Two views of the high-fat life
January 27, 2004

By Kim Pierce / Special Contributor

The recent news that Atkins Nutritionals has altered its message about saturated fats just adds fat to the fire of dieting's hottest topic: the low-carb, high-fat lifestyle.

But what does this mean, on a practical level, to people who are trying to lose weight in a healthful way? To answer that, we consulted a popular cookbook author who's been eating low-carb for eight years and a researcher who's been studying the failure of low-fat diets and their effects on blood fats even longer.

First, here's what caused the stir: Health officials have often criticized the Atkins diet for saying it's OK to eat a lot of steak, butter, eggs and other foods high in saturated fats. Saturated fats are widely believed to be linchpins in cardiovascular disease and other illnesses.

Then last week, The New York Times reported that the company, which sells Atkins products and promotes the diet, has been telling health professionals for the past five years that dieters should get no more than 20 percent of total calories from saturated fat.

That's a limit you don't see in the Atkins diet books and one that still exceeds federal dietary guidelines of no more than 10 percent from saturated fat. The article suggested that Atkins was backing down from its original tenets, although a company spokesman denied this.

Now, here are two views – and decidedly different takes – on the practical matters of everyday decision-making about health; saturated fats; low-carb, high-fat dieting; and losing weight. Both are higher-fat diets than the federal guidelines of no more than 30 percent calories from fat.

Living "la vida" low-carb
"It is accurate to say that on the Atkins diet that you can eat all the steak and cheeseburgers you want," says Dana Carpender, who has written two low-carb cookbooks, including the national best seller, 500 Low-Carb Recipes (Fair Winds Press, $19.95). "It is also accurate to say that you can eat all the grilled salmon and Caesar salad you want on the Atkins diet."

Critics of the diet have zeroed in on the former, she says, because it's sensational. But that sound bite has never told the whole story, says the author. She lost 40 pounds using a low-carb strategy and has kept it off for eight years.

"People seem to feel the Atkins diet consists of nothing but protein and fat. That's simply not true," she says. Even in the first phase, which restricts carbohydrates to 20 grams a day, "you're still supposed to eat 2 cups a day of vegetables. That's four servings, according to the government."

It misses the point of low-carb diets to focus solely on steak and butter, she says: People who are restricting carbohydrates can easily choose more healthful fats.

"There's no reason not to sauté in olive oil instead of butter," she says. "No reason not to eat fish and poultry. No reason not to eat lean cuts of beef."

If people are looking for the satisfaction that fat brings, they can also include nuts and seeds, avocados, olive oil on their salads and other healthful choices, Ms. Carpender says.

"Nurses stop me in the hall and demand to know the secret of my cholesterol and triglyceride numbers," she says. "My trigyclerides are 40 – virtually unheard of." (Any number below 150 is considered normal.) "I say, 'I eat three eggs in the morning and all the beef I can scarf.' I'm being funny."

She says she eats a variety of foods, controlling carbs, but also including lots of nuts, seeds, greens ("eating leaves is always better for you than potato chips"), lean meats, fish and poultry.

"My grandfather dropped dead of a heart attack at 58," she says. "My father was hospitalized with heart disease at 55. And that's the side I take after."

She adds with conviction: "I have not been afraid of fat for 81/2 years."

Second view: Type of fat, not quantity, matters
Brown University researcher and instructor Mary Flynn, Ph.D., who co-wrote Low-Fat Lies, High-Fat Frauds (Lifeline Press, $12.95), wouldn't discourage Ms. Carpender from eating a higher-fat diet, especially if it's got olive oil at its center.

"Yes," she says, "everyone will lose weight with a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet and lose faster at first," she says. "It's easier to stay on the diet because you're not hungry."

But she wishes people – and policy-makers – would stop focusing on nutrients when they give advice about achieving and maintaining a healthy weight. Nutrients include the "macro" nutrients, such as fat, protein and carbohydrates, as well as "micro" nutrients such as vitamins, minerals and phytochemicals (vitamin C, calcium and lycopene).

"I bring people back to food," Dr. Flynn says.

Nutrition research is just too complicated to boil down to components such as unsaturated vs. saturated fats, she says, adding that the latter may or may not be the culprit in heart disease.

When you look at the research literature, she says, "it's meat that's related to heart disease and cancer. It's not saturated fat."

Meat sources such as beef and pork are at least as high in monounsaturated fats as they are the saturated kind.

Dr. Flynn beats the drum for olive oil – and says studies suggest that a plant-centered diet is most healthful in the long run.

"I'm the olive oil lady, the olive oil queen," she says. "When you look at the literature, olive oil has amazing health benefits: It lowers blood pressure. Decreases colon cancer. Decreases [harmful] oxidation. It's loaded with antioxidants."

She tells people in her weight-loss groups – both to help them manage a healthful weight and achieve a good blood-fat profile: "Don't worry about how much fat. Just eat olive oil and a plant-based diet. And think of meat as a condiment."

That, and get moving, making exercise part of your life. Dr. Flynn practices what she teaches: At 48, she's "just under 5 feet" and weights 112 to 113 pounds. She exercises regularly.

"At the end of one of my weight-loss programs last night, a woman said, 'I finally realized it's work. But it's something I'm committed to.'

"I say to patients all the time, 'It's in your control. You can do this if you want to.'"

Making permanent lifestyle changes is the key, she says, not pinning your hopes on a quick-weight-loss scheme.





The Daily Value for saturated fat is 20 grams. The Atkins diet suggests up to 40 grams is OK. Saturated fats are most commonly found in animal products:

Food Sat fat Butter (1 tablespoon) 7.6 grams Sour cream (1 tablespoon) 1.6 grams Heavy cream (1 tablespoon) 3.5 grams Broiled, extra-lean ground beef (3.5 ounces) 6.2 to 6.4 grams Bacon (3 slices) 3.3 grams Cheddar cheese (1 ounce) 6 grams SOURCES: Dana Carpender; Mary Flynn




DIFFERING APPROACHES
If you want to avoid saturated fat in your diet, especially if you are on a low-carbohydrate regimen:
• Eat less red meat, butter, cream, cheese and other full-fat dairy products.
• Choose leaner cuts of meat, such as eye of round steak and pork chops, trimmed of fat.
• Choose foods containing more mono- and polyunsaturated fats, such as plant oils (olive oil, walnut oil, almond oil), nuts, seeds and avocados.
• Eat more fish and poultry.
If you want to take a broader, whole-food approach to eating choices:
• Put olive oil at the center of your diet. Don't worry about how much you consume.
• Eat a plant-based diet of vegetables, whole grains and fruit. Eat "close to the Earth." The less processed foods are, the better they are for you.
• Treat meat as a condiment. Don't eat it every day.
• Be physically active.


Originally posted in The Dallas Morning News, January 27, 2004