|
Last week's (June 23/24, 2015) "Opinion" piece in the Journal of the American Medical Association about the 2015 US Dietary Guidelines lifting the ban on total dietary fat meets my criterion for "damned lies." The authors applaud the "elimination of dietary cholesterol as a 'nutrient of concern'…and the absence of an upper limit on total fat consumption" in the updated guidelines. The facts Drs. Mozaffarian and Ludwig provide to support their opinions are flawed and favor the food industries. Meat, poultry, dairy, and eggs are the primary dietary sources of cholesterol and fat for Americans. Vegetable oils are the next largest source of dietary fat. Fat is the "metabolic dollar" stored in the body for future energy needs, crucial for survival during times of food shortages. "The fat you eat is the fat you wear," regardless of the source. "Good fat," like olive oil, is no more attractively worn around people's waistlines than "bad fat" from lard.
|
