by Melissa Diane Smith
Are you still hanging onto the notion that a low-fat diet is the ticket to weight loss? If so, it’s time for a change.
Q: I have repeatedly avoided fat in my diet to try to control my weight. Unfortunately, I am hungrier and heavier than ever, and I have also developed dry, wrinkly skin, thyroid issues, depression, constipation, and inflamed, achy joints. I am completely rethinking the low-fat strategy, but I get queasy after a fatty meal and don’t think I digest fat well. Can you give me the real scoop on the relationship between fats, weight loss, digestion, and health? —Megan S., Sacramento
A: You’re on the right track to be rethinking the low-fat strategy! Low-fat guidelines were recommended to all Americans in 1977, and many
nutrition organizations continue to advocate a low-fat diet. But that advice has led people astray into a heavier and sicker state than ever.
The research is not there to support a low-fat diet for long-term weight loss, and a low-fat diet appears to have little to no effect on cardiovascular disease in the long term. In fact, the sheer lack of research supporting a low-fat diet is so strong that a 2014 Time magazine cover story deemed the low-fat diet a failed experiment.
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