Category Archives: fats and oil

Small Batch Cookie

by Mirafats and oil, gluten free, recipes, vegetarian

Every now and then the urge for a cookie hits me. I don't buy them because most of them are loaded with ingredients that I don't need or want in my pantry. But baking a batch of cookies is overwhelming because most of them make at least two dozen and having that many cookies in the house is too much of a temptation.

At the library I saw the book Small Batch Baking. It looked really interesting so I checked it out and realized that this is a great way to satisfy that sugar urge without overdoing it. Most of the recipes make just enough for dessert. No more dozens of cookies or huge cakes waiting in ambush in the kitchen. This is a wonderful option when that sugar urge hits without having to have all those leftovers.

The other day I was in the mood for a cookie; I changed a few of the ingredients to make a vegan, gluten-free small batch of chocolate chip cookies based on the recipe from Small Batch Baking. I reduced the sugar because I didn't want anything too sweet, just a hint of sugar to satisfy that craving.

The recipe needs a little refinement as the cookies ran more than I liked so they were flatter/thinner than I wanted. I prefer a chocolate chip cookie that is a little thicker and gooier and these were more crispy. Feel free to try it and see what you think.

Small Batch VGF Chocolate Chippers

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Ingredients

2 T. plus 2 t. coconut oil (this is probably what made them spread so much)
3 T. evaporated cane juice crystals
2 T. ground flax seed
2 T. water
1/4 t. vanilla
1/4 C. plus 2 T. GF flour
1/4 t. baking soda
Generous pinch sea salt
1/4 C. dark chocolate chips

Instructions

preheat oven to 375 F
cream coconut oil and sucanat together
mix flax seed, water and vanilla together
add to coconut oil and sucanat
mix together dry ingredients and add to wet mixture
add chocolate chips and blend well
drop by tablespoonful onto greased cookie sheet
makes 6 cookies

Three Top Tips For Clean Eating

by Mirabreakfast, change, fats and oil, gluten free, gmo, habits, health, ingredients

What is clean eating?

There’s a lot of media exposure and talk about “clean eating” but what is it exactly? The widely accepted definition is that clean eating means avoiding highly processed foods, refined sugars, and eating a diet rich in whole foods in their most natural state. For fruits and vegetables that means buying organic for The Dirty Dozen. When it comes to animal products, it means buying free-range or pastured with no antibiotics, pesticides, or added hormones.

For some people a clean eating diet also means no gluten. The challenge with going gluten-free (whether on a clean eating diet or not) is that you need to avoid the gluten-free crutch foods that are scattered all over the grocery store shelves. These highly processed gluten alternatives are not a healthy choice.

1. Start with breakfast

Many people often skip breakfast, possibly because they’re running late or they’re too busy to stop and have a meal. But breakfast is how you fuel your body for the day ahead. If you are going to have breakfast, don’t just choose simple carbohydrates or a fast food option. You want a real food breakfast that will provide healthy fats, protein, and complex carbohydrates.

2. Simple Swaps

Hummus is a great alternative to mayonnaise. But instead of being mostly fat, it’s mostly protein. And it has a similar consistency to mayo making it perfect for wraps, dressings, and spreads. If you’re buying it in the store be sure to read the label in order to make sure you are getting the cleanest possible option. Or make it really clean by simply making your own at home.
If you’re looking for yogurt it’s easy to be distracted by the fruit-flavored varieties on the dairy case shelves. But the prepared fruit yogurts tend to come with excessively high levels of sugar and may also have other artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives, none of which you want on a clean eating plan. Instead choose plain, whole milk yogurt, either regular or Greek-style and add your own sweeteners and flavoring. Options could include fruit, honey, chopped nuts, or delicious spices like cinnamon.
Our modern diet has led us to feel that we have to have rice or potatoes or pasta with a meal. We’ve been taught that you “need” a starch. If you feel you still want that to make your meal complete, choose more complex carbohydrates like riced cauliflower, sweet potatoes, or simply double up on your veggies. Cauliflower can also be used as a substitute for mashed potatoes without too much extra effort.
Salad and dressing seem to naturally go together. Unfortunately, if you take the time to read the label on the back of the bottle it’s not good news. Filled with loads of preservatives and artificial ingredients, these are definitely not part of the clean eating ideal. Instead make your own vinaigrette by combining 1/2 cup olive oil, 3 tablespoons vinegar or lemon juice, salt, pepper, and the herbs or seasonings of your choice.

3. Don’t Do This

Just as important as all the things listed above that you want to do, there are few things that you need to keep in mind to not do:

An easy way to clean up your diet is to skip those foods that are most highly processed and offer the least nutrition. That includes white rice, pasta, cookies, crackers, and chips. Choose nutrient-dense foods that will actually support your health like raw nuts, veggies, and quality proteins.
Juices, juice drinks, and soft drinks are empty calories. Truthfully they’re nothing more than liquid candy bars. They provide little to no nutritional value and should be avoided. Eat those fruits instead of juicing them so you can enjoy the fiber which helps to slow down how quickly the sugars hit your bloodstream. If you’re thirsty choose water, herbal teas, or home-made green juices instead.
We’ve been misled to believe that artificial fats like margarine are good for us. We’ve also been guided towards vegetable fats like canola or corn oil. What you really want is healthy fats like butter, ghee, or beneficial oils like avocado, olive, and coconut. These are nourishing, satiating, and supportive.

As you start your clean eating journey it can be helpful to use a food journal so that you can see the progress that you're making. It's also important to remember that it's not easy to make all of these changes at once. Baby steps are the key to success here. Start with one thing, like eating breakfast or making a healthy swap. Master that and then move on to the next thing. Before you know it you'll be well versed in what those clean eating choices are and you'll be focused on your health goals.

Clean eating is a good step towards a healthy life. In fact, it's one of the #IngredientsForAHealthyLife. If you're looking to do even more and learn how to really understand what's in your food, be sure to read The Pantry Principle.

