Climbing the Tree for Health: The Power of Coconut

Nothing makes me think of summer more than coconut.  Whether it’s the smell of coconut- infused suntan lotion or the taste of a pina colada, the presence of coconut signifies sunshine, warm weather and fun. But coconut is more than just a sign of summer or the hallmark of a winter vacation somewhere warm: it is one of the healthiest foods you are probably not eating (or drinking!). Coconut is rich in vitamins, minerals and fiber and it sustains about one-third of the world as a functional food:  one that yields numerous health benefits even beyond its nutritional benefits. Today [Read More]

The Saturated Fat Myth

Every once in awhile, a study comes out blasting saturated fat and declaring it to be the cause of heart disease and other health concerns. This drives me crazy because it’s not true and typically there are serious flaws in the research. Saturated fat performs critical roles in the body (yes, we need it: more on that shortly) but it has been made a villain due to some poor research conducted many years ago leading to a myth that remains in place today. If animal fat was so bad for you, how could we have survived all these years dependent [Read More]

5 Cholesterol Myths Shattered

An estimated 102.2 million Americans have cholesterol levels above 200, which is considered borderline high, according to the American Heart Association. About one-third of those have cholesterol levels over 240, which is considered by today’s test standard to be in the high-risk zone. And a new study just released showed 41% of Canadians have high cholesterol levels. We have been told that high cholesterol is bad, that it causes heart disease (the leading cause of death in the U.S.), that we should all be tested for it, and that high levels must be treated, usually with statin drugs. With those [Read More]

Cholesterol Raisers #3 Omegas

As we have read in previous articles, eating cholesterol-rich foods does not raise your cholesterol. If you eat too much cholesterol, your body will just produce less to compensate. But there are some foods that will raise your cholesterol. In the the prior two  articles, we looked at two foods that will raise your cholesterol levels: trans fats and fructose. In the final article of the cholesterol food raising series, we are going to look at a major cholesterol concern: the imbalance between omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids. Omega 3 and omega 6 are both essential fatty acids, [Read More]

What You Need to Know About Fats, Oils and Omega 3

One of the questions I get asked most often is, “Inger, what is the healthiest cooking oil?” As I sat down to write a article sharing the five oils I keep on hand and use regularly, and why none of them are Crisco or other popular vegetable oils, I realized I couldn’t explain all of the reasons why without going into some detail around the different types of fats and how omega 3 fits into the equation. So in this article, I am going to cover that information along with why I believe supplementing with omega 3 is essential for [Read More]

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