose tissue is a special kind of tissue (found mainly around the stomach, thighs and buttocks) which contains the necessary enzymes to continually produce and release new fat to meet the body’s needs.

4. How The Body Uses Fat

Fat is used in the body in four main ways:

As a source of heat and energy;
As padding and insulation for the organs and nerves;
As a regulator for the fat soluble vitamins (A, D, E and K); and
As a source of the essential fatty acids.
4.1 Fats Supply Heat and Energy

Each gram of fat supplies nine calories. This is more than twice the amount of energy supplied by a gram of carbohydrates. The body uses fat in much the same way as it uses carbohydrates. That is, fat is used mainly as an energy food.

Fats are converted to energy by being split into fatty acids and glycerol. Glycerol is then converted to either glucose or glycogen. At this point, the usual processes of carbohydrate metabolism take over to produce needed energy from the glucose and glycogen.

While fats may supply twice the caloric energy of carbohydrates, we find that they must undergo a longer digestive process before they are ready for an essentially carbohydrate metabolism. In general, carbohydrates do a more efficient job of providing the body with readily usable fuel. Fats are valuable in that they may provide a form of stored energy, but strictly speaking, they are not a necessity in the diet as far as a fuel source goes.

Fats, however, are usually more extensively stored within the body than are carbohydrates and may be converted into fuel when the body’s carbohydrate reserves are depleted. In fact, this is exactly what occurs when a person goes on a diet, fasts, or is exposed to extremely cold weather. As the stored carbohydrate reserves in the liver are exhausted, the body’s fat reserves are metabolized for a new supply.

It should be understood that these fat reserves in the body do not simply come from the fat that is eaten in the diet. When an excess of carbohydrates is eaten, it is converted by the body into fat and stored.

In this way, the body can store and use fat without having a large amount of fat in the diet. The fat deposits could be viewed as a carbohydrate bank, where deposits and withdrawals are made as necessary.

We can see that fat within the body is an important energy and heat source, but strictly speaking, fat in the diet is not an essential outside source for this fuel.

4.2 Fats Provide Padding and Insulation

Within the body, fat deposits provide padding and support for the organs and insulate the body from cold.

For instance, a certain amount of fat is necessary in the buttocks. A loss of most of the fat in this body area actually makes sitting down uncomfortable. Fat tissue is also a special type of connective tissue that aids in the support of certain organs, such as the liver.

Most animals in nature experience an increase in their fatty tissues with the advent of the cold weather. This fat may be used as a fuel source during the winter months when food is naturally scarce and help in the insulating of the body.

This function of fat in the body should not be confused with the role of fat in the diet. Fat reserves in the body do not necessarily come from fat intake in the diet but may instead be developed from the carbohydrates consumed.

4.3 Fats Aid in Absorption of Fat-Soluble Vitamins

Some of the vitamins are termed “fat-soluble.” This means that fatty compounds must be present in the intestines for these vitamins to be absorbed. The fat soluble vitamins are A, D, E and K. The other vitamins (B, C, etc.) are termed “water-soluble.”

If these fat-soluble vitamins are obtained from the foods in which they naturally occur and eaten in an unprocessed state, they will be readily absorbed by the body. The wholesome foods which contain these vitamins also contain the necessary fatty compounds for their absorption.

If these vitamins, however, are extracted (as in supplements) or occur in foods which have been fragmented, processed or subjected to heat, then their absorption will be impaired. Heating fatty foods, for example, renders almost all of the fat-soluble vitamins useless.

4.4 Fats Are Sources of the Essential Fatty Acids: Vitamin F

Even if no fat is eaten, the body can manufacture most of its fatty acids from fruit and vegetable sugars. There are three fatty acids, however, that the body is said to be unable to synthesize. These are called the essential fatty acids.

The three essential fatty acids are linoleic acid, arachidonic acid and linolenic acid. The linoleic acid is generally thought to be the most important and has been termed absolutely essential to life by some nutritional researchers. The arachidonic acid can act as a fairly good substitute for linoleic acid. The third acid, linolenic, is said to be only a partially satisfactory substitute for linoleic acid in that it can support growth but cannot aid in the other functions that linoleic acid performs.

4.5 Functions

Collectively, these essential fatty acids are sometimes referred to as vitamin F. The fatty acids or vitamin F are considered necessary for normal glandular activity, especially the adrenal glands. The adrenal and sex hormones seem to require the presence of these fatty acids for their manufacture.

The essential fatty acids are thought to be involved in many of the body’s metabolic processes. They promote the availability of calcium and phosphorous to the cells and help form the fat-containing portion of every cell’s structure. They are also considered a factor in growth and in reproduction.

4.6 Effect of Deficiency

A lack of vitamin F (the fatty acids) is said to contribute to skin disorders, gallstones, loss of hair, impaired growth and reproductive functions, kidney and prostate disorders and menstrual disturbances.

Since the fatty acids are also said to aid in the growth of intestinal bacteria which help produce the B vitamins, the symptoms of a B-vitamin deficiency may be related to a lack of fatty acids in the diet.

