Fatten up your knowledge of fats
F-a-t.Health-wise, it’s probably one of the most dreaded words in the dictionary (of course, a fat bank account is not unhealthy). It’s also a most misunderstood word. It’s probably the one (bad) word you look out for when you buy foodstuff. And you certainly don’t like being called fat — you stoutly deny it and say you’re just a “woman of substance” or a “person with an alternate body image” or you’re only “horizontally challenged.”
Whatever. Now’s the time to chew the fat, to separate fat from fiction. And get it straight from the mouths of nutrition experts. A few weeks ago, we met up with Dr. Angel “Jun” Respicio Jr., nutrition adviser at The Sleeplab at Medical Plaza SFMC West,
Addressing food enthusiasts, he whets our curiosity, “I have fascinating health information to clear whatever misinformation and confusion the ‘health advocates’ have been feeding media.”
Note: Dr. Respicio acknowledges the spoonfuls of valuable info he learned from Mary Enig, PhD, author of the book Know Your Fats and Sally Fallon, who wrote Nourishing Traditions. He stresses that these writers not only have a mouthful to say, but they also do it without fear or favor as they get no funding from self-serving interest groups.
To begin with, we all need saturated fat, unsaturated fat, and dietary cholesterol (pure and not oxidized as in egg, shrimp or whole milk). But don’t forget to eat at least five servings of fiber-rich fruits and vegetables daily.
The good doctor outlines our daily requirement of fat, carbohydrate, and protein in easy-to-remember portions. Let your hand or fingers serve as reminders:
• In general, we need five cups (let your five fingers remind you) of rice (or 10 slices of bread per day, if that is your only source of carbohydrate. Of course, you won’t eat that much because you might prefer noodles, potato, corn, oats, and other whole grains. But did you know that eight slices of bread have the same calories (800) as one cup of sugar? According to Stephen Byrnes, when taken in excess, sugar gets converted in the liver into triglycerides (fat), which are oxidized by free radicals. They then promptly attack arteries. In addition, cancer and tumor cells feed off sugar.
• We need about four tablespoons of fat. Seventy-five percent of total fat (three tablespoons) should come from unsaturated sources like nuts (1/4 cup = 1 tablespoon), olive oil, fish oil, avocado, sesame oil, etc. A medium avocado has roughly two tablespoons of oil. Twenty-five percent of total fat should be saturated — from chicken, lard, tallow, butter, coconut, and palm oils. It is safe then to eat five to seven palm-size home-fried chicken skin or one to two palm-size lechon skin. One to two thumb-size adobo or steak fat will also provide the saturated fat for the day.
And what’s oil-right for cooking?
Doc Jun sifts through the good, the bad, and the oily: Commercial vegetable oils (soybean, corn, canola, cottonseed, sunflower, and safflower) have toxic lipid hydroperoxides and when heated above 365ºF (180ºC) produce equally toxic HNE (4-hydroxy-trans-2-noneal). Together, they cause inflammation, joint pain, heartburn, liver problems, blood clots, cancer, stroke, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, etc., according to Dr. Catey Shanahan. Expeller or cold pressed vegetable oils are safer. Lard, butter, olive oil, coconut oil (yes!), and sesame oil alone or in combination are ideal for cooking.
Afraid of saturated fat? Lard is only 40 percent saturated, tallow (beef), 46 percent; and chicken fat, 30 percent. And according to Mary Enig, who knows her fats like the back of her hand, all these have monounsaturated fat (at least 40 percent) like olive oil!
• If you look at your hand (palm and five fingers), that is your protein (meat and fish) limit for the day. Same with 10-15 egg whites plus one to two egg yolks, about 20 shrimps the size of your small finger, or two to three cups cooked beans. A combination of your protein is ideal. You can have more depending on your ideal body weight and activity level.
• Regarding cholesterol, egg and shrimps are good sources. Says the Harvard Health Letter, “An egg a day won’t affect your blood cholesterol levels that much or put you more at risk for heart disease.”
The only bad dietary cholesterol is oxidized cholesterol found in skim milk, reduced fat milk, powdered milk, and whey powder. The cholesterol in whole milk and whey powder processed through natural enzymes, high-quality membrane filters, and low temperature is not oxidized. You don’t have to worry too much about your cholesterol level if you avoid oxidized cholesterol and trans fat (also known as partially hydrogenated oil, margarine, and vegetable shortening) and you don’t have any inborn defects in fat or cholesterol metabolism or synthesis. And did you know that cholesterol is an antioxidant and as we grow older, it rises to meet the demands of oxidation? Dr. Enig points out that risk for heart disease occurs in men with cholesterol levels over 350 mg./dl. But of course, other risk factors for stroke or heart disease are a sedentary lifestyle, overweight, smoking, constant stress, diabetes, and hypertension.
• To complete your health choices, take only less than one teaspoon dry salt or less than one tablespoon fish sauce (patis) per day. The body can survive with just 500 mg. salt (1/4 tsp. dry salt). Clean, natural, unrefined (with minerals intact) sea salt is preferred over refined table salt. But the Crystal Sea Salt (from the
Finally, these weighty reminders from Dr. Respicio: Knowing your portion limits is the key to maintaining an ideal weight. Avoid, if you can, oxidized cholesterol, processed foods, too much salt and sweets, and the trans fats — partially hydrogenated oils, margarine, and vegetable shortening. Warning: Zero trans fat in the nutrition label is not actually zero. Manufacturers are allowed to put zero if the trans fat level is less than 500 mg. per serving.
Having absorbed all those facts about fats, do enjoy your food!
* * *
We’d love to hear from you. E-mail us at ching_alano@yahoo.com.
