Why saturated fat isnt bad

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This could actually be worse than making no reduction to saturated fat at all. For example, stearic acid, which makes up approximately half of the saturated fats in dark chocolate, does not raise blood cholesterol.

The other saturated fatty acid — palmitic acid — does, though, so best not to eat the whole bar. In cheese and yoghurt, for example, calcium a mineral that may keep blood pressure normal could be why these foods have less impact on raising LDL cholesterol than, say, bacon.

Most of the fat in yoghurt is saturated fat, but dairy products seem to impact health less than, say, animal fats Credit: Getty Images. But that doesn't make saturated fat a demon, as it has often been portrayed.

In moderation, it can be part of a heart-healthy diet. It's wise to limit your intake of saturated fat, but you don't need to go crazy eliminating it from your diet. For one thing, that's almost impossible to do, since good sources of unsaturated fats, like olive or canola oil, contain some saturated fat as well. For someone who generally takes in 2, calories, that's calories, or about 23 grams of saturated fat. That's the amount in eight pats of butter, three glasses of whole milk, or a Burger King Whopper with fries.

This isn't the end of the saturated fat story; it may be just the middle. It's likely that future research will identify some of different saturated fats we eat as neutral for the heart — or even good for it — and others as decidedly bad. We will keep you posted. As a service to our readers, Harvard Health Publishing provides access to our library of archived content.

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Saturated Fatty Acids: A Diverse Group While some experts debate the merit of various studies, others are pointing out that there are many different saturated fatty acids, which may have individual effects on health—it's not black and white or an "all good" or "all bad" situation, Vannice says.

Most dietary fatty acid carbon chain lengths range from 12 to 22 carbon atoms and have varying effects in the body. Does that make a difference? So why is there such positive buzz about coconut oil? In fact, coconut oil has much more saturated fat than both lard and beef tallow," she adds. She also cautions that many of the coconut oil products are highly processed and refined.

If consumers choose to consume coconut oil, she says moderation is key, and using the less processed virgin oils is a better choice, as the fatty acids will be closer to their original form, and the oil will contain more phytonutrients. Dairy Products "There's a lot of emerging science indicating there may be some important components of dairy fats that may be good for our health," says Gregory Miller, PhD, chief science officer at the National Dairy Council. That study followed more than , people across eight European countries and measured plasma levels of saturated fatty acids.

In a commentary that accompanied the study, Mozaffarian pointed out that more research is needed to determine whether odd-chain saturated fatty acids have direct benefits in the body or whether other substances in dairy products are providing the cardiovascular benefits. Red Meat Many people shun red meat for its so-called artery-clogging saturated fat content. However, they may be doing so in error. Moreover, about one-third of the saturated fat in beef and pork is stearic acid, which isn't thought to raise cholesterol.

That oxidation can impact free radical formation and may damage cells," Rasmussen says. Overly Simplistic Focus Historically, the health care community has communicated a rather straightforward message about the relationship between higher dietary saturated fat intake, elevated LDL cholesterol, and increased risk of cardiovascular disease, but the relationship is anything but simple.

Houston explains that it's key to know the number of LDL particles fewer is better and the type. Similarly, there are several types of HDL cholesterol, including small, dense HDL3, which is believed to be the least protective against heart disease, and large, buoyant HDL2, which appears to be the most protective against cardiovascular disease. Although more research is needed on the effects of nutrition on the composition of LDL and HDL subclasses, some evidence suggests that consuming saturated fat in place of carbohydrates reduces the number of small, dense LDL particles.

Willett considers both refined carbohydrates and saturated fat to be equally harmful to heart health. Of course, we can't have a diet that has no saturated fat, because even many healthful foods contain some of it. We can, however, have diets without refined carbohydrates, and getting close to this will be beneficial, especially for someone who is overweight and insulin resistant," Willett says.