4.7 Requirement

No minimum requirement for vitamin F or the essential fatty acids has been established. The National Research Council has stated that about 1% of the total daily calories of about 2200-2800 per day should consist of unsaturated fats to provide a margin of safety for the intake of essential fatty acids.

The following wholesome foods contain the shown percentages of linoleic acid, the major fatty acid. In general, if the intake of linoleic acid in the diet is adequate, then all other fatty acid needs are also well satisfied.

Food % Linoleic Acid
English walnuts 40
Sunflower seeds 30
Black walnuts 28
Sesame seeds 22
Pumpkin/squash seeds 20
Brazil nuts 17
Pecans 14
Almonds 11
Filberts 10
Pistachios 10
Cashew nuts 3
Avocados 2
Coconuts 1
Raw sweet corn Trace
It is interesting to determine how much of the above foods would supply the 1% caloric intake of unsaturated fatty acids (in this case, linoleic acid). This is not to suggest that we accept this “1%” figure as an absolute or even as a necessity at all.

However, for the sake of argument, let’s assume a daily intake of 2500 calories. At this level, official figures tell us we should have 25 calories of unsaturated fatty acids. By examining the total amount of linoleic acid available in the nuts and seeds in our previous chart and knowing their calorie contents per ounce, we discover that anywhere from one-half to an ounce and a half of these nuts and seeds would give us 25 food calories of linoleic acid.

That is not the sum total of all the unsaturated fatty acids in these foods, nor is it the total of all the other fats we get in our daily diet. It is merely a statement that even if one-half to an ounce and a half of these nuts and seeds were consumed each day, and nothing else, we would still surpass all official recommendations for essential fatty acid intake.

This does not mean that we must eat this small amount of nuts or seeds each day. We should always eat only what the body needs or requires and not become involved with calorie counting or food weighing.

All fresh fruits, for example, contain between 0.5% and 1% unsaturated fat. Some fruits are higher in fat (particularly the avocado which may be 15% to 22% fat). If fruits alone were consumed, we would still have no difficulty meeting the government suggestion that we make 1% of our diet unsaturated fats.

5. Harmful Fats

5.1 Free Oils

The term free oils refers to those fats and oils which are separated from the foodstuffs in which they naturally occur. For instance, peanut oil is a free oil and likewise we can say that lard is a free oil (although somewhat solid).

Free oils in the diet are of vegetable, animal or chemical origin. Some of the free oils are definitely poisonous to the body. The others, while less harmful, have no place in the human diet.

5.2 Vegetable

Some examples of free vegetable oils are corn oil, olive oil, safflower oil, almond oil and the generic cooking oils which may be a mixture of vegetable oils and added chemicals. These are the most commonly used oils in the typical vegetarian diet which excludes all animal fats.

The fat content of these extracted oils is 100%. No proteins or carbohydrates are contained in these oils. Actually, very few minerals are present and only vitamins E and F are present in any amount. We see that these extracted oils are very lopsided nutritionally—they supply oil, but little else. They may be likened to white sugar or white flour as refined products.

In addition, these extracted oils are very susceptible to pesticide residues. Many of the free vegetable oils have chemicals added to them to prevent them from becoming cloudy or going rancid. Unfortunately, however, almost all free oil undergoes a certain amount of oxidation and becomes rancid regardless of the preservative methods used.

The great majority of all vegetable oils are heat-extracted. That is, they are raised to high temperatures in their manufacturing process in order to expel the oils from their vegetable sources. This heat causes a breakdown in the oil’s original composition which renders it nutritionally unfit.

Even most of the so-called “cold-pressed” oils sold in health food stores have had a certain amount of heat applied. Although the amount of heat used in these “expeller-pressed” oils (which is really what they are instead of “cold-pressed”), is somewhat lower than conventional methods, it is still high enough to destroy the oil’s original composition. Usually, only olive oil and avocado oil have any chance of being extracted without heating methods of some kind.

All free vegetable oils, with the exception of olive oil, have been added to the human diet only in the past hundred years. The human constitution is simply not adapted to handle these large quantities of free oils. .

Even olive oil, the traditional favorite of many health enthusiasts, cannot be recommended. Unless obtained from strictly organic sources, most, olive oil is mixed with other oils and petroleum products. These additives are considered normal by the government and no labeling of their presence is required.

No free oil, not even vegetable oils, should be included in a healthy diet.

5.3 Animal

The most common free animal oils are lard and butter. Strictly speaking, these are not pure oils or fats. Butter is about 87% fat, while lard is 94% fat. Because of their high fat content and their use outside of their naturally occuring sources (milk and meat), they will be discussed as examples of free animal oils.

The reasons for abstaining from animal free oils (or any animal fats) are basically the same as those for avoiding all animal products in the diet.

Like human beings, animals tend to store the accumulated pesticides, chemicals and additives from their diet in their fatty tissues. Consequently, lard and all animal fats are a concentrated reservoir of environmental poisons.

The animal fats are usually superheated during their extraction and tend toward rapid rancidity almost immediately.

Butter is usually colored and salted and is suspect to the hormonal and additive contamination from the cow.

