Category Archives: Saturated Fatty Acids

Oleic Versus Saturated Fat: More Bad Science?

Posted on April 7, 2014 by Robert Barrington

Isocaloric substitution studies can be interesting if they are rigorously controlled and care is taken to eliminate confounding variables. However, all too often the studies change more than one variable and this obfuscates the cause and effect of the changes. … Continue reading →

Posted in Exercise, Monounsaturated Fatty Acids, Mood, Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR), Saturated Fatty Acids | Comments Off on Oleic Versus Saturated Fat: More Bad Science?

Lipid Studies: Deliberate Obfuscation

Posted on April 1, 2014 by Robert Barrington

The theory that dietary lipids including cholesterol and saturated fat are causative factors in the development of atherosclerosis is a widely held belief. This viewpoint is based on supposed evidence from the scientific literature. However, studies used as evidence for … Continue reading →

Posted in Cardiovascular Disease, Cholesterol, Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil, Safflower Oil, Saturated Fatty Acids, Trans Fatty Acids, Triglycerides / Triacylglycerols | Comments Off on Lipid Studies: Deliberate Obfuscation

Fatty Acids: You Are What You Eat

Posted on March 24, 2014 by Robert Barrington

High quality diets are protective of disease. However, defining a high quality diet is difficult, but some consensus has been reached in this regard from nutritional scientists. Generally, diets containing high concentrations of processed and manufactured foods with long shelf … Continue reading →

Posted in Adipose Tissue, Fatty Acids, Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids, Saturated Fatty Acids, Trans Fatty Acids | Comments Off on Fatty Acids: You Are What You Eat

Cholesterol Propaganda: Exposing The ‘Scientists’

Posted on March 23, 2014 by Robert Barrington

The cholesterol theory of cardiovascular disease is a clever confidence trick. The theory states that dietary cholesterol and saturated fat cause detrimental changes to lipoproteins which result in the development of atherosclerosis, and that atherosclerotic plaques in turn are the … Continue reading →

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More on Plasma Cholesterol

Posted on February 27, 2014 by Robert Barrington

The cholesterol theory of cardiovascular disease is problematic for a number of reasons. However, most importantly, evidence suggest that dietary cholesterol does not cause elevations in plasma cholesterol. Many feeding studies attest to the inconsistency of dietary cholesterol to cause … Continue reading →

Posted in Cardiovascular Disease, Cholesterol, Eggs, Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids, Saturated Fatty Acids | Comments Off on More on Plasma Cholesterol

Coconut Oil: Virgin Versus Refined

Posted on February 21, 2014 by Robert Barrington

Saturated fat is considered hypercholesterolaemic by many individuals. However, this opinion is not warranted based on scientific evidence. Many studies investigating the effects of saturated fat on cholesterol levels have used coconut oil and compared it with polyunsaturated fatty acids. … Continue reading →

Posted in Cholesterol, Coconut, HDL, LDL, Saturated Fatty Acids, Triglycerides / Triacylglycerols | Comments Off on Coconut Oil: Virgin Versus Refined

Dietary Fatty Acids: Classification

Posted on December 11, 2013 by Robert Barrington

Fatty acids are hydrocarbon chains with a carboxylic acid at one end and a methyl group at the other. The dietary fatty acids are a diverse group of lipids and as a result they can be classified in a number … Continue reading →

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Palmitoleic Acid: de Novo Lipogenesis Marker?

Posted on November 6, 2013 by Robert Barrington

High intakes of fructose in the absence of adequate fibre are known to cause liver overload which stimulates the hepatic de novo lipogenesis pathway. Palmitic acid (PA, C16:0) is a 16 carbon saturated fatty acid that is the end product … Continue reading →

Posted in Abdominal Obesity, Adiponectin, Cardiovascular Disease, de Novo Lipogenesis, Fructose, Insulin Resistance, Metabolic Syndrome, Retinol Binding Protein 4 (RBP-4), Saturated Fatty Acids | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Palmitoleic Acid: de Novo Lipogenesis Marker?

Atherosclerosis: Is the Old Paradigm Dying?

Posted on October 26, 2013 by Robert Barrington

The traditional view of atherosclerosis is that it is caused by an accumulation of lipids in the endothelial lining of arteries. These lipids we are told, are derived mainly from dietary cholesterol and transported to the artery walls by low … Continue reading →

Posted in Abdominal Obesity, Atherosclerosis, Blood Pressure, Cardiovascular Disease, Endothelial Dysfunction, Fatty Acids, Fish Oils, Free Radicals, Heart Disease, Insulin Resistance, Metabolic Syndrome, Nitric Oxide, Oxidative Stress, Saturated Fatty Acids | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Atherosclerosis: Is the Old Paradigm Dying?

The Maasai: More Cholesterol Absurdities

Posted on October 20, 2013 by Robert Barrington

 scientific theory can be thought of as a chain of evidence. Each piece of evidence links to the next in order to provide the required observational premise for the construction of a coherent and continuous path to the truth. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Abdominal Obesity, Cardiovascular Disease, Cholesterol, Insulin Resistance, Metabolic Syndrome, Saturated Fatty Acids, Traditional Diets | Tagged , , | Comments Off on The Maasai: More Cholesterol Absurdities