Category: Diet & Nutrition
Book Title: Fat and Cholesterol Are Good For You
05/22/2011: Francisca from Michelbach-le-bas, Alsace, France: "Fat and Cholesterol are Good for You by Uffe Ravnskov
I first read "The Great Cholesterol Con" by Dr. Kendrik but I wasn't too impressed with his joking tone (I suppose many people will love it but for me this subject is too important to lose too much time with jokes!). And I found the message a bit confusing. After researching a bit further I found "Fat and Cholesterol are good for you" and the title is so controversial that I had to read it. My interest in cholesterol and fats came from the fact that a while ago I found coconut oil in a health shop and thought that I should only use it on my skin as I believed that saturated fats were very bad for your health. Then someone on a site suggested I start cooking with it but I needed to read more about the subject before adding it to our daily menu. The first book I read was "Coconut Cures" by Dr. Bruce Fife, which gave me a lot of valuable information and then I moved on to read more about cholesterol, a subject I knew nothing about although I know that mine is on the high side. The only thing you usually hear about cholesterol is that it is something bad which will shorten your life, something to be afraid of. Well, in the meanwhile I know that this is not true especially for me as a woman.
I find it a pity that this book is badly edited. Even if the author had to publish it on a small budget maybe a friend could have had a look through... but the message is there! At times all the studies were a bit much for me but I can't say that they are not interesting. What I found very weird, coming from a country considered Mediterranean was the Mediterranean diet used in one of the studies which included margarine made with rapeseed oil while everybody knows that in Mediterranean countries people cook mostly with olive oil. And also the fact that people were encouraged to eat poultry instead of pork. People in Mediterranean countries do eat quite a bit of pork, beef and lam.... this goes to show that these studies are often based on errors and therefore their conclusions can't be taken seriously!
I can't agree with the author when he says that many people realize that statins are toxic. I know quite a few elderly people on statins or similar drugs who show all the symptoms of their side effects but who have no idea of what is going on. Very sad that our health is used for financial gain and not many doctors seem to care about what happens to us. Weather we live a miserable life or die it doesn't matter, we are just a statistic and a way to get rich even quicker!
This book demystifies a lot of concepts which exist in our society about the dangers (or not) of cholesterol and the author, having done a thorough research, presents his point of view in a scientific way. He also explains thoroughly how studies are misinterpreted in order to fit the directors' goals and how badly studies often are set up. He is also very clear about the financial links between the directors' and the pharmaceutical industry who as a rule finance the whole thing anyway.
Too bad that people are still being misled but then aren't we being misled on a lot of important subjects anyway? I want to read more about the use of coconut oil and the benefits for one's health but for the time being I am convinced that we have made the right choice and I don't think that I will let any doctor lower my cholesterol! After all women with higher cholesterol seem to be the ones who live the longest! But... wouldn't it be wonderful to be able to go to your doctor and be able to trust him with your wellbeing instead of having to dig around and try to find the truth yourself?"
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