In the June 23, 2014 edition of Time magazine there is an article entitled "Ending the War on Fat" by Brian Walsh. It raises a lot of questions, such as, why diabetes and heart disease are on the rise even though many health advocates promote eating low-fat? In fact, eating low-fat and increasing caloric intake from simple sugars and carbohydrates has created more problems with blood sugar metabolism, obesity, and artery disease more than ever before. The truth is fats are not detrimental and in fact can help our overall health.

Dr. Mary Enig wrote "Know Your Fats," an excellent book for understanding the nutrition of fats, oils, and cholesterol. She goes into great detail about the differences between hydrogenated fats, saturated fats, and unsaturated fats. It is a must read in order to get a deeper understanding of why fats must be an integral part of our diet. It is important to understand that although you may build cholesterol from saturated fats, the particles in this cholesterol are light and fluffy, mostly harmless and are not connected with heart disease and cardiovascular risk. It is carbohydrate intake which increases small, sticky, dense particle cholesterol that appear to be linked with heart disease. Most current studies now show that a diet rich in polyunsaturated and mono unsaturated fats significantly reduce the risk of major cardiovascular events.

One of the most important fats comes from coconut oil. The natural saturated fats found in coconut oil can help boost your metabolism, assist in heart health and promote a feeling of satiety. Coconut oil contains medium chain saturated fatty acids, mainly lauric acid, which have immune system boosting properties. Coconut oil is an exceptionally stable cooking oil, meaning the healthy omega fats won't become chemically damaged by heat.

Eating avocados, nut butters, and healthy oils will not only give you the exceptional properties of omega-3 fatty acids which can help with overall heart health, but will reduce your risk of obesity, heart disease, and diabetes. 

Bottom line, reduce the sugars and increase the healthy fats in your diet!