Have we been really wrong?
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FunSizedKJ wrote: »This is something that confused me about MFP when I first started with it. If you look under the Nutrition tab, under the nutrients, the "Goal" for the unsaturated fats are 0 but they allow saturated fats, my "Goal" for those is 14 g.
Unsaturated fats are the ones that have the most health benefits, why is our goal to consume 0 then? Saturated fats are bad, so why am I aiming to eat any?
I can see that being confusing! I think that it is trying to say limit your saturated fats to 14g a day (probably based on RDA guidelines) but there isn't really a limit of unsaturated fats other than over all fats. So you "should" eat up to 14g of saturated fats and fill the rest of your daily fat needs with unsaturated. It would be less confusing, I'm sure, if the just subtracted the 14 from your total fats and used that for unsaturated, but say you only had 7g of saturated ... you can have those extra 7 in unsaturated rather than not at all. (I hope this helped clear it up rather than make it more confusing).
There are people who believe that saturated fats aren't as bad for us as we've been told, as well, and that we only need to watch overall fats. There are also many who look at fat (and protein) as minimum levels to meet. I know that there is a certain amount of essential fats we need to consume, so they have at least something of a valid point. FTR, I only track overall fats when paying attention to macros.
That's the same conclusion I ended up coming to, it just rocked my brain in the very beginning! It makes sense once it is laid out like that but for the longest time I was getting so mad because there was no way of avoiding seeing the red, negative number in the "Remaining" column.0 -
I was raised on the F-plan, from which my mother somehow deduced that wholemeal bread was the be-all and end-all of diets. We very rarely had any protein, very little dairy (we used to get told off for drinking all the milk or eating all the cheese). Meat was something served once or twice a week, in small amounts and the rest was carbs, carbs, carbs. Potatoes every day, sandwiches every lunch, barely a vegetable or a piece of lean meat in sight.
Obviously, I'm still fat so it didn't work! But she still reckons protein is bad. She keeps trying to tell me that protein makes tumours grow. So I guess it's not old news for everyone.0 -
I eat a low-fat, high-carb diet and do not eat lots of added sugars, sodium or refined grains...unless flour counts. I eat bread. But I make it myself and use unbleached flour.
You can go low-fat and remain healthy. Promise.
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I eat a low-fat, high-carb diet and do not eat lots of added sugars, sodium or refined grains...unless flour counts. I eat bread. But I make it myself and use unbleached flour.
You can go low-fat and remain healthy. Promise.
I believe you, but why would flour not count as a refined grain? How much more refined could it get than flour?0 -
Need2Exerc1se wrote: »I eat a low-fat, high-carb diet and do not eat lots of added sugars, sodium or refined grains...unless flour counts. I eat bread. But I make it myself and use unbleached flour.
You can go low-fat and remain healthy. Promise.
I believe you, but why would flour not count as a refined grain? How much more refined could it get than flour?
I would count it, which is why I brought it up.
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jayce54321 wrote: »"Over the past decade, research has shown that a diet rich in healthy fats can be better for people, particularly if those fats help offset consumption of foods containing high levels of salt, sugar and refined grains...
Low-fat diets have had unintended consequences, turning people away from healthy high-fat foods and toward foods rich in added sugars, starches and refined grains. This has helped fuel the twin epidemics of obesity and diabetes in America"
http://www.myhealthytoday.com/html/topicdetails.asp?pid=1&topic_id=24529&puid=139049&flag=1
Where does this mysterious American (actually average first world citizen) who is fat and does not consume fat lives? It sounds to me more like that the problem is overconsumption of sugar, starch and refined grain in addition to overconsumption of fat. The average person who is overweight really is not just drinking soda and eating huge amounts of white breads. It is more meat-based diet, fried food based diet, and then lots of refined sugar on top, not one instead of the other.0 -
jayce54321 wrote: »"Over the past decade, research has shown that a diet rich in healthy fats can be better for people, particularly if those fats help offset consumption of foods containing high levels of salt, sugar and refined grains...
Low-fat diets have had unintended consequences, turning people away from healthy high-fat foods and toward foods rich in added sugars, starches and refined grains. This has helped fuel the twin epidemics of obesity and diabetes in America"
http://www.myhealthytoday.com/html/topicdetails.asp?pid=1&topic_id=24529&puid=139049&flag=1
Where does this mysterious American (actually average first world citizen) who is fat and does not consume fat lives? It sounds to me more like that the problem is overconsumption of sugar, starch and refined grain in addition to overconsumption of fat. The average person who is overweight really is not just drinking soda and eating huge amounts of white breads. It is more meat-based diet, fried food based diet, and then lots of refined sugar on top, not one instead of the other.
