4 ms·

I think you're really far off with that assessment. The vilification of saturated fat has been widely shown to be based on poor evidence, and there are many ar

by Jdoemk2 11y ago

I think you're really far off with that assessment. The vilification of saturated fat has been widely shown to be based on poor evidence, and there are many arguments for it being healthy. Furthermore, it is not clear-cut that mono- and poly- unsaturated fats are as healthy as you say they are.

logfromblammo 11y ago
It isn't even that clear-cut that saturated fatty acids with different lengths have equal effects on health. Butyric acid (C4:0) and stearic acid (C18:0) are both saturated fatty acids. I would be very hesitant to claim that they are interchangeable for the purposes of human body chemistry.
CuriouslyC 11y ago
Just some research studies on the metabolic effects of saturated fats that might prove interesting: Overfeeding Polyunsaturated and Saturated Fat Causes Distinct Effects on Liver and Visceral Fat Accumulation in Humans. http://diabetes.diabetesjournals.org/content/early/2014/02/11/db13-1622.abstract http://diabetes.diabetesjournals.org/content/early/2014/02/1... Substituting dietary saturated fat with polyunsaturated fat changes abdominal fat distribution and improves insulin sensitivity. http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00125-001-0768-3 http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00125-001-0768-3 Saturated fat stimulates obesity and hepatic steatosis and affects gut microbiota composition by an enhanced overflow of dietary fat to the distal intestine. http://ajpgi.physiology.org/content/303/5/G589 http://ajpgi.physiology.org/content/303/5/G589 The influence of the type of dietary fat on postprandial fat oxidation rates: monounsaturated (olive oil) vs saturated fat (cream). http://europepmc.org/abstract/med/12037652 http://europepmc.org/abstract/med/12037652 Saturated Fatty Acid-Mediated Inflammation and Insulin Resistance in Adipose Tissue: Mechanisms of Action and Implications. http://jn.nutrition.org/content/139/1/1.short http://jn.nutrition.org/content/139/1/1.short Stearoyl-CoA Desaturase-1 Mediates the Pro-lipogenic Effects of Dietary Saturated Fat. http://www.jbc.org/content/282/4/2483.short http://www.jbc.org/content/282/4/2483.short A saturated fatty acid–rich diet induces an obesity-linked proinflammatory gene expression profile in adipose tissue of subjects at risk of metabolic syndrome. http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/90/6/1656.short http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/90/6/1656.short Substitution of saturated with monounsaturated fat in a 4-week diet affects body weight and composition of overweight and obese men - Here they show consuming monounsaturated fat instead of saturated fat causes weight and fat loss. http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=911460&fileId=S0007114503001788 http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPag... I would love to look at counterpoint articles if you have any.
- gadders 11y ago
  I could grab a load of studies from the appendix of her book, but rather than swap PubMed links I'd recommend you read it: http://thebigfatsurprise.com/ http://thebigfatsurprise.com/ It shows you the human factors that led to the distortion and exaggeration of the science to maintain the position of the originating scientists.
  - DanBC 11y ago
    This is a perfect demonstration of why nutrition discussions fucking suck. Someone provides a long list of peer-reviewed published studies; you respond with a shitty book.
    - mod 11y ago
      To add: this is also why many other discussions suck: politics, economics, religion, etc. Everyone's a fucking expert, can disregard science because [someone on tv] disagrees with peer-reviewed studies, and there's no obvious correct answer. At least on HN it's moderately fact-based, even in disagreement. If you dare to read discussions--dare I call them that--on somewhere like Facebook or Reddit...well, godspeed.
      - kedean 11y ago
        Nutrition discussions suck because nobody is demonstrably wrong. It doesn't matter if you can back your opinion up with a study, because the other can can back up his contradicting opinion with another study. There are no canonical facts, because the studies are just so hard to control. We know nothing, in the end.
    - Spivak 11y ago
      Giving the benefit of the doubt here, presumably at the end of that book is also a long list of peer-reviewed studies that the author based the book on. Both the parent comment and the book are essentially distillations of the current scientific knowledge on the effects of fat in a person's diet.

by Jdoemk2 11y ago

logfromblammo 11y ago

It isn't even that clear-cut that saturated fatty acids with different lengths have equal effects on health. Butyric acid (C4:0) and stearic acid (C18:0) are both saturated fatty acids. I would be very hesitant to claim that they are interchangeable for the purposes of human body chemistry.