Why I’m Still Eating Coconut Oil

by Mirafats and oil, health

Update: A new article claiming that coconut oil is “pure poison” has hit the newsfeed. And the media is going into a frenzy, it is bad for you, is it good for you? This whole ping-pong effect has consumers feeling overwhelmed, confused, and worried about their health. I'm going to once again state my position. Coconut oil is not a harmful fat. There are too many studies out there showing the benefits of consuming medium chain triglyceride fatty acids (see the reference section below).

An article in USA Today on coconut oil has created a flurry of concern when it comes to what to eat. A supposedly new report from the American Heart Association (AHA) shows that coconut oil isn't good for you, was never good for you, and you should stop eating it immediately. This has gotten picked up by several different media sources (because they love soundbytes — little news headlines that generate interest but don't provide in-depth information). The AHA recommendation states, “Because coconut oil increases LDL cholesterol, a cause of CVD [cardiovascular disease], and has no known offsetting favorable effects, we advise against the use of coconut oil.”

Given the increased number of people who are consuming coconut oil this has caused a lot of confusion. It also generated a lot of people reaching out to me wanting to know what to do. I spent a lot of time during the first two days after this article came out answering emails and responding to social media posts. Here is my rebuttal of the article(s). Let's start with the short answer: Coconut oil is healthy for you, I will continue to eat it, and I continue to suggest it as a healthy fat. Now, as they say, for the rest of the story.

Switching fats

I find it somewhat odd that this “news” comes out in the same timeframe as another article reporting on an advisory from the American Heart Association, Why you should switch from butter to margarine: Simple change could be as good as statins for your heart. Margarine is a trans-fat, it's hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated to make it solid at room temperature. Trans-fats are harmful for cardiovascular health and were removed from the FDA's Generally Recognized As Safe list back in 2013. With regard to consumption of trans-fats the AHA clearly states, “The American Heart Association recommends cutting back on foods containing partially hydrogenated vegetable oils to reduce trans fat in your diet.” So I find it very curious that they appear to be once again encouraging margarine consumption while dissing a source of healthy fat.

What is coconut oil?

Before we pick apart the headlines let's start by identifying what coconut oil is. It's made from the white, fleshy part of the coconut, sometimes referred to as the meat. The best quality is made from fresh coconut (as opposed to dried) which is expeller pressed. Cold pressed (instead of heat pressed) is even better because it retains more of the nutrients. Coconut oil contains caprylic acid, capric acid, and lauric acid. These medium chain fatty acids provide a number of benefits including:

antibiotic, antimicrobial and antifungal
highly effective against candida
highly digestible and supportive for ulcers and ulcerative colitis
not easily stored as fat
supportive for brain health
beneficial for skin issues such as dandruff, dermatitis, eczema, and psoriasis (taken internally and externally)
prevents bone loss
helpful for weight loss
beneficial for cardiovascular health

Due to its saturated nature, coconut oil changes from liquid to solid depending on ambient temperature. There is a form of coconut oil on the market referred to as MCT, short for Medium Chain Triglycerides, which is liquid all the time. This does not have the same profile as ‘regular' coconut oil. MCT oil is more concentrated and has different proportions for the different medium chain fatty acids.

The science

Here's why these scare-tactic articles about coconut oil fall short for me. They are not based on new studies. In fact, all the new data coming out shows the health benefits of coconut oil. If you read the recent negative articles carefully you can see that the advisory they quote is based on a review of previous data. They've decided, however, to rename it and call it an American Heart Association Presidential Advisory. It doesn't matter what they call it, it's still not new information. Not only is this old information, it's information that has been debunked. Here's the cliff notes version of what you need to know:

Saturated fat – Dr. Ancel Keys is the man at the center of the whole heart disease/saturated fat issue. He essentially cherry-picked the data to fit his theory that consumption of saturated fats increased cardiovascular disease. (In case you didn't know, cherry picking your data is a bad thing for a researcher.) However, his legacy lives on with scary articles about how bad saturated fat is for us. This continues despite newer studies showing that saturated fat is not as harmful as we have been led to believe.
Hydrogenation – Many of the studies that were done examining the effect of saturated fats on cholesterol levels used hydrogenated coconut oil. That is, they added hydrogen to make it always solid, in effect turning coconut oil into a trans-fat. The cold-pressed, extra virgin, organic coconut oil that you should be buying and consuming has no trans-fats. These studies do not apply and yet they are repeatedly trotted out and cited as a reason to avoid consuming coconut oil
Cholesterol – The articles claim that coconut oil increases cholesterol, especially LDL. However, we can't focus just on one factor, LDL, as a risk for cardiovascular disease. In fact, studies have found cholesterol ratios and HDL levels improved by consuming coconut oil. What's more important is the size of your lipoprotein particles. Lots of small dense particles are more harmful than a number of fewer, larger particles. To get to the true value of heart health you need to look deeper than just LDL. You need to consider the ratio of HDL to LDL, your triglycerides, and your LPP (lipoprotein particle) values.
Inflammatory – Coconut oil is not an inflammatory food. In fact, it has been found to be the opposite. While some saturated fats are inflammatory, coconut oil does not fall into this category. Side note: According to the National Cancer Institute the largest source of saturated fat in the American diet is cheese and pizza.
Fats – Fats are healthy, and a wonderful source of energy. That's so important I'm going to say it again. Fats are healthy! We need fat. Your brain is made up of 70% fat, your vital organs are surrounded by a protective layer of fat, your hormones are made from fat, and without fat you cannot absorb and utilize the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K. It's also important to note that fat slows down how fast your body breaks down and absorbs sugar.
Heart disease – Low fat was NEVER the answer to heart disease. In fact, we now know that the opposite is true. The more we shifted to low fat the more heart disease increased. Leading to more people on statin drugs with diabetes and obesity. Replacing fat with chemicals and carbohydrates is exactly the wrong answer to being healthy. And the available studies continue to support this fact.

About health and coconut oil

Can you eat too much coconut oil? Yes, you can. Even good-for-you foods can be unhealthy when consumed to excess. How much is too much? Unfortunately, the answer is “that depends.” On what? On you and your bio-individual body. Issues may include whether or not you have food sensitivity issues to coconut or if you have health issues that impair your ability to break down fat, any fat, including the healthy ones. These and more may contribute to health issues.

