The Beauty in Fats? Eat the Good to Lose the Bad

Home

By Barbara E. Austin

While earning my Doctor of Naturopathy from Clayton College of Natural Health I was reminded “Beauty” generally means lovely, smooth, satiny skin with a natural radiant glow. Plus a strong bone structure doesn’t hurt. And solid and nicely spaced white teeth are a must. Our American standard of beauty is that a person should maintain a healthy weight with nice muscle tone and less excess body fat. Yet, there are even better reasons to eat healthy. A person who eats healthy suffers less disease, is sharper mentally, and is typically in a better mood. What could be more attractive? A healthy hot body, radiant skin with a beautiful white smile and pleasant attitude-- novel. All of these can be generated by eating healthy fats and oils. Unfortunately, we have been misled to think all fats are generally bad and they will make us fat! Here are several excellent choices to create a healthier and more beautiful you. Coconut Oil, Essential fatty acids, Conjugated Linoleic Acid, Olive Oil, Safflower Oil, Flax Seed Oil.

Tropical oils, such as coconut, which is a vegetable oil, are more saturated than other oils. These wonderful oils stay stable and do not go rancid as other vegetable oils. Coconut oil has been used for thousands of years contributing health and beauty to its users. It’s a fantastic oil to apply right to the skin for moisturizing. And it does NOT increase the risk of heart disease. Coconut oil will actually shed toxic fat, generally showing up abdominally on men or as cellulite on women in particular. And it’s excellent for your thyroid. One of its best cooking features is its ability to withstand moderate heat and frying. Expeller-pressed oil is best. An excellent source is Tropical Traditions which can be found on-line.

Essential fatty acids (EFAs) are, as their name implies, essential to our health. We have to obtain these from our food and cannot fabricate them on our own. EFAs help make the cholesterol needed by our body. Without them, one doesn’t make hormones. Hormones help make us sexy and slim. Plus, we cannot think properly if are levels are low, as cholesterol is brain food. Oils improve our mood and attention span. Fat is necessary to some degree to protect the internal organs and aesthetically to create the curves on women that men adore. The famous Dr. Weston Price, in his studies of native diets, found that quality animal fat diets promote beautiful bone structure, uncrowded teeth not requiring braces, and handsome, well-proportioned faces. Another oil is called Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA).

CLA an example of healthy fat found in butter. This prevents weight gain and encourages muscle-building. Also, oils give our skin a soft, pliable texture. The only way to absorb beauty-giving minerals is to include fats. Beauty truly is more than skin deep. If you are not healthy, from the inside your skin and structure will show it. For the longest time we have been fed the lie that all fats make us fat. Partial truths about oils were prompted and promoted by inaccurate studies by pharmaceutical corps, who provide “cholesterol-reducing” medications, and by big business selling slick ads for us to buy the latest and greatest. However, new facts from modern research like .

Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon dispels many of these modern day health myths.

Research shows that when we eat fake partially and fully hydrogenated or processed polyunsaturated man-made fats and oils heart disease is the number One health threat many face today. Did you know it’s OK to eat butter? It was actually the big business soybean oil industry that put out the false rumors that cholesterol found in butter was “bad for you”. Hydrogenated fat such as those found in most processed foods, vegetable shortening, margarine and foods fried in vegetable oils, increases the risk of obesity. Plus, low fat products which are oftentimes tasteless tend to be high in sugar. What’s even worse are artificial sweeteners. Not to mention excessive sodium. What really ads insult to injury is that these products increase the likelihood of converting our food to harmful fat if we don’t immediately burn them up in exercise or hard physical work. Sadly, most of our food industry is about process economics, profit, and not about what is healthy for us. And the down side is that poor heart health reduces a healthy glow and energy while adding dull, wrinkled, and even discolored and/or blemished skin. Acne and breakouts are often a sign of toxicity, as well as a result from eating unhealthy fats, sugars, and food sensitivities. That’s why it’s always safer to eat organic and natural foods.

Organic unsalted butter from cows eating organic and green grass is a great absorbable source of vitamin A. This vitamin helps create healthy bones, and normal sexual development to bring out the female and male characteristics. It also helps insure that your thyroid, a chief metabolism regulator, is functioning properly. The butter must be raw, not pasteurized, to avoid figure-disforming arthritis. Ghee, or clarified butter, is another excellent source if from organically raised animals. A realistic amount of 1-2 tablespoons daily of butter is not at all fattening. I eat butter every day, and I am a healthy weight appropriate for my height.

