The Questionable Link Between Saturated Fat and Heart Disease

Wait a minute... I thought the notion that saturated fat caused heart disease was settled science. That we had a consensus. Now we realize we're wrong? That scientists cherry-picked data, had inadequate controls? That "too much institutional energy and research money had already been spent ... A bias in its favor had grown so strong that the idea just started to seem like common sense."

The tragedy is that after generations of blind, almost religious belief in flawed science those raised on a diet of synthetic fats, sugar, and refined flour are suffering obesity and diabetes like never before.

Re: The Questionable Link Between Saturated Fat and Heart Disease

#7

Post by jacques_chester » Sat, May 03, 2014, 10:36 PM UTC

The most recent research still upholds that saturated fats, over and above their contribution to obesity, are a worse risk than polyunsaturated fats.

A meta-analysis of 8 randomised controlled trials with 13 thousand subjects showed that a 5% total energy substitution from saturated to polyunsaturated fats reduced risk of coronary heart disease by 10%.[1]

The point about substituting hydrogenated fats is good; but it's hardly an argument for switching back to saturated fat. It's an argument in favour of not eating unhealthy food in the first place.

But that's not how you sell books, is it?

[1] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20351774/

Re: The Questionable Link Between Saturated Fat and Heart Disease

#8

Post by jacques_chester » Sat, May 03, 2014, 10:38 PM UTC

ams6110 wrote: post #6

Wait a minute... I thought the notion that saturated fat caused heart disease was settled science. That we had a consensus. Now we realize we're wrong? That scientists cherry-picked data, had inadequate controls? That "too much institutional energy and research money had already been spent ... A bias in its favor had grown so strong that the idea just started to seem like common sense." The tragedy is that after gene…

> Now we realize we're wrong?

Nope. "We" have realised that there's money to be made in selling contrarian diet books that tell people what they want to hear.

Re: The Questionable Link Between Saturated Fat and Heart Disease

#9

Post by IvyMike » Sat, May 03, 2014, 10:46 PM UTC

In Greg Egan's story Crystal Nights, one of the characters became rich by making a site called "FoodExcuses.com", where you input what you eat and it gathers all of the scientific literature justifying it as a healthy diet.

It's just a throwaway joke in the story but I'm convinced it would absolutely work in real life.

http://ttapress.com/553/crystal-nights-by-greg-egan/

Re: The Questionable Link Between Saturated Fat and Heart Disease

#10

Post by skylan_q » Sat, May 03, 2014, 10:52 PM UTC

ams6110 wrote: post #6

Wait a minute... I thought the notion that saturated fat caused heart disease was settled science. That we had a consensus. Now we realize we're wrong? That scientists cherry-picked data, had inadequate controls? That "too much institutional energy and research money had already been spent ... A bias in its favor had grown so strong that the idea just started to seem like common sense." The tragedy is that after gene…

Obviously it's saturated fats. Actually, cholesterol. Make that LDL cholesterol. For clarification, LDL pattern B cholesterol. (Or was that just a marker for damage? I forget.)

The attitude of "settled science" is what kills science.