Coconut oil is not the villain that it's being portrayed to be. And I'm not the only one who feels this way. Consider this quote by Dr. Mark Hyman,“First, there is not a single study showing that coconut oil causes heart disease. Not one. Second, the whole case against coconut oil is founded on a hypothesis that has been proven wrong”.

The fats that you want to avoid are the refined vegetable oils such as corn, canola, or soybean oils. Leaving aside the fact that these are genetically modified, they are also highly refined in a process that uses bleach, deodorizers, de-waxing chemicals, and solvents. Not something you want to eat for health.

So yes, you can, eat coconut oil. I will continue to eat coconut oil as part of a healthy diet. It's important to note, however, that when eating coconut oil you want to choose cold-pressed, expeller-pressed, organic, extra virgin for optimal benefit. Coconut oil can be used for cooking or baking, it's great in smoothies (melt it first for proper blending), and it gives a wonderful boost when you add a little to a cup of tea or coffee.

Remember that eating well to be well includes a balanced, varied, whole food/real food nutritional plan. General guidelines suggest that 30% of your daily diet should come from healthy fats. These include avocados, butter and ghee, coconut oil, olive oil, and nuts and seeds (preferably raw and soaked). In general, it appears that most folks can reasonably consume between 1-4 tablespoons of coconut oil per day.

References:

Arunima, S., and Rajamohan, T. Effect of virgin coconut oil enriched diet on the antioxidant status and paraoxonase 1 activity in ameliorating the oxidative stress in rats — a comparative study. Food Funct. 2013 Sep;4(9):1402-9. doi: 10.1039/c3fo60085h.

Cardoso, D.A., et al. A coconut extra virgin oil-rich diet increases HDL cholesterol and decreases waist circumference and body mass in coronary artery disease patients. Nutr Hosp. 2015;32(5):2144-2152 ISSN 0212-1611 • CODEN NUHOEQ S.V.R. 318. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Glorimar_Rosa/publication/283576816_A_coconut_extra_virgin_oil_rich_diet_increases_HDL_cholesterol_and_decreases_waist_circumference_and_body_mass_in_coronary_artery_disease_patients/links/56434e3408aef646e6c69a5b.pdf

Deol P., et al. Soybean oil is more obesogenic and diabetogenic than coconut oil and fructose in Mouse: Potential Role for the Liver. PLoS One. 2015 Jul 22;10(7):e0132672. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0132672. eCollection 2015.

DiNicolantonio JJ. The cardiometabolic consequences of replacing saturated fats with carbohydrates or Ω-6 polyunsaturated fats: Do the dietary guidelines have it wrong? Open Heart 2014;1:e000032. doi: 10.1136/openhrt-2013-000032. http://openheart.bmj.com/content/1/1/e000032.full

Eyres, L, et al. Coconut oil consumption and cardiovascular risk factors in humans. Nutr Rev (2016) 74 (4): 267-280. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/nutrit/nuw002. Published: 05 March 2016. https://academic.oup.com/nutritionreviews/article/74/4/267/1807413/Coconut-oil-consumption-and-cardiovascular-risk

Gavin, James E. Optimizing Diagnosis and management in mild-to-moderate Alzheimer's Disease. Neurodegener Dis Manag. 2012 Jun; 2(3): 291–304. doi: 10.2217/nmt.12.21. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3437664/

Hayatullina Z. et al., Virgin coconut oil supplementation prevents bone loss in osteoporosis rat model. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2012;2012:237236. Epub 2012 Sep 16. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23024690

Lei, T., et al. Medium-Chain Fatty Acids Attenuate Agonist-Stimulated Lipolysis, Mimicking the Effects of Starvation. Obesity. Volume 12, Issue 4 April 2004. Pages 599–611. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1038/oby.2004.69/full

Selverajah, M., et al. Anti-ulcerogenic activity of virgin coconut oil contribute to the stomach health of humankind. TANG Vol.6 No.2, 2016.5, 12-18 (7 pages) http://www.dbpia.co.kr/Journal/ArticleDetail/NODE06688140

Siri-Tarino, PW, et al. Meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies evaluating the association of saturated fat with cardiovascular disease. March 2010 vol. 91 no. 3 535-546. doi: 10.3945/ ajcn.2009.27725. http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/91/3/535

Vysakh, A. et al. Polyphenolics isolated from virgin coconut oil inhibits adjuvant induced arthritis in rats through antioxidanta and anti-inflammatory action. Int Immunopharmacol. 2014 May;20(1):124-30. doi: 10.1016/j.intimp.2014.02.026. Epub 2014 Mar 6.

Top 10 Ingredients To Avoid

by Miraadditives, artificial colors, fats and oil, gmo, ingredients, labeling, sweeteners

I'm often asked which ingredients we should avoid in our food. There really isn't a simple answer for that. I could say all of the fake ones, but that leaves you to decide which ones are fake. And truthfully some of them aren't "fake", meaning they're not entirely from chemicals. They're just highly modified. Either because they've been through some sort of a chemical process to invert, alter, or manipulate their chemical structure to change them significantly from their original form.

An overview of Splenda (TM)

A perfect example of manipulation is Splenda. It started out as sugar (which some could argue is highly processed, stripped of all minerals and therefore not a great choice to begin with). In processing it becomes modified by the addition of sucralose which is made by replacing three hydrogen-oxygen atoms and inserting three chlorine atoms in their place. Because it contains less than 5 calories per serving it's labeled as having no calories. (A single packet, weighing 1 gram, actually provides 3.36 calories -- a miniscule amount, however this is still misleading labeling).

Unfortunately Splenda (TM) is far from the harmless non-nutritive sweetener that it's advertised to be. It has been shown to alter intestinal pH and reduces intestinal microflora. We need a balanced pH for good health. We also require beneficial levels of bacteria to help support good digestive health.

According to one report published in the Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, Part B, there seems to be some evidence that Splenda (TM) may not be as biologically inert as advertised. It also appears that exposure to high temperatures can cause it to break down into a toxic substance.

