Functional Medicine meeting summary 9-29-2015

We had a fun meeting last night, discussing whether dietary cholesterol and saturated fats contribute to heart disease.  We were all generally in agreement that the current research supports the concept that while saturated fat is not as evil as once believed, it would be better not to have too much animal fat in the diet and it is best replaced with healthier fats, like nuts, avocados, and olive oil. On the other hand, a few eggs per week and some grass fed butter can be part of a healthy diet, if consumed in moderation.  Recent studies point to the fact that when subjects are instructed to reduce saturated fats in their diets, they tend to substitute carbs, and often refined carbs. They end up no better or even worse off. But if they replace the saturated fats with polyunsaturated oil, monounsaturated oil, and omega 3 fats, they reduce their risk for cardiovascular disease. It was nice to have Dr. Howard Elkin, an integrative cardiologist, to provide us with his informed insights. Interestingly, we never got to discuss coconut and palm oil, the two vegetable sources of saturated fat. That can be a topic for a future discussion.