Olive oil is a wonderful vegetable oil, ideal for salads, and rich in antioxidants. It should be cooked only at low to moderate temperatures, as it can break down and be toxic at high temperatures. It is recommended in the extra virgin form and the safest vegetable oil to use. Avoid its overuse, as the longer-chain fatty acids can actually be more likely to add body fat than the short-chain and medium-chain fatty acids that are found in Coconut oil and butter. Olive Oil should appear cloudy and be kept refrigerated. Tip: Buy smaller bottles to insure freshness.

As for safflower oil, there are mixed reviews. On a positive note, a study done at Ohio State University implies that using less than a tablespoon a day reduces fat in obese, postmenopausal women with type 2 diabetes. Less body fat occurred in the trunk area, lowered blood sugar, and increased muscle tissue developed in its participants. Safflower oil contains almost 80% omega-6 oils. When safflower is found in cold-pressed version, it contains high amounts of beneficial oleic acids and only small amounts of polyunsaturated fatty acids, thus making it more stable and less likely to go dangerously rancid. On the low side, studies increasingly show dangers of excessive omega-6 oils in our diet whether rancid from exposure to air and light, over-processing or too much consumption.

Excessive omega-6 oils might increase the risk of heart disease, cancer, immune system reduction, damage to liver, reproductive organs, and digestive tract, reduced learning capability, impaired growth and weight gain. Research by the University of Maryland Medical Center states: A healthy diet contains a balance of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids. Omega-3 fatty acids help reduce inflammation, and some omega-6 fatty acids tend to promote inflammation. The typical American diet tends to contain 14 - 25 times more omega-6 fatty acids than omega-3 fatty acids. The Mediterranean diet, on the other hand, has a healthier balance between omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids. Many studies have shown that people who follow this diet are less likely to develop heart disease. The Mediterranean diet does not include much meat (which is high in omega-6 fatty acids) and emphasizes foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids, including whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables, fish, olive oil, garlic, as well as moderate wine consumption. http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/omega-6-000317.htmExcessive

Personally I don't recommend drinking wine on a moderate basis to anyone, as too many people in the US and Europe become addicted to alcohol or drink to excess.

The Maryland Medical Center study further states: “There are several different types of omega-6 fatty acids, and not all promote inflammation. Most omega-6 fatty acids in the diet come from vegetable oils as linoleic acid (LA). Be careful not to confuse this with alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), an omega-3 fatty acid. Linoleic acid is converted to gamma-linolenic acid (GLA) in the body. It is then further broken down to arachidonic acid (AA). GLA can be gotten from several plant-based oils including evening primrose oil (EPO), borage oil, and black currant seed oil. Gamma-linolenic acid (GLA) may actually reduce inflammation. Much of the GLA taken as a supplement is converted to a substance called DGLA that fights inflammation. Having enough of certain nutrients in the body (including magnesium, zinc, and vitamins C, B3, and B6) helps promote the conversion of GLA to DGLA.”

Like many vegetable oils we simply don’t use them right. Many of the oils should never been eaten when heated up for cooking, baking, and especially deep-frying. Over heating implies free radical damage that causes wrinkles, premature aging and mineral deficiencies. Safflower oil contain lectins that for some people are difficult to digest and can even be damaging to the digestive tract. Never eat oils that are bleached, deodorized, or refined. Make sure it is in a small opaque bottle and keep it in the refrigerator.

Flax seeds are an excellent source of healthy saturated fats, high in omega-3 oils. It helps to create a better balance of omega-6/omega-3. Eat the whole seeds soaked in hot water, then chew for absorption, or freshly grind the seeds. I recommend also sunflower, evening primrose, borage, pumpkin, and safflower seeds, all freshly ground versus in oil form. Whole seeds and nuts are more likely to include their nutrients, enzymes for digestion, and of course include fiber. Unrefined pumpkin seed in its oil-form, however, can actually help prevent unattractive dental caries. Almonds and walnuts are great sources of omega-3 oils. Soak them a bit covered to ease digestion. These nuts give you beauty and brains.

From the beginning of mankind, we have eaten organic, pasture-raised or wild caught meats and fowl, fresh fish and seafood, and not experienced the obesity and heart disease we are now suffering. Do avoid as much as possible non-organic protein, as toxins accumulate in the fat. Wild caught fish or fish oil capsules from a reputable, toxic-free source, are excellent providers of healthy fat that improve our beauty, mood, hormone balance, and lessen the likelihood of many disorders. In general, combine fats with proteins, green or ocean vegetables which creates better assimilation and digestion. For more information on the use of the healthy fats, check out The Body Ecology Diet by Donna Gates. So you see, eating healthy fats does NOT necessarily make us fat. The benefits out way the lack of their proper use and are great choices to obtain whole health and beauty. Naturally, good health promotes beautiful health so start today.