Excess of hard fats causes problems. The fats in pork, beef, lamb, dairy and tropical nuts are natural, and not synthetic or damaged by processing. They have existed in nature for long time. Our body uses them in the structure of cell membranes, in fat deposits, and as fuel. They cause problems only when we consume more than we can use. Excess makes platelets stickier, interferes with insulin function, and interferes with the functions of essential fatty acids, the good stuff from fats.
How much hard fat could we safely eat? If we worked as hard physically as our grandparents did, we could burn (metabolise) quite a lot of hard fats as fuel to produce energy. Since most of us have become sedentary, we need far less fuel. We cannot stay healthy if we eat grandfather's high hard fat diet. The more hard fats we eat the more of the good fats - essential fatty acids - we need to consume. The more essential fatty acids we have in our diet, the more saturated fats we can eat without creating health problems.
Sugar, even in small amounts, is the fifth fat that kills. Sugar is not a fat, but it might as well be, because our body turns excess sugars (and starches) into the same hard fats that:
* make platelets more sticky
* interfere with insulin function
* interfere with essential fatty acid functions
In addition, sugar:
* damages teeth
* feeds bacteria, yeast, fungus, and cancer cells
* interferes with vitamin C transport and thereby with immune function (the colds we get right after Christmas are the consequence of eating cookies, candies, and cake!)
* can increase adrenaline production by up to four times, making them a very powerful internal stressor
* cross-link proteins and speed up ageing
* pulls calcium, chromium and other minerals from the body
* inhibits immune cells for several hours
All kinds of sugars cause problems. If the 120 Ibs. of sugar that the average member of Western societies consumes each year were replaced by honey, maple syrup, brown sugar, rice syrup, corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, or other similar sweeteners, the detrimental effects on health would be quite similar, because all of these provide quickly absorbed calories that must be rapidly converted into hard fats in order to prevent the toxic effects that 'sweet' overload would otherwise have on our bodies.
In summary, high fat diets cause health problems; low fat diets cause health problems; and sugars cause health problems.
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