The Health Benefits of Unsaturated Fats
It has long been known that saturated fats are a silent killer. They cause so many cardiovascular risk factors that could be greatly reduced if we would even to some moderate degree substitute monounsaturated or polyunsaturated fats for saturated fats in our diet. While it was known that unsaturated fats were not as unhealthy for us as saturated fats, it hasn’t been until quite recently that scientists found that unsaturated fats are actually good for us!
A recent study that was published in the British Medical Journal noted that an increase in polyunsaturated fats decreased the risk for Coronary Heart Disease (CHD). And other researchers have gone even farther adding that even if saturated fats are not decreased, increasing polyunsaturated fats will work to reduce cholesterol in the blood which in turn reduces the risk for CHD. However, the team of scientists that included a doctor from the Department of Nutrition at Harvard School of Public Health, said in their report that substituting polyunsaturated fats for saturated fats was still the key to reducing the risk.
The end result is that by substituting saturated fats with monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats and lowering intake of trans fats will greatly improve cardiovascular health and promote a healthier, longer lifespan. There is still a lot of research and clinical analysis necessary to determine whether or not the simple addition of unsaturated fats is sufficient to reduce the risk of CHD. But, regarding the substitution issue, the verdict is in and unsaturated fats need to be added to the diet. Plain and simple.
