Nourishing Traditions Part I: Fats

Okay, so I'm reading this book (or cookbook I should say) on recommendation from a co-worker.  Nourishing Traditions is 634 pages thick.  The beginning is a review of main foods or ingredients I should say.  Fats is the first part.  So for my vacation I decided to read it.  One of my strengths is that I am a Learner.  Therefore I read everything.  If you don't feel like starting the read this is a summary of the take aways for me on "fats."

Fats are not a bad thing if they are the right kind.  They can actually be good for you.  If you don't get enough of the healthy kind you can get cancer, heart disease or other health problems.

Therefore, saturated and monunsaturated fats are the best then polyunsaturated in limited amounts.

Eggs are a good source of omega-3 fatty acids.  But they need to be organic free range (insects and green plants) eggs not supermarket eggs.  Otherwise you get more omega-6s than you need in the eggs and not enough Omega-3s.

Saturated fatty acids help make up your cell membranes and helps them function properly.


"Prevention of heart disease will not be achieved with the current focus on lowering cholesterol--either by drugs or diet--but by consuming a diet that provides animal foods rich in protective fats and vitamins b6 and b12; by bolstering thyroid function through daily use of natural sea salt, a good source of usable iodine; by avoiding vitamin and mineral deficiencies that make the artery walls more prone to ruptures and the buildup of plaque; by including antimicrobial fats in the diet; and by eliminating processed foods containing refined carbohydrates, oxidized cholestral and free-radical-containing vegetable oils that cause the body to need constant repair." --Nourishing Traditions


I was told to use expeller-expressed oils.  Why you say?  It is the safe, modern technique for extraction that drills into the seeds and extracts the oils keeping the antioxidants safe and the fatty acids.

Fat Soluble vitamins are good for you.  vitamin a, vitamin d, vitamin k and  vitamin e.  And guess what?  yummy butter is the best source for these nutrients.  But "the fat soluble vitamins occur in large amounts only when butter comes from cows eating green grass."

To help with join stiffness know that pasteurization destroys the "antistiffness" factor that is only present in raw butter, cream and whole milk.

In regards to oils--coconut oil is the best.  You can do medium amounts of olive oil.  And small amounts of seaseme oil, safflower oil, and flax seed oil.  Don't use canola oil.  For more info, read the book.

Carbohydrates are next . . .