Ingredient Overview

While I frequently write about what ingredients are, where they appear, and other information you need to be aware of in the newsletter, I also recognize that it's helpful to have a "cheat sheet" of sorts to give you an overview and help you break it down a little bit further. So I've created the infographic below. These are my top ten "baddies" and the ones that you really want to watch out for. Print it out, write it down, whatever you need to do to be able to bring this information with you to the grocery store.

Note: click on each card to zoom in.

If you're looking for more in-depth information about ingredients your best resource is The Pantry Principle: how to read the label and understand what's really in your food.

For regular, weekly updates on what's going on in the world of food manufacturing and processing be sure to check out my newsletter, Food News You Can Use.

The Truth About Olive Oil

by Mirafats and oil, food fraud, healthoil, olive, olive oil

Olive oil has been studied for many decades, and we have come to understand its many health benefits. Let’s check out a few of these benefits.

Benefits

Anti-inflammatory Properties – Olive oil contains phenolic compounds which help your body fight inflammation. Virgin olive oil has been credited with being one of the healthy attributes of the Mediterranean diet because of these anti-inflammatory components. Chronic inflammation is thought to be a leading driver of many diseases.

Cardiovascular Health – The above-mentioned inflammation can affect your heart health. Extra-virgin olive oil has many benefits for your heart. It can lower your blood pressure, protect “bad” LDL cholesterol particles from oxidation, and can improve the function of your blood vessels.

Stroke Prevention – There have been many large studies that have shown that people who regularly consume olive oil have a lower risk of stroke.

Type 2 Diabetes – In both observational and clinical trials, it has been suggested that olive oil, combined with the Mediterranean Diet, can reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes.

Cancer – In recent research, olive oil has been shown that it may be helpful in preventing certain cancers such as breast and digestive tract cancers.

Rheumatoid Arthritis – Olive oil has been shown to reduce joint pain and swelling caused by this type of arthritis.

Gut microbiota have been shown to be positively impacted by the antioxidant activity which in turn helps in the prevention of the above conditions through the consumption of olive oil.

With all these awesome health benefits you can see why there is such a large market for olive oil! Unfortunately, there are challenges with the quality and quantity of available olive oil.

Olive Oil Issues

A class-action suit was previously filed regarding the purity of olive oil; you can read about it here. I wrote briefly about this issue in my book The Pantry Principle.

It turns out that worldwide more olive oil is sold than is grown (we'll get back to that in just a moment). How does this happen you ask? Sadly, it's because producers or bottlers dilute or adulterate the olive oil with other oils. That's food fraud.

In the name of science, there was a study done by the University of California, Davis investigating how many brands failed to pass mass spectrometry tests for being pure olive oil. There were quite a number of popular brands whose products failed the test. These included: Filippo Berio, Bertolli, Colavita, and Pompein among others. While the testing only looked at oils sold in California, it is reasonable to assume that national and international brands were equally affected.

Another issue that can come up with regard to olive oil is that many of those marked extra-virgin (which means the very first pressing) may not be. Selling an oil as higher quality, or possibly even selling organic, when it's not is also a form of food fraud.

Making Un-Olive Olive Oil

Unfortunately, there's no other explanation for this type of deception than cost. Olive oil is expensive. Diluting it with cheap, highly refined oils generates more profit. Similarly, the use of poor-quality olives (either over-ripe or damaged in some way) and mislabeling it as a higher quality is also simply for profit. There would be no other reason to lie on the label.

This highlights the fact that when it comes to olive oil it's very important to know your source. While the label appears to be your only indicator, as we see here, it can be misleading or completely wrong. It will be interesting to see how this situation plays out in the courts.

Know Your Fats

Although you need to investigate which olive oils you are using, there are other fats that are also a healthy choice. Here are the ones that I recommend:

Olive oil – Kirkland brand organic, extra virgin, cold-pressed – they were one of only 5 determined to be pure by the UC, Davis study. There are other specialty olive oils that I like as a treat, but for everyday use, this is the one I use.
Coconut oil – Nutiva brand organic cold-pressed – I am a big fan of Nutiva organic. It's important to know that while coconut oil is a saturated fat it is a healthy saturated fat. As a saturated fat, it will be solid in cold temperatures and liquid in warm ones. This is normal and perfectly fine. There is no need to throw it out because “it melted.”
Ghee – While you can buy it, I usually make my own. If you're going to do this, you'll need to buy butter that is either organic or from free-range cows. It's important to make sure that the milk is from cows not treated with artificial hormones, antibiotics, fed pesticides or GMOs, and grass-fed is best.
Tallow, suet, and lard – Contrary to popular belief, these animal fats are healthy options and can be a good choice for the diet. Sourcing is very important. You'll want to make sure the animals are raised without hormones, antibiotics, or genetically modified, pesticide-laden feed.

I recently interviewed Tony Kasandrinos who is founder and CEO of Kasandrinos. They produce an incredible olive oil from Greece. What makes it so special? Tony shared the family’s dedication to quality and organic sustainable practices which produces a better-quality olive oil.

Their olive oil has a high polyphenol content which is what gives olive oil its marvelous health benefits. He also shared how most olive oils on your supermarket shelves are 2 to 3 years old.

What can degrade an olive oil beside time? Light and air. Tony shared that if you are purchasing olive oil from a supermarket make sure it is in a tinted glass bottle and grab from the back of the shelf as those bottles will have been exposed to less light.

[expand title="Sources"]

Nocella, C.; Cammisotto, V.; Fianchini, L.; D'Amico, A.; Novo, M.; Castellani, V.; Stefanini, L.; Violi, F.; and Carnevale, R. Endocrine, Metabolic & Immune Disorders-Drug Targets (Formerly Current Drug Targets - Immune, Endocrine & Metabolic Disorders), Volume 18, Number 1, 2018, pp. 4-13(10). Bentham Science Publishers. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.2174/1871530317666171114121533.

