Why I Do Not Recommend American Heart Association - For Anyone
Why I do not recommend American Heart Association for anyone - even cardiac patients
The American Heart Association (AHA) has long blamed cardiovascular disease on saturated fats, red meats and other foods contributing to the development of plaque and build up in arteries. Why?
In 1940’s when AHA was still small, Proctor and Gamble paid AHA 1.5 million which allowed the organization to go public. If you need a reminder on who Proctor and Gamble are - they created crisco which was claimed by AHA to be healthier than butter. This enabled Proctor and Gamble, among other investors, to have a say in the AHA recommendations regardless of the research. AHA then and now recommend avoiding saturated fats and increasing consumption of PUFAs (poly unsaturated fats). PUFAs include canola oil, grapeseed oil, vegetable oil, sunflower oil, soybean etc. While a little is not an issue, a large amount contributes to inflammation and chronic disease. PUFAs have a chemical structure that make them more unstable than saturated or monosaturated fats. This means that when PUFAS are exposed to excess heat, light or left for an extended period of time - they can oxidize. Oxidizing fats are what contribute to inflammation and inflammation contribute to chronic disease (high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, depression, obesity - the list is endless). The issue is they are cheap and they are everywhere. Restaurants, all processed foods, snacks, organic snacks. Here’s how to lower your total PUFA intake:
Avoid seed oils: canola, vegetable, soy, and sesame oils.
Cook with grass fed butter, coconut oil, olive oil or pure avocado oil (Primal Kitchen).
Increase omega 3 intake from whole food sources: wild caught fatty fish (salmon, sardines, mackerel), Be sure if you supplement with omega 3 they are clean, pure supplements that have been third party tested.
