Am I at risk from the saturated fats in Essential Provisions products?
Mark Pettus MD, FACP
“It’s not what we know that gets us into trouble. It’s what we know that ain’t so.”
~ Mark Twain
Over the last two generations, no scientific consensus has had a greater impact on clinical care than the dietary fat-cholesterol-heart hypothesis. This hypothesis which has infused every aspect of multidisciplinary education, clinical guidelines, clinical practice, pharmaceutical focus and ultimately self-care was based on the simple notion that fat in one’s diet equals more cholesterol in the blood which equals a greater risk of heart disease. What has been considered a slam dunk of scientific inquiry is, in fact, much more nuanced with many shades of gray. An independent association of saturated fat intake with CVD risk has not been consistently shown in prospective epidemiologic studies. Research is unable to easily link cause and effect when placed into the context of overall lifestyle quality, fat source, macro-micronutrient food combinations, meal-timing, etc. The interpretation of the available science linking saturated fat consumption with heart disease events and mortality risk is more of a half-truth. There is much more controversy than meets the eye. My parents died young of heart disease. This narrative, as it evolves, has fundamentally changed the way I perceive the nutritional drivers of not just heart disease but all 21st century chronic complex diseases.
Much has been written about the many external “forces” that have shaped the framework of the diet-fat-heart hypothesis over the last few generations. I will not review this interesting history and encourage anyone who is convinced of this relationship to reconsider based on individual review and thoughtful discernment. The current recommendations of the USDA for saturated fat consumption are to limit intake to 10% of total caloric intake. As an example, for an 80 kg marine, consuming 2500 calories/day, no more than 250 calories/day should come from saturated fats or 20-25 gms/day. As most saturated fat is found in animal food sources e.g. meats, eggs, nuts, whole fat dairy, poultry, coconut oil, and butter, people fearful of increasing their heart disease risk will understandably limit-restrict these food sources. These food groups are nutrient-dense and offer complete protein, vitamin and mineral availability. In addition, they are low glycemic which is important as foods that drive insulin are more likely to promote heart disease.
Anthropology as a life science is rarely brought into the realm of medical evidence. Historical and current dietary standards, accompanied by their incriminations of saturated fat, along with the halo they have placed on polyunsaturated fats (processed e.g. seed oils) have been associated with increases in cardiovascular disease prevalence and poor metabolic health. Obesity, insulin resistance, inflammation, low HDL and prediabetes/diabetes have exploded over the last two generations. The behaviors produced by a persisting, global condemnation of fat e.g. more consumption of processed poor-quality carbs and processed polyunsaturated vegetable oils, are not compatible with human health and longevity. We have not evolved to consume these “food” sources. The true threats from this perspective are boxed cereals and the processed polyunsaturated seed oils used to make fast foods, not grass-fed/grass finished bison or other natural saturated fat sources. Fear the bagel, not the bison. That 90% of Americans no longer meet criteria for metabolic health (slim waistline, normal blood pressure, normal blood sugar, normal serum triglycerides and HDL cholesterol) is largely a public health consequence of adherence to this historical thinking.
While the research is mixed and conflicting, current trends are increasingly clear that saturated fat consumption has little connection to heart disease risk, cardiovascular mortality, or all-cause mortality. Not all saturated fats are created equal. For example, pasture raised/finished meats, full-fat dairy, butter, coconut oil and butyrate (a saturated fat from fermentation of fiber in our guts) appear to have very different health effects as compared to Crisco (the original trans-fat), processed meats like hot dogs, bologna, cold-cuts, bacon or commercially raised meats fed grains, receiving antibiotics, loaded with toxins and raised in conditions that no living creature should ever experience.
Lastly, there is a tendency to look at categories of food in isolation which is not reflective of how we live our lives. Pasture-raised bison, coconut oil, medium chain triglycerides (MCT oil) that we use in our EP products are not only as clean as an ingredient can be sourced, they are integrated with nutrient-dense plant-based ingredients, spices, and carbs that are fiber-rich plant-based and low-glycemic in nature. Our ingredients are nurtured by farmers that understand we are part of the ecosystem from which our food comes-not separate and distinct from. The biologic effects of every ingredient in our EP products including saturated fats are what our ancestors evolved with.
Scientific information is exploding. We are at the dawn of an information revolution where one can expect a doubling to occur every 12 hours! When I graduated from medical school in 1983, the “knowledge-doubling” curve was every 10 years. This explosion of knowledge requires a nimbler and more personalized translation as the “expert” sources we look to for guidance are not structured, nor do they function, in a nimble way. Lastly and perhaps most concerning is the “illusion of knowledge” that Mark Twain spoke of making it very challenging to buck consensus thinking deeply etched into our minds and marketing. Which brings us back to the question at hand:
Should one fear the quality and quantity of saturated fats in our products?
Most definitely not! More please.
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