Martínez-González MA, Dominguez LJ, Delgado-Rodríguez M. Olive oil consumption and risk of CHD and/or stroke: a meta-analysis of case-control, cohort and intervention studies. Br J Nutr. 2014 Jul 28;112(2):248-59. doi: 10.1017/S0007114514000713. Epub 2014 Apr 28. PMID: 24775425. Retrieved from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24775425/

Buckland, G., & Gonzalez, C. (2015). The role of olive oil in disease prevention: A focus on the recent epidemiological evidence from cohort studies and dietary intervention trials. British Journal of Nutrition, 113(S2), S94-S101. doi:10.1017/S0007114514003936. Retrived from https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/british-journal-of-nutrition/article/role-of-olive-oil-in-disease-prevention-a-focus-on-the-recent-epidemiological-evidence-from-cohort-studies-and-dietary-intervention-trials/067113B01A4A7254066C542D640BC1AE

Gavahain, M., Khaneghah, A., Lorenzo, J., Munekata, P., Garcia-Mantran, I., Collado, M., Melendez-Martinez, Al, and Barba, F., Health benefits of olive oil and its components: impact on gut microbiota antioxidant activities, and prevention of noncommunicable diseases. Trends in Food Science & Technology. Vol. 88, June 2019, Pages 220-227. Retrieved from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0924224419300779

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Nordic Diet

by Miradairy, fats and oil, fruit, gluten free, gmo, grains, health, meat, probioticsdiet, meditteranean, nordic

There's a new diet trend that appears set to take the world by storm, the Nordic Diet. It appears to be a Scandinavian take on the concepts of the Mediterranean Diet.

According to a study published in The Journal of Internal Medicine, it lowered cholesterol and inflammation among study participants who followed the plan for 18 weeks. Without a doubt, there will shortly be a book, a cookbook, several websites with recipes, and a new crowd of enthusiasts. That's not necessarily a bad thing but it may not be the right thing for everyone.

The diet does allow for whole grains, primarily rye, barley, and oats, as well as low-fat dairy, fish, poultry, game meats (like moose), fruits, berries, vegetables, and canola oil. While new diet plans always garner a lot of excitement it's important to remember that there is no one size fits all diet. We are bio-individual creatures and what works for one person doesn't always work for another. If someone is gluten intolerant they need to avoid the rye and barley (and source gluten free oats) allowed in this nutritional plan. Just because it's part of the diet doesn't mean it's the right choice if your body can't handle it.

I do have a couple of thoughts about this diet and about food trends in general:

The Nordic Diet calls for canola oil.

In the United States this is not a good choice as the vast majority of it is contaminated by GMO. Some estimates of contamination and cross-contamination are so high that there are those who believe there is no unmodified canola to be found in the U.S.

The diet calls for low-fat dairy.

This is not a healthy option. Starting with the fact that dairy is one of our few food sources of vitamin D. Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin (meaning it needs to be consumed with fat in order for the body to properly utilize it). Vitamin D is also important to help the body properly make use of calcium. When it comes to the old notion that high fat diets cause obesity, recent studies have shown that the opposite is true. In measured studies, those who consumed whole-milk dairy products had reduced risk for obesity.

The diet does not, as far as I've been able to find, specifically talk about sourcing of food.

While game meat is unlikely to be adulterated with added hormones, antibiotics, and pesticides, poultry and fish need to be sustainably sourced. It's interesting to note that game meat in general may be gaining some prominence as people seek to avoid meat from animals raised in confined operations.

Vegetables and fruits still need to be sourced without pesticide residue and GMO contamination.

I imagine that there will be more of a call for root vegetables. This is a good thing as root vegetables are high vitamins, beta-carotene, and fiber. [side thought: I'm always surprised when I buy parsnips at the grocery store and the checkout clerk wants to know what the "white carrots" are.]

Expectations

With food trends in general, I expect we'll face a year ahead with more, New, BETTER (read tongue in cheek) superfoods that convey all sorts of health benefits. I'm not a huge fan of seeking those out and quite frankly we have superfoods that are local and easily accessible, there's no need to keep chasing the latest super ones.

I imagine there will still be some sort of push to get bugs onto the menu and into the grocery stores. They're cheap and easy to raise, a quick, convenient source of protein. I'm not a fan but that's a personal preference. I also don't eat things like squid or eels that doesn't mean I think they're dangerous or bad for you. With anything that we eat we have to look at how it's raised. Remember, you are what you eat includes whatever the animal you're eating ate.

I still believe there's not enough focus on fermented foods. These are in a category referred to as functional foods, they have a specific health benefit. In the case of fermented foods such as kefir, kombucha, and lacto-fermented vegetables they add beneficial probiotics to our intestinal tract, helping us to break down our food, boost our immune system and stay healthy. While I see more and more evidence of some fermented foods I believe we would all benefit from eating more of them. Ideally we'd learn how to make them at home.

I'd like to believe we'll continue to see a growing influence of tip-to-tail consumption that will encourage us to eat more fully from the whole animal. Learning to eat organ meats again, consuming more bone broths, getting away from the white-meat-only-chicken-breast diet that so many of us have become accustomed to.

Whatever nutrition plan lies ahead, let's remember that we need to eat according to the needs of our bio-individual bodies. Our dietary needs change over time. We don't eat the same in our 40's as we did when we were a toddler or an adolescent. But however we choose to eat, whatever we're eating, let's focus on clean, healthy, sustainably sourced foods rather than jumping from one popular diet plan to another.

Want to know more about food and what's in what you eat? Join The Ingredient Guru Community!

Your Food – Fortified With Fish

by Mirafats and oil, fish, ingredients, labeling

As the Food Ingredient Guru I advocate reading the food label. It's your best line of defense against all of the chemical cr@p that manufacturers insist in stuffing into your food. If you or someone in your family has a food allergy it becomes imperative that you read the label because you need to pay attention to those ingredients that may cause a serious or life threatening reaction.

In my case it's fish and seafood. For me it's not just a food intolerance (sometimes called a food sensitivity). It's an actual full-blown food allergy. I have an epi-pen. And as much as I advocate and believe in the power of fish oil for health, I can't take it myself.

