Fat It's Not What You Think

This book provides a refreshing antidote to the misinformation and misleading hype that fuels our misguided fear of fat--both the fat we eat, and the fat we carry around. By explaining its biology and sharing the latest research, veteran science writer Connie Leas convincingly frees fat from its bad reputation. For example, she discusses how our much-maligned fatty tissue plays a critical role in maintaining health. Among other vital functions, it stores energy, produces hormones, builds cell membranes, bolsters immunity, and insulates our vital organs. Leas also contradicts many long-held assumptions about fat. Having spent years researching this subject, Leas has transformed technical material from scientific research into a lively work of popular appeal. Full of useful -- and sometimes startling -- information, this book is a valuable health resource presented in an accessible, entertaining format.

Foreword	p. 15
Acknowledgments	p. 17
Introduction	p. 19
Good Things About Fat	p. 23
Stored Energy	p. 23
Hormone Production	p. 24
Cell Membrane Material	p. 25
Padding	p. 25
Insulation	p. 26
The Immune System	p. 27
Protection from Toxic Substances	p. 28
Sexual Attraction	p. 28
Fat-Free People	p. 29
What is Fat, Anyway?	p. 31
Triglycerides Deconstructed	p. 31
Fatty Acids Deconstructed	p. 32
Saturated, Monounsaturated, and Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids	p. 33
A Separate Case: Trans Fatty Acids	p. 36
Why All the Fuss about Saturated Fats?	p. 36
How Your Body Digests and Uses Fat	p. 37
First, the Stomach	p. 37
Next, the Intestines	p. 38
Getting through Intestinal Walls	p. 39
Transportation to Tissues	p. 39
Unabsorbed Fats: The Laxative Effect	p. 40
Substances along for the Ride	p. 40
Digestive Speed	p. 40
The Food-to-Fat Conversion: When You Eat More Than You Need	p. 41
The Food-to-Energy Conversion: When You Eat Less Than You Need	p. 42
Fat as Fuel for Sustained Exercise	p. 43
What Your Fat Cells Do	p. 45
The Anatomy of Fat Cells	p. 45
Fat Cell Numbers	p. 46
Fat as a Hormone Producer	p. 46
Hormones Worth Special Mention	p. 47
Fat Depots (Storage Areas)	p. 48
Apples, Pears, and Other Fat Storage Arrangements	p. 49
Visceral Fat versus Subcutaneous Fat	p. 50
Visceral Fat and Diabetes	p. 51
Visceral Fat and Exercise	p. 51
Visceral Fat and Stress	p. 52
Health and Fat: It's Not What You Think	p. 53
Who Says You're Too Fat?	p. 55
How We Got the BMI	p. 55
Calculating BMI Using a Math Formula	p. 56
Consulting a BMI Table	p. 56
Using a Web Site Calculator	p. 57
Interpreting the Results	p. 58
Maybe the "Overweight" Are Healthier	p. 58
Waist-Hip Measurements as Health Predictors	p. 60
Maybe the Overweight Are Happier	p. 61
An Alternative Set of Guidelines	p. 61
Ways to Measure Body Fat	p. 63
Methods Available at Health Facilities and Gyms	p. 63
Methods for Home Use	p. 64
Who's Fat and Who's Thin?	p. 65
Why Your Body Wants to Keep Its Shape	p. 67
Fighting Our Genes	p. 67
Blame the Cave People	p. 68
A Second Opinion	p. 70
Insulin Resistance	p. 71
Genetic Predisposition to Obesity	p. 72
How Those Fat Genes Work	p. 73
The Role of Microorganisms	p. 75
Wait-There's More	p. 77
More Still to Come	p. 79
Cholesterol Controversies	p. 81
Why Our Bodies Need Cholesterol	p. 82
What Are LDL and HDL?	p. 83
Now, about Those Cholesterol Numbers	p. 84
High Cholesterol as a Predictor of Cardiovascular Disease	p. 85
Questioning the Role of Dietary Cholesterol in Heart Disease	p. 86
What about Those Clogged Arteries?	p. 88
Size Matters	p. 89
Effects of Cholesterol-Lowering Drugs	p. 90
Side Effects of Cholesterol-Lowering Drugs	p. 92
An Epidemic of Diagnoses	p. 93
Saturated Fats: Healthful Food	p. 95
Fat Mixtures: Saturated with Unsaturated	p. 95
Mixed-Up Molecules	p. 97
What about Cholesterol?	p. 99
Saturated Fat and Heart Disease	p. 100
A Persistent Myth	p. 101
Nutritional Benefits of Saturated Fats	p. 102
Oils: Essential and Otherwise	p. 105
Monounsaturated Oils	p. 106
Polyunsaturated Oils	p. 107
What Does "Omega" Mean?	p. 108
What's Essential	p. 109
Essential Oils in Meats and Dairy Products	p. 111
Why All the Fuss about Omega-3 Oil	p. 111
Dangers of Polyunsaturated Fats	p. 112
Choosing Oils	p. 113
Olive Oil Terminology	p. 114
How Cooking Affects Fats	p. 115
Storing Fats and Oils	p. 116
Making Your Own Mayonnaise	p. 116
What's Wrong with Trans Fats	p. 119
How Trans Fats Are Made	p. 119
Trans Fats in Our Diets	p. 121
The Problem with Human-Made Trans Fats	p. 122
Trans Fats at the Market	p. 123
Trans Fats at the Restaurant	p. 124
How to Identify Trans Fats on Food Labels	p. 124
Natural Trans Fats	p. 126
Lumping the Good with the Bad	p. 127
And Now, a New Trans Fat Substitute	p. 127
The Problem with Low-Fat Diets	p. 129
Where's the Beef?	p. 129
Some History	p. 130
Faulty Food Pyramids	p. 131
The Latest Pyramid	p. 133
The Problem with Refined Carbohydrates	p. 134
The Importance of Glycemic Levels	p. 136
Low-Fat Milk-Better Think Twice	p. 136
Low-Fat Diets and Mental Health	p. 138
Weight-Loss Diets Compared	p. 139
Low-Fat Diets Laid to Rest-I Wish	p. 140
Diversity and Balance	p. 141
Variations in Diet/Gene Responses: Some Examples	p. 141
Nutritional Genomics	p. 143
A Balance of Fats	p. 144
The Importance of Balancing Omega-6 and Omega-3 Oils	p. 145
The Consequences of an Omega-6 and Omega-3 Imbalance	p. 146
Why the Imbalance	p. 147
Striking the Essential Oil Balance	p. 148
Our Balancing Mechanisms	p. 149
Fat, the Farm, and Family	p. 151
Rivers of Corn Syrup	p. 151
Mountains of Corn	p. 152
Spoonfuls of Broccoli	p. 153
Solo Snacking	p. 154
Ounces of Leaves	p. 155
Toddlers on the Bandwagon	p. 156
Poorer yet Fatter	p. 157
Intervening in the Schools	p. 158
Programming Babies	p. 160
Old-Fashioned Eating	p. 160
Finding Real Food	p. 161
An Evolution Solution	p. 162
Chemical Substances Produced or Activated by Fat Cells	p. 165
Determining Your Body Fat Using Girth Measurements	p. 167
Fat Content of Foods	p. 171
References	p. 179
Bibliography	p. 213
Index	p. 215
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

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