Eating right fats (polyunsaturated) could save a million lives
According to a research carried out by the American Heart Association, replacing refined carbohydrates and saturated fats with vegetable oils could save 1 million lives per year.
New research and analysis, carried out on a global scale, and published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, shows how changes in diet are necessary throughout the world if lives are to be saved.
The team led by Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian investigated diet and food availability information from 186 countries. They also reanalyzed and collated previous longitudinal studies looking at how specific fats impact heart disease.
For the first time, the global burden of heart disease was measured in relation to the consumption of too many saturated fats compared with too little polyunsaturated fats.
Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian say, ‘Worldwide, policymakers are focused on reducing saturated fats. Yet, we found there would be a much bigger impact on heart disease deaths if the priority was to increase the consumption of polyunsaturated fats as a replacement for saturated fats and refined carbohydrates, as well as to reduce trans fats.’
The benefits of polyunsaturated fats:
Not all fats are bad; yet none should be eaten to excess, but the physiological profiles of saturated, polyunsaturated and trans fats are different and need to be treated in different ways.
Fats are essential for the body to function. Fats are not only used as an energy source for cellular and physical activity but they also influence the inflammatory response, mood and are vital for intercellular communication.
Polyunsaturated fats are predominantly found in plant-based foods and oils, and consuming these can actually improve cholesterol levels in the blood, decreasing the risk of heart disease and stroke. Polyunsaturated fats can lower the risk of type-2 diabetes, according to some studies.
Polyunsaturated fats can be found in soybean, sunflower oil, tofu, nuts, seeds and fatty fish (for instance, omega-6 oils).
In relation to the global trends in heart disease caused by diet, Dr. Mozaffarian said:
‘People think of trans fats as being only a rich country problem due to packaged and fast-food products. But, in middle- and low-income nations such as India and in the Middle East, there is wide use of inexpensive, partially hydrogenated cooking fats in the home and by street vendors. Because of strong policies, trans fat-related deaths are going down in Western nations (although still remaining important in the United States and Canada), but in many low- and middle-income countries, trans fat-related deaths appear to be going up, making this a global problem.’
Eating the right amount and type of fats (the polyunsaturated types) could save a million lives…and yours too.
