Low carbohydrate advocates have long preached the value of fats in our diets. While certain hard core anti-fat experts like Dr. Dean Ornish cry foul, it appears recent studies prove that health promoting vitamins, anti-oxidants, and other compounds found in fruits and vegetables are fat-soluble. This means we need some fat to be consumed with these foods for the body to properly absorb these nutrients.
Studies by Steven Clinton, of the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, found that choosing a fat free salad dressing, or skipping fatty toppings like cheddar cheese, avocado slices, or olives, means you get a lot less nutrients out of salads and side dishes.
Simplified, this means you can take low fat and fat free eating habits too far. If the nutrients don't get into your system, then you don't reap their benefits. Dr. Clinton's "salsa study" fed test subjects a meal of fat free salsa and bread. Later, a similar meal with avocado was fed. The avocado meal raised fat consumption to an extra 37 percent of calories. But the good news was that the blood levels of the test subjects showed they absorbed about 4 times more lycopene and 2.5 times more beta carotene. This is just one example of scientific research reinforcing fats as part of a healthy diet. The key is moderation. You don't need to down a stick of butter with your spinach. Read more.
