#30:March 2007

Let’s Celebrate Fat

By Jeffery Battersby ⋅ March 3, 2007 ⋅  Email this post ⋅  Print this post ⋅ Post a comment

by Andrea Ramirez

Valentine’s Day: the only big snow day we’ve had so far this year. It was great. Schools and businesses were closed, and everything slowed down. I’m all about enjoying the snow magic and play whenever possible, so I did. Coming back home I felt exhausted, but in a good way — the kind of exhaustion that’s very relaxing, and there were only two things I could think of: a hot bath and a cup of hot chocolate made with heavy cream. I knew I had burnt extra calories because I was famished, and I knew well that a good dose of saturated fat would help me regain balance in such circumstances.

I didn’t always know this. I — like most of us — was once scared of fats, especially saturated fats. Like millions of families, mine was a victim of the aggressive, misinforming advertising campaign that the big vegetable oil companies implemented back in the day to sell us their oils, which according to them were safer and healthier for us than the traditional fats we used.

All kind of studies aiming to convince the public about the evils of saturated fats were published. In very little time, they became guilty of every known heart malfunction and even worse, they made us fat. Cholesterol became one of the most famous words in the history of mankind. Nobody could explain what it was for sure, but everybody knew we had to exterminate this deadly enemy. Vegetable oils were our savior from the horrific fats that we had been using since food existed.

A piece of trivia? Some 50 years ago, paints and varnishes were made of vegetable oils like soy and safflower, but then chemists learned how to make them from petroleum, which was much cheaper. Seeds to make oil became hard to sell. Around the same time, farmers who were experimenting with ways to get animals fatter more quickly and with less food discovered that corn and soybeans, and their oils served the purpose well without causing apparent toxicity. Crops that had once been grown for the paint industry now were used to feed animals. Later, the very same oils that helped animals gain weight so efficiently ended up in the aisles of supermarkets. Advertisers working for the oil industry found a new focus — cholesterol — to divert public attention from the fact that these oils were indeed fattening and toxic.

I can almost remember the day my mom decided to buy margarine instead of butter. Oh my, I wish she had known better…

The list of commercial oils that can be extracted only by modern means and used only after being bleached and deodorized is headed by soybean and corn — by the way, these two account for the majority of crop production in America, which brings a whole other set of problems beyond the reach of this article including monocropping, GMO, and allergies — followed closely by canola, safflower, sunflower and cottonseed oils.

Pretty much all processed foods use one or more commonly, a combination of two or more of these oils — when was the last time you saw extra virgin olive oil in a list of ingredients? A lot of technology has been invested to make these oils cheap.

The Good Guys

Many experts think that olive, coconut, and palm oils are the only vegetable oils safe for human consumption. Using flax seeds, walnuts and their oils — in small quantities — might be beneficial because of their high content of omega 3 fatty acids, however this can also be their worst asset; omega-3s are easy preys of rancidity.

When it comes to animal fats, we can determine the quality only after looking at the animal’s diet. Just like us, they are what they eat. Let me explain…

Ultimately, every living entity in earth gets its energy from the sun. Plants make this conversion directly; a process known as photosynthesis. We can’t — although a few people have declared to be able to do so. But we can get our living fuel by eating plants or animals who have eaten plants, which is why we should eat lots of leafy green vegetables, as they have concentrated amounts of energy. However, there are green matters — like grass — that we can’t digest, but make the favorite foods of animals that we eat.

Animals get fat on highly nutritious foods that we can’t, or prefer not to eat. Cows, chickens, pigs and fish in their natural diets are energy power houses, and their fats — butter, cream, lard, tallow, suet, fish oil — are resources of important nutrients. But once we force our animals to eat foods that they are not meant to eat — soybeans, corn, and God knows what else — the qualities of their fats changes. The proportion of omega-3s to omega-6s gets inverted, the amount of saturate fat increases, many nutrients are lost. This explains the increase of health problems attributed to the consumption of animal fats in relationship to the increase of factory farming that we’ve witnessed since the nineteen forties.

Desmitifying saturated fats: butter and coconut oil

In many traditional cultures, butter has been a sacred food for centuries. A great deal of care is invested into making beautiful butter from the milk of cows, goats, bisons, or yaks who have gotten fat by eating grass.