CuriouslyC 11y ago

Just some research studies on the metabolic effects of saturated fats that might prove interesting: Overfeeding Polyunsaturated and Saturated Fat Causes Distinct Effects on Liver and Visceral Fat Accumulation in Humans. http://diabetes.diabetesjournals.org/content/early/2014/02/11/db13-1622.abstract http://diabetes.diabetesjournals.org/content/early/2014/02/1... Substituting dietary saturated fat with polyunsaturated fat changes abdominal fat distribution and improves insulin sensitivity. http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00125-001-0768-3 http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00125-001-0768-3 Saturated fat stimulates obesity and hepatic steatosis and affects gut microbiota composition by an enhanced overflow of dietary fat to the distal intestine. http://ajpgi.physiology.org/content/303/5/G589 http://ajpgi.physiology.org/content/303/5/G589 The influence of the type of dietary fat on postprandial fat oxidation rates: monounsaturated (olive oil) vs saturated fat (cream). http://europepmc.org/abstract/med/12037652 http://europepmc.org/abstract/med/12037652 Saturated Fatty Acid-Mediated Inflammation and Insulin Resistance in Adipose Tissue: Mechanisms of Action and Implications. http://jn.nutrition.org/content/139/1/1.short http://jn.nutrition.org/content/139/1/1.short Stearoyl-CoA Desaturase-1 Mediates the Pro-lipogenic Effects of Dietary Saturated Fat. http://www.jbc.org/content/282/4/2483.short http://www.jbc.org/content/282/4/2483.short A saturated fatty acid–rich diet induces an obesity-linked proinflammatory gene expression profile in adipose tissue of subjects at risk of metabolic syndrome. http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/90/6/1656.short http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/90/6/1656.short Substitution of saturated with monounsaturated fat in a 4-week diet affects body weight and composition of overweight and obese men - Here they show consuming monounsaturated fat instead of saturated fat causes weight and fat loss. http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=911460&fileId=S0007114503001788 http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPag... I would love to look at counterpoint articles if you have any.

gadders 11y ago
I could grab a load of studies from the appendix of her book, but rather than swap PubMed links I'd recommend you read it: http://thebigfatsurprise.com/ http://thebigfatsurprise.com/ It shows you the human factors that led to the distortion and exaggeration of the science to maintain the position of the originating scientists.
- DanBC 11y ago
  This is a perfect demonstration of why nutrition discussions fucking suck. Someone provides a long list of peer-reviewed published studies; you respond with a shitty book.
  - mod 11y ago
    To add: this is also why many other discussions suck: politics, economics, religion, etc. Everyone's a fucking expert, can disregard science because [someone on tv] disagrees with peer-reviewed studies, and there's no obvious correct answer. At least on HN it's moderately fact-based, even in disagreement. If you dare to read discussions--dare I call them that--on somewhere like Facebook or Reddit...well, godspeed.
    - kedean 11y ago
      Nutrition discussions suck because nobody is demonstrably wrong. It doesn't matter if you can back your opinion up with a study, because the other can can back up his contradicting opinion with another study. There are no canonical facts, because the studies are just so hard to control. We know nothing, in the end.
  - Spivak 11y ago
    Giving the benefit of the doubt here, presumably at the end of that book is also a long list of peer-reviewed studies that the author based the book on. Both the parent comment and the book are essentially distillations of the current scientific knowledge on the effects of fat in a person's diet.