Monday, June 15, 2015

FAT THAT IS GOOD FOR THE BRAIN!!!

Fat is essential to brain health

Did you know that brain tissue is made up of nearly 60% fat?(1) A diet low in fat actually robs your brain of the materials it needs to function properly.
I’m not just talking about the essential fatty acids and omega 3’s that are making all the headlines (fats found in food like salmon, avocados and nuts) but also some of the saturated fats which we have been told for years to avoid, including natural animal fats.
Essential vitamins such as A, D, E and K are not water soluble and require fat to get transported and absorbed by the body. These vitamins are crucial for brain health and many of our vital organs.
Vitamin D is now being widely touted as an important element in decreasing susceptibility to Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, depression and other brain disorders and omega 3 is said to sharpen your cognitive function as well as to improve your mood.

Sunday, June 14, 2015

HAVE YOU EATEN THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF FAT TODAY?


By JUDY MOULAND
With all the different dietary advice flying around these days, how can you even begin to know what food choices to make?
Take fat for example. For years it has been painted as an evil monster and the root cause of high cholesterol, heart disease and obesity. But scientific studies now show that there are many benefits of eating more fat, and it’s time we started rethinking this essential part of our dietary regime.
In short, fat has gotten a bad rap.
In Grain Brain Dr. David Perlmutter describes our ancestor’s diet as being 75% fat, 20% protein and 5% carbs compared to our current diet of  60% carbs, 20% protein and 20% fat. Dr. Perlmutter goes on to explain how the cornerstone of many of today’s health conditions, including Alzheimer’s, ADHD, depression, anxiety and chronic headaches are linked to inflammation in the body and brain triggered by carbs.
Other studies tell us that the obesity epidemic, which has doubled in the last 50 years, is not because of us eating too much fat but because of our consumption of readily available carbs and sugar, including glucose found in fruits and juices.
Excessive glucose is converted by the body and stored as fat. Gary Taubes in Why We Get Fat  says that “if the world had never invented cigarettes, lung cancer would be rare disease. Likewise, if we did not eat such high carb diets, obesity would be a rare condition.”
So fat is not the culprit it is believed to be!!!