While fish itself is generally easy to avoid sometimes it gets added to food under the guise of the health benefits of omega-3 fatty acids. Now we've all heard that omega-3s are good for us (they are) and that we don't get enough of them (most of us don't). Manufacturers want to capitalize on this and they add omega-3s to the food, fortifying it*, and displaying this information in big bold letters on the front of the package. But that's not the whole story.

There are three different kinds of omega-3 fatty acids. ALA (alpha-linolenic acid), EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid), and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid). ALA comes from plant sources, such as flax, olive oil, walnuts, and soy. EPA and DHA come from fish, with the best sources being cold water fatty fish like sardines and salmon.

Omega-3 fortified products can include milk, yogurt, eggs, juices, bread products, baby food, peanut butter, protein bars, protein shakes, and more. While ALA, or vegetable-sourced omega 3s, are cheaper, that doesn't always mean that that's what the manufacturers are using in their food.

Recently I was doing in a client's pantry and came across this jar of peanut butter. Looking at the label we can see that the omega-3 was is from fish (because is says DHA and EPA on the front). In the ingredient panel (sorry for the fuzzy photo) it lists anchovy and sardine oils as well as tilapia gelatin. I'm not sure why the tilapia gelatin is there except for some sort of binder, but as a source of omega-3 it's not a great one. For someone with a food allergy the difference between vegetarian and animal sources of omega-3 could potentially be huge.

It is also important to note that farm raised fish, such as tilapia, have been shown to be higher in omega-6 fatty acids. We already get too many of these in our modern diet and they're known to be more detrimental to cholesterol, LDL, HDL and triglyceride levels. This is because farm raised fish are eating corn and soy (both probably genetically modified by the way) instead of beneficial algae. When fish eat algae they can convert it into the omega-3 fatty acids we need. When they eat corn and soy they can't and so wind up with the higher omega-6 levels.

Another issue to be aware of is that when we add omega-3s to our food by fortifying it, studies appear to show that the fortified versions don't have the same beneficial effect as the original, whole food source. Additionally, the amount of omega-3s in fortified foods may not reach the levels needed to truly have a beneficial effect on your health. Once again, manufacturers are capitalizing on buzz words and media focus to add something to their food products in an attempt to convince you to buy. Unfortunately it may not provide the health benefits that you think it will.

The solution? Stay informed, read the label, and eat real food.

*Quick reminder: Fortified foods are those that have an added substance that was never in there to begin with (like omega 3s in peanut butter). Enriched foods are those that have ingredients removed during processing added back (usually chemically synthesized versions).

Are Trans Fats Shrinking Your Brain?

by Mirafats and oil, health, labeling

I hear about this scenario a lot. Not just from families, from anyone who has a hectic, modern, over-scheduled life. You're out and about, after a soccer game, running errands, running late after a meeting, and you suddenly realize that you're hungry. So you decide to stop for a quick bite to eat. More often than not it's probably fast food. While we all know fast food isn't really good for you, we sometimes for get how often we're choosing to eat it. Or we think, “Well, I'm in a hurry so it's okay this one time.” Truthfully the fast food run is more frequent than most people realize. Especially if they're not taking the time to journal what and when they eat.

Trans-fats and brain health

Aside from the poor quality meat, high levels of fat and sodium, and high-calorie intake, it looks like there's even more reason to avoid that drive-through window. A recent study run by Dr. Gene L. Bowman, an assistant professor of neurology at the Layton Aging and Alzheimer's Disease Center at the Oregon Health & Science University, found that people with high levels of trans-fats in their blood had lower cognitive performance scores as well as lower brain volume. While the study was admittedly small and homogenous (100, elderly Caucasians living in Oregon), Dr. Bowman notes that the results of the testing were so clear that this particular pattern should not be ignored. Testing looked at nutrient levels in the body, cognitive function and included MRI studies. What does this mean? In plain English, there was a positive correlation between higher levels of trans-fats and lower brain function and smaller brain size. That's a scary thought.

Although trans fats have been removed from the Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS) list they have not been banned for use in food products. Although at this point just about everyone knows that trans-fats are bad for our heart you'd think that would be enough to convince people to avoid them. Sadly, that is not the case as evidenced by how many products still contain trans fats. And with this new research it now it looks like trans fats are also bad for your brain. This provides even more reason to avoid them.

Avoiding trans fats

It's difficult to identify trans fats in fast food, and truthfully most people don't take the time to look it up on those posted-near-the-bathroom menu charts. The easiest suggestion is to assume that if it comes from a fast food restaurant and it's fried there is a high probability that it contains trans fats. It is important to note that although many fast food restaurants are proudly touting no trans-fats in their food.

For example, a large french fries from McDonald's is technically one serving (so is a small french fries by the way). That large fries contains 510 calories and 24 grams of fat. That's 37% of the daily value of fat calories for someone who eats a 2,000 calorie a day diet.

According to the McDonald's website, 220 of those calories are from fat, 3.5 grams are saturated fats, and there are 0 grams of trans fat.

This is a lie. We know this because of the ingredients list:

Potatoes, Vegetable Oil (Canola Oil, Corn Oil, Soybean Oil, Hydrogenated Soybean Oil, Natural Beef Flavor [Wheat and Milk Derivatives]*), Dextrose, Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate (Maintain Color), Salt. *Natural beef flavor contains hydrolyzed wheat and hydrolyzed milk as starting ingredients.

That hydrogenated oil is a trans fat. So how is McDonald's allowed to claim 0 trans fats in this single serving of large french fries? This is due to a Federal ruling that allows them to claim no trans fats if there is less than .05 per serving. But remember the changing serving size. A small is one, a medium is one, and a large is one. That seems like pretty bad math to me. Because it's considered one serving they can say 0 grams of trans fats, but it all adds up pretty quickly.

Trans fats at the grocery store

Fast food is not, alas, the only place that one finds trans-fats. There are plenty of items on the grocery store shelf that contains them as well. Look for the words hydrogenated, partially-hydrogenated, olestra, and mono- and di-glycerides. These indicate the presence of trans fats in that food item. These trans fats are created; they are not from natural sources. There is a small amount of trans fats naturally occurring in beef, lamb, and dairy. But in the case of hydrogenated ingredients, it comes from forcing hydrogen into liquid fats to make them solid at room temperature.