I tend to agree. It's the combination of fat and fast digesting carbs that is often so appealing. Potato chips, donuts, french fries, chocolate, fried cheese sticks, breaded fried anything/everything ...0 -
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What happened, years ago, is this: people were overeating fat (and probably everything in general). Doctors advised people to eat less fat in favor or more veggies/fruit. But what actually happened was food companies created lowfat cookies and snacks...so people ate them. And ate them. And ate more of them. And kept getting fatter. So now the conclusion is that fat was never evil in the first place--must be the carbs.
Certainly some healthy fat is good for us. That doesn't mean endless fat, and it doesn't mean that carbs are evil. It just means that when doctors advised us to cut down on fat, we were supposed to eat more produce and WE FAILED.0 -
When I was a teenager I wanted to lose weight... So I decided to go on a "low fat" diet... I limited fat to 10g or less per day, and didn't pay attention to anything else... I definitely lost weight to the tune of about 5 lbs a week, but felt yucky all the time and I ate so much sugar and candy because it was "fat free." Basically this lol... I wouldnt recommend it:
http://www.riffsy.com/view/riff/3651277/New-fat-free-diet-Romy-Michele-s-High-School-Reunion?page=undefined0 -
What happened, years ago, is this: people were overeating fat (and probably everything in general). Doctors advised people to eat less fat in favor or more veggies/fruit. But what actually happened was food companies created lowfat cookies and snacks...so people ate them. And ate them. And ate more of them. And kept getting fatter. So now the conclusion is that fat was never evil in the first place--must be the carbs.
Certainly some healthy fat is good for us. That doesn't mean endless fat, and it doesn't mean that carbs are evil. It just means that when doctors advised us to cut down on fat, we were supposed to eat more produce and WE FAILED.
I read an interview once with a nutrition scientist who placed the blame for the low fat craze on the USDA. He claimed that scientists presented evidence showing that Americans needed to cut the amount of saturated fat they were eating to the USDA, who then decided that people were too lazy to determine what were saturated vs unsaturated fats and made the general recommendation to "eat less fat" which quickly became "eat low fat". It was on the internet, but I read it years ago and don't know if I can find it again. I'll give it a quick try though. It was probably someone from Harvard since they seem to always be dissing the USDA.0 -
I got fat cos I ate too much of everything!
Too much of anything can be bad for you, and every thing in moderation can be good for you.0 -
When someone sees me eating a bar of chocolate, or a donut etc at work, they'll be like 'you shouldn't be eating that. I thought you were wanting to lose weight?' I can eat what I want. I've lost nearly 2st since March and I still eat the same things, just smaller quantities and they are factored into my daily calories. Some people really don't understand it's quite simple to lose weight just by cutting down your calories. I have a hard time explaining this to people. Low-fat foods (weight watchers stuff) is packed full of sugar and artificial crap to make it taste better, so I avoid all these 'healthy' meals, or I check the nutritional info on the back before buying.0
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LOL this low-fat for weight loss idea dates back to the 80s. It's been known for a while that a high-fat diet doesn't necessarily make you fat. If anything, it helps satisfy your appetite. And yes, certain fats are healthy.0
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We were wrong! You can track the obesity epidemic to it's 'beginning' and it coincides with the AHA determination that we must eat low fat. Shows you medical people aren't as smart as they think0
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Where have you been for the past 10-15 years?0
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omg you mean to tell us that we just gain weight not because of Fat but too much calories???
who could have thank it..0 -
HikeCyclist wrote: »LOL this low-fat for weight loss idea dates back to the 80s. It's been known for a while that a high-fat diet doesn't necessarily make you fat. If anything, it helps satisfy your appetite. And yes, certain fats are healthy.
It goes back further than the 80's0 -
blackcoffeeandcherrypie wrote: »I was raised on the F-plan, from which my mother somehow deduced that wholemeal bread was the be-all and end-all of diets. We very rarely had any protein, very little dairy (we used to get told off for drinking all the milk or eating all the cheese). Meat was something served once or twice a week, in small amounts and the rest was carbs, carbs, carbs. Potatoes every day, sandwiches every lunch, barely a vegetable or a piece of lean meat in sight.
Obviously, I'm still fat so it didn't work! But she still reckons protein is bad. She keeps trying to tell me that protein makes tumours grow. So I guess it's not old news for everyone.
I hear ya'. Grew up in that era myself. I was an overweight but active teen. It was emotional eating and that way of eating.0
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