Recommendations for using coconut oil in cooking, drinking whole milk and eating full-fat yogurt (all sources of saturated fat) makes it seem like eating saturated fat might actually be good for you. A new advisory issued by the American Heart Association says not so fast. Highly respected researchers and scientists, with no ties to any food companies, reviewed the scientific evidence and here’s what they have to say.
When dietary saturated fat (solid fats like coconut oil, dairy fat and lard) is replaced with unsaturated fat (liquid vegetable oils like canola and olive oil, nuts, and avocados), cardiovascular disease is reduced by 30%, similar to the reduction achieved by statin treatment. Lowering saturated fat and replacing it with refined carbohydrates and sugar is not associated with lower rates of cardiovascular disease.
The Mediterranean Diet or the DASH plan (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) are two excellent eating patterns to follow. For more details on the report, go to Dietary Fats and Cardiovascular Disease, A Presidential Advisory from the American Heart Association.