So why are trans fats bad for you? For one they raise the level of LDL or “bad” cholesterol in your system. Unfortunately, they also lower the level of HDL or “good” cholesterol. Not a good combination. And as we've learned above, avoiding them is important not only for your heart but for your brain as well.

Avoiding fast food snacking

So what should you do when you are out and about and need a snack? There are several options available:

Have a protein bar available – I almost always have a healthy protein bar in my glove box or purse for an emergency snack. Look for bars that don't have a high sugar content and provide balanced proteins and fat.
Stop at a grocery store and buy an apple and some raw nuts. It's a delicious and healthy snack. Often it costs far less than that drive-through meal. The trick is not to get side-tracked in the grocery store and start to shop for other things. Treat it like a fast food run, you can always do your grocery shopping later.
Plan ahead. If you know you are going to be out and about you can plan ahead and bring food with you. Using a handy snack container, such as a Laptop Lunchbox, you can pack a healthy snack and skip the trans-fats.

Fried At The State Fair Of Texas

by Mirafats and oil, holidays, reviews, unhealthy

Last month was the State Fair of Texas. My friend Kim, who blogs at Running Solo, ventured forth with her family to enjoy the sights, sounds, and even the smells of the Fair. She kindly reported back on the gustatory adventures they experienced:

Healthy eaters are faced with unhealthy choices every time we venture outside our homes for food. This may be why many of us prepare our own meals so often. It is simple to visit the green grocer and read labels in order to acquire the staples we use to prepare our healthy meals. Even so, problems still exist, such as pesticides and additives that we cannot pronounce. The bigger problem occurs when we eat at our favorite restaurants or go to fairs, festivals, or other public events. Unhealthy levels of fat, sodium, and sugar, not to mention calories, are injected, applied, and introduced to improve taste, to entice people to eat more, and thereby to increase revenue. Even the “healthy” choices, self-labeled by the restaurants and fast food joints and then rubber stamped by some official government agency, are rife with unsavory elements that we choose not to consume.

I do my best to select healthy foods when I eat out at restaurants. Usually I do fairly well. I am weak on occasion. However, those weaknesses result from my choice and not by a lack of choices.
My recent trip to the State Fair of Texas, conversely, was a perfect example of a lack of choices hampered by the need for convenience.

The first thing I had to overcome was the onslaught to my senses.

My food mood was enforced early, within minutes of getting out my car, with a multitude of smells, sights, and choices. The heavy, pervasive aroma in the air, a swill of overused cooking fat and cooked sugar, immediately engulfed me. For a relatively healthy eater like me, it bordered on repulsive. But, over the span of a few minutes, my nose became accustomed to the smell and, to my surprise, my stomach started to growl and grumble.

Once inside the fairgrounds, the signs on every booth conspicuously contained the one word for which this fair is renowned: fried. Everything from guacamole, Frito Pie (the recipe which won 2010 Best Tasting award), butter, margarita, okra, potatoes and all food groups in between. It was difficult for me to imagine what fried margarita might taste like, let alone how it is made.

We walked deeper into the fairgrounds. While my son scoped out the arcade games, I surveyed what people were eating. They were proudly sporting foods of convenience, and none of it was fried, but no less unhealthy. A dazzling array of fatty foods on a stick meandered past: turkey legs, corn dogs, cotton candy, sausage with globs of yellow mustard, candy apples. The turkey leg caught my eye for two reasons: not fried and low fat. But, along with every good choice comes a tradeoff. The tradeoff for low fat was high sodium. The Livestrong website states that the total fat for a smoked turkey leg is 4 grams and the protein is 11 grams. However, the sodium is a whopping 570 mg for 80 calories worth of food!

Before the turkey leg I decided to try the Fried Beer, which won the 2010 Most Creative award. So, my son and I ventured back to the front of the fairgrounds and into the food pavilion. We made several passes by the rows of tables to see what people were eating. It was lunch time; conventional food on a stick, eaten solely for convenience, had given way to sit down meals of larger proportions. And most of it was fried. And yet, much of it was not. Pizzas were in abundance, and not just for the children. Another choice that astounded me was salad, mainly the Greek salad. While I understand the choice of pizza for those non- adventurous eaters, the Greek salad option befuddled me. One of the reasons I even venture to a fair like this is to eat food I normally do not consider. Were they eating salad for that same reason or were they healthy eaters, like myself, trying to maintain their diet?

We found the only stand serving Fried Beer and got in the short line. The length of the line should have triggered some trepidation. When the dish finally came, colorfully masqueraded in a red-checkered container, it looked nothing like what I imagined. The pieces resembled miniature ravioli smothered in a gruel-like queso. They were less like pizza dough, more like pretzel dough, which made more sense considering the queso substance they floated in. The beer that squirted from the center upon being bitten was flat and lukewarm, like it had been sitting out in the sun too long on a hot day, and made a small brown stream as it wound its way through the yellow cheese. Basically this was a recipe for loss of appetite. I wish I had gone for the Fried Frito Pie. Next year I will do my research ahead of time.

We headed out of the pavilion and over to the BMX exhibition. My son found his perfect spot and wanted to wait another hour so that no one would take it. Of course, knowing I would be bored out of my mind, I went to find my turkey leg. On the way, though, I came across a lady eating what looked like something sweet and gooey dipped in chocolate. It was a chocolate-dipped Turtle Cheesecake. Yummy. I love cheesecake. I had just found my dessert.

But first for my turkey leg; stalls selling turkey legs were in abundance. With my grand smoked turkey leg in my hand, I made my way back to the exhibition. On the way back I noticed some wire baskets filled with fresh fruit hanging from the awning of one of the vendors. Could it be? Was someone really offering truly healthy choices at this decadent, fat and fried fair?
No, of course not. The fruit was plastic. Can you say bait and switch? However, that same vendor was selling what was called a Fruit Cup. I did not stop to see what it looked like, instead I assumed that is was something like fruit cocktail-in-a-can that you might buy at the local grocery store, loaded with sugar and preservatives.