Like all animal fats, the animal free oils are high in cholesterol which may eventually result in destruction of the cardiovascular system.

No free oil, and certainly not free animal fats, should be included in a healthy diet.

5.4 Chemical

This is a new one. Thanks to the synthetic food industries and the availability of petroleum by-products, free oils made from chemicals are being introduced into the diet. These chemical oils appear in ice cream, artificial coffee creams, artificial butter, etc.

Strangely enough, the people who consume these chemical oils often do so out of a concern for their health. They seek to avoid cholestrol and instead eat chemicals produced by the petroleum industries.

The plastic margarine and imitation coffee cream and ice cream that people eat may have a worse effect than the animal products they purport to replace. At least butter and cream have been a regular part of some people’s diet for hundreds of years. Most of these chemical oils have been on the market for less than ten years. No one has any idea as to the eventual harm they may cause.

The eating of these chemical oils is done to satisfy a purely psychological need. They are devoid of nutrition and undermine the body’s health.

No free oil, and absolutely never any chemical oils, should be included in a healthy diet.

5.5 Fats In Cooking

Although a lot of fat is consumed in the typical American diet in the form of free oils, the largest amounts of fat are consumed from eating those foods which have been cooked with fat.

French fries, potato chips, doughnuts, cakes, snack foods—almost all the “convenience” foods and junk foods eaten—contain high percentages of heated fats.

When fats and oils are heated to a high degree as in cooking or frying, they become carcinogenic—capable of causing cancer.  Healthy cells may become cancerous, that is, “go wild” if the diet is high in heated oils because heated oils are extremely toxic.

The digestive processes for the assimilation of fats require that the fats be emulsified. Fats that have been heated in cooking cannot be emulsified or digested. Since they cannot be used by the body, these overheated fats must be eliminated. Fats which have been subjected to a high degree of heat are difficult for the body to break down and expel. If the body has no use for a substance and cannot effectively eliminate it from the system, then the body stores the substance where it can do the least harm or walls it off by creating a tumor around it.

Besides the heated fats themselves, the foods that are saturated with these cooked fats are also indigestible and poisonous. Starches such as potatos, pastries, breads, etc. that are soaked in hot fat become impossible for the body to convert to sugar—the essential part of starch digestion. These foods then are worse than nutritionally useless since they also place a strain upon the body to eliminate them.

Any food values associated with oils or fats are lost when they are heated. As fats reach 350 degree temperatures, the standard range for frying and cooking, they begin to decompose totally and lose all their vitamins and minerals. They also prevent the absorption of any other fat-soluble vitamins and so contribute to the nutrient starvation of the body.

6. The Use Of Fats In The Optimum Diet

Now that we have discussed the harmful effects of animal fats, free oils and heated fats, we should examine the wholesome sources of fat in the diet. First, there are no such things as “fat-free foods.” All foods that are part of the human dietary contain fat. Every cell of every living plant and animal contains fat.

6.1 Fat Contents of Wholesome Foods

There are, of course, different fat contents in different foods. The following chart shows the fat content of foods natural to the human diet:

Food % of Fat (by Calories)
Fruits (Apple) 3
Vegetables (Spinach) 15
Mother’s milk 55
Avocados 77
Seeds (Sesame) 70
Coconut (Mature) 79
Nuts (Hazelnut) 81
data from nutritiondata.com
6.2 Nuts, Seeds and Avocados As High-Fat Sources

Nuts and seeds that are fresh, unroasted and unsalted are acceptable high-fat foods. If digestion permits, these should be eaten fresh in their whole state. If used as a nut butter or dressing, they should be made at home immediately before eating. All manufactured nut and seed butters, even those labeled as “raw,” undergo some degree of oxidation and become somewhat rancid.

When eaten, nuts and seeds should be masticated thoroughly. For ease of digestion, only a single variety of a nut or seed should be eaten at one meal. These high-fat foods combine best with leafy green vegetables and other non-starchy vegetables. They should not be eaten with starchy vegetables, fruits or avocados.

Coconuts, although rich in saturated fats, may be added to the diet in small quantities and also combined with leafy green vegetables. Coconuts should not be combined with fruits, as is sometimes done, to avoid fermentation of the fruits.

Avocados are another wholesome high-fat food. They are best eaten with nonstarchy vegetables. The nutritive value of an avocado and nuts is quite similar; the avocado simply has a higher water content.

6.3 Olives as food

Olives are the only other fruit besides avocadoes that have a high fat content. They are a wholesome food only if eaten in their natural dried state. Unfortunately, sundried natural olives are very difficult to locate. Olives that are canned, bottled or pickled are indigestible and should not be eaten. Olive oil, while perhaps the potentially less harmful of all the free oils, has no place in the optimum diet.

6.4 Recommendations

Although no specific amounts of these foods are recommended, it should be noted that many practitioners of Natural Hygiene suggest that no more that three to four ounces of nuts or seeds be eaten daily or no more than one avocado. The body appears to have difficulty in handling much larger amounts. Of course, this also means that one may certainly eat less than these amounts or no amount whatsoever. These are not recommendations for eating these foods daily, but suggestions that these foods should be consumed in limited amounts.