The list of health benefits of butter is rather long and not to be overlooked. Butter is a perfect catalyst of nutrients. Because it contains all the fat-soluble vitamins — A, D, E and K — it bonds with other foods and helps the body absorb their nutrients more effectively. This is why, traditionally, vegetables are served with butter.

Butter also contains trace minerals, butyric acid — a potent anticarcinogen — and lauric acid, known for its antimicrobial and antifungal properties.

In ayurvedic medicine, ghee — butter that has been cleared of any traces of lactose and protein — is used as a powerful detoxifying aid. Although lactose intolerant individuals usually have no problems digesting good quality butter, ghee is a great alternative for people who are highly intolerant.

Finally, butter has a lot of the good cholesterol, which is essential to maintain intestinal health and for the development of the brain and nervous system, which is why children benefit immensely from generous amounts of butter in their diets.

If you can find it, raw butter made from milk of free range, grass fed cows is the ideal, followed by organic, pasteurized butter. If you shop at the supermarket, it is good to know that butter imported from Europe is usually better than our own because cows have more access to grass and the milk is free of hormones.

Coconut oil has been used as cooking oil for thousands of years. The most stable vegetable oil, it has a very long shelf life, and it can be exposed to high temperatures without getting rancid.

Coconut oil is a great immunity enhancer. It is the richest source of lauric acid — aside from mother’s milk — known to humans. It contains vitamin E, antioxidants, and valuable enzymes. It is also praised for its weight loss properties because it stimulates the thyroid gland and metabolism in general.

I love using coconut oil because it is extremely versatile. It has a great flavor and is equally good for cooking, baking, or blending it raw in a smoothie. I also like to put it in my hot chocolate — when heavy cream seems to be too much. I just mix cocoa with hot water and add a tablespoon of coconut oil. Easy, yummy and healthy.

When shopping for coconut oil, look for the words raw, virgin, or unrefined in the label.

In conclusion, butter and coconut oil have similar properties, health benefits, and uses. Some people do better with one or the other, some others like both. Whatever your case is, make sure you supplement your diet with some, very important saturated fat.

Sautéed Apples or Pears

This has to be the simplest to make dessert ever. It is delicious and a great snack for hungry children.

Peel and cut in chunks 6 or more apples, pears or a combination. Sauté with plenty of butter until warm and soft. You can add a touch of maple syrup, a dash of cinnamon powder, or a bit of vanilla extract. Serve topped with whipped cream or greek yogurt.

Sautéed fruit also make a great topping for breakfast pancakes and waffles.

Curried Greens with Potatoes

I use coconut oil in any recipes that call for curry. The aroma and sweetness of the oil complements the curry very nicely (this is not my idea, all Southeast Asia thinks that way).

1. Wash and drain 1 pound — or more — of kale, collards, or beet greens or a combination.

2. Remove the stems (you can save them for a vegetable stock). Cut the greens, or better, tear them with your hands.

3. In a skillet, melt 2 or more tablespoons of coconut oil and sauté 3 or 4 chopped tomatoes, 2 or 3 minced garlic cloves, 2 or more tablespoons of curry powder (depending how spicy you enjoy your food), and 1 tablespoon of sucanat — real brown sugar — or maple syrup. You can add a bit of tomato paste for “sauciness.”

4. Add 2 big cubed potatoes — you don’t need to peel them, but you can — and cover with 1 1/2 to 2 cups of water. Mix and bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 10 min or until the potatoes are almost soft.

5. Add greens, mix, and let cook for no more than 10 more min.

6. Correct the seasoning, you can add a touch of coconut milk if you really enjoy the coconut flavor.

7. Toss 3 or 4 sprigs of fresh cilantro, enjoy the aroma and serve over brown rice — which by the way, you can make with coconut oil too!

Andrea Ramirez is a Holistic Health Counselor certified by the American Association of Drugless Practitioners. She has a private practice and gives frequent lectures around the Hudson Valley. She specializes in helping individuals and families understand their diet-health-lifestyle relationship to finally create the life they love. Andrea can be reached at andrea@soulterraholistic.com.
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