Sitting with my son, I gnawed, chewed, and picked at my turkey leg. I saw people with funnel cakes and hamburgers, French fries and snow cones. If they were not consuming fatty foods, they were downing sodium and sugar in abundance. In my head, the calorie counter was going berserk. I noticed two school age girls sit down near me happily munching on their burgers. They told me that at school and at home they eat only vegetables. This was their chance to break free and eat something “forbidden”. A few minutes later their parents showed up, apparently unfazed by their food choice. A couple on the other side of me was eating fried guacamole. I asked how it tasted. The woman scrunched up her nose and said it was OK but not what she wanted or expected. Her date offered me his leftovers. Turkey leg still in hand, I politely declined.

Toward the end of the day, I became queasy. I blamed it on the beer(s), but wondered if it was not more a result of eating food I am not used to. Or, it could be from the combination of foods that I ate. Did other fair-goers experience the same thing? It appeared to me that, based on my observation of body mass alone, many people who frequent state fairs do not pay much attention to diet. Fried, salty, and sugary food are staples and the food here at the fair represents an exotic variation of what they already consume on a daily basis.

I understand that the types of food served at fairs and festivals are not meant to be healthy, but rather tasty and convenient for wandering around. Consumed in moderation, these foods can be liberating for those of us who keep our diets constantly in check. But, beware, over-indulgence can wreak havoc. My nausea lasted most of the rest of the day and I gained over 3.5 pounds. I think I will keep my attendance at fairs to a minimum. I feel too good when I am eating the right foods. Or, at the very least, maybe next time I will smuggle in an apple.

Making Ghee

by Miradairy, fats and oil, recipes, vegetarian

Cooking with ghee

When looking for healthy fats to cook with my favorite choices are olive oil, coconut oil, avocado oil, butter, and ghee. I really like using ghee because it has a wonderful sweet flavor and it's easy to use.

Originating in India, ghee is simply clarified butter. In other words, butter that has been gently cooked to a point where the moisture evaporates and you can separate out the milk solids. Because it doesn't have the milk solids to go rancid, ghee can last for a very long time at room temperature (a good thing here in Texas where butter left on the counter would turn liquid and then go bad in very short order). Ghee also has a higher smoke point than butter (485 F for ghee vs. 350 F for butter) making it a really good all-around fat for sauteeing, baking, and roasting.

Nutrition facts

Ghee can be a healthy choice for many people lactose intolerance. This is because all of the milk-fat solids have been separated out.
Grass-fed dairy has higher levels of Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA). This means when using grass-fed butter to make ghee, it also has higher levels of CLA. Studies have shown that CLA
Ghee, especially when made from grass-fed butter, is very high in the fat-soluble vitamins A, E, and K. These vitamins are important for the immune system, supportive for your metabolism, and beneficial for teeth and bones.
CLA is very helpful for reducing inflammation, making it a good choice to add it to your diet.
CLA appears to be cardioprotective with results showing “improved aortic sinus atherosclerosis“
Studies have shown CLA to be helpful for weight loss
Studies have also indicated that it can be anticarcinogenic

How to make ghee

The better the quality of your butter the better flavor your ghee will have. My recommendation is to use unsalted butter from pastured or free-range cows that have been grass-fed (in other words, no grains in their diet). 16 ounces of butter will yield approximately 12 ounces of ghee. The most important thing to remember is that you need to watch it the entire time because it goes from being done to burnt in a snap.

Put your unsalted butter into a thick bottom pan and cook on medium heat until it starts to boil
It will start to foam and crackle as the milk solids condense and the water boils off. If you want you can turn it down just a smidge at this point
I scrape off the milk solids foam because I save it as a treat for my dogs but most folks just leave them because they will eventually settle to the bottom of the pot
After approximately 15-20 minutes you will see that the ghee is a clear golden color and the dark brown milk solids are on the bottom of the pot. This is where you need to be careful. You want to make sure all the ghee is clarified and you can see all the way to the bottom of the pot
Remove the ghee from the heat and strain. I use a fine-mesh strainer lined with two paper coffee filters into a measuring cup
Let the ghee sit for about 10 minutes and then pour it into a clean glass jar to finish cooling
It can be stored at room temperature for the softest, best use consistency

While it is possible to make ghee using your oven or your slow cooker, those both take significantly more time. This is such a simple process and doesn't take very long. In my opinion, it's worth it to simply do the traditional stovetop method

How to use ghee

There are any number of delicious ways to add ghee to your diet. Here are a few of my favorites. If you want to temper the flavor of the ghee a little you can mix it half and half with coconut oil. Once you start using ghee you'll discover how much you enjoy it. You may even find yourself adding it to almost everything.

A teaspoon in a cup of tea or coffee for a wonderful flavor and energy boost. Ghee is also a-maz-ing when you put a dollop into a cup of hot chocolate.
If you love a hearty breakfast with overnight oats or some other grain, ghee can be a wonderful topping with a little cinnamon and some chopped nuts
Add just a little to cooked vegetables to give them a delicious finish. I find it's best to add the ghee before any last seasonings or herbs
It's also great for mashed vegetables like sweet potatoes, turnips, or other root vegetables
Amazing on a muffin or a slice of zucchini bread, I find the caramel-y flavor of ghee better than butter for these snacks
Speaking of snacks, ghee is amazing on popcorn
When baking you can substitute equal parts ghee for any recipe calling for butter

Given the health benefits, and the delicious nutty flavor, it makes sense to add ghee to your real food diet as an option for a nourishing fat.

[expand title=”Sources”]

Ha, YL, et al.Anticarcinogens from fried ground beef: heat-altered derivatives of linoleic acid. Carcinogenesis. 1987 Dec;8(12):1881-7

Kanter, JE, et al. 10,12 Conjugated Linoleic Acid-Driven Weight Loss Is Protective against Atherosclerosis in Mice and Is Associated with Alternative Macrophage Enrichment in Perivascular Adipose Tissue. Nutrients. 2018 Oct 3;10(10).

Zulet, MA, et al. Inflammation and conjugated linoleic acid: mechanisms of action and implications for human health. J Physiol Biochem. 2005 Sep;61(3):483-94

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