I eat bacons everyday and my blood pressure is excellent.

I would recommend you to do the research with the fats and CHL. Marksdailyapple.com is a good place to go, or go to this http://simplepaleonow.com/2012/03/18/cholesterol-basics/

I am new to paleo and soooooooo afraid of the fat thing. I am 63, have higher cholesterol but do not want to go on medication and am willing to do what it takes to get healthy. I have been feeling soooooo much better and dropping weight since starting this just a few weeks ago...........BUT I struggle with eating fat. Has anyone else feared this and what did you do and how has it worked out for you? Thanks!! Dyanna

I personally haven't really struggled with the fear, but growing up in the 90s with the "all fat is bad!" fad, I understand where your fear is coming from. And I do still find it a little weird for my fat goals to be set so high.

Remember - not all fats are created equal. The idea of Paleo/Primal is that you become a "fat burning beast" (as Mark puts it). It kind of helps to have ample sources of fat as a fuel source. Additionally, by cutting way down on carbs, you naturally have to increase protein and/or fat to compensate for the calories lost from eliminating the carby foods from your diet (the same goes for a low fat diet - protein and carbs increase as a result).

Additionally, fats provide a vehicle for delivering a number of vitamins and minerals that aren't water soluable. In other words, the only way for your body to efficiently absorb fat-soluable micronutrients is through the consumption of, well, fats.

If you still have trouble eating things like bacon or full-fat creams/yogurts/whatever, try starting by simply cooking with coconut oil or some good butter, or make your own salad dressing with olive oil as a base. If you drink coffee, try the "Bulletproof coffee" ( http://www.bulletproofexec.com/how-to-make-your-coffee-bulletproof-and-your-morning-too/ , I've seen mention that coconut oil is a good substitute for the MCT in the recipe).

Do you eat breakfast? If you're like me, and your breakfast consisted of cereal almost invariably, add in an egg, cooked your favorite way and eat a little less cereal. After a few weeks, add another egg and reduce your cereal more. I found that three eggs is enough for me, especially when coupled with a couple of pieces of bacon. I've also found my eggs skip horribly to my skillet, so I get a little more fat in as a bonus by using a little bit of coconut oil.

I think that these articles by Mark Sisson are hands-down the best articles on becoming fat adapted. To burn fat, you have to eat fat, and from a variety of high quality sources. If you are nervous, have your blood work done now, and then up your fat intake significantly for 3-4 weeks and have it tested again. Over and over again, people's blood lipids improve on a high fat diet. Embrace the good fats!

http://www.marksdailyapple.com/what-does-it-mean-to-be-fat-adapted/#axzz20LDNxoFu
http://www.marksdailyapple.com/what-does-it-mean-to-be-fat-adapted-part-2-qa/#axzz20LDNxoFu

Been on a hunter/gatherer diet since 5/2011 (primal/paleo). Lab results for cholesterol/triglycerides 6 months ago and this week:

Triglycerides: 125 to 63
Total cholesterol: 200 to 128
HDL: 37 to 43 (cool!)
LDL: 138 to 72 (even cooler!)
Ratio: 5.4 to 3.0

I haven't lost any weight since thanksgiving (in fact, I gained 10 pounds), but I stayed true to the primal/paleo lifestyle - including mostly saturated animal fats and coconut oil.

Eating this way works.

Don't worry about the fat. If you completely eliminate grains, legumes and sugar from your diet - fat will be a non-issue.