Separating Fat from Fiction: 10 Fat Facts You Need to Know

This is a great guest blog post from my good friend and nine-time New York Times best selling author Dr. Mark Hyman where he reveals a shocking new medical discovery that turns our understanding of why we get fat and sick completely upside down. I am so excited and honored to share this great blog post with you! 

Much love,

Liana Werner-Gray 

Separating Fat from Fiction: 10 Fat Facts You Need to Know

“Everyone seems to be talking about fat these days. That fat somehow is good now and can help with weight loss and disease prevention. How can that be true when for decades we all were told that fat was the bad guy? What are its benefits? Are there any downsides to eating more fat?”

Is a recent question I received and it comes at the perfect time. I have just finished writing my new book Eat Fat, Get Thin, hitting the bookstores on February 23, 2016. I wrote this book because almost everyone I know – doctors and patients and eaters alike are all confused about fat and still hold on to myths and misinformation that prevents them from taking advantage of the latest science to lose weight and get healthy.

You’re likely familiar with many of them: Fat makes us fat, contributes to heartdisease, leads to diabesity; saturated fat is bad; vegetable oils are good…I could go on, but I think you know what I’m talking about.

None of these beliefs about fat are true. In my latest book, I combined the latest research with my several decades of empirical evidence working with patients to prove what I’ve long discovered: The right fats can help you become lean, healthy, and vibrant.

Fat is one of the body’s most basic building blocks. The average person is made up of between 15 and 30 percent fat! Yet for decades, we’ve unfairly demonized dietary fat, diligently followed a low-fat diet that almost always equates into a high-sugar and high-refined carb diet that contributes to insulin resistance,obesity, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and numerous other problems.

Simply put: Sugar, not fat, is the real villain that steals our health and sabotages our waistlines.

With Eat Fat, Get Thin, I’m determined to separate fat from fiction by giving you the skinny on fats – what to eat and how to use dietary fats to regain your health and ideal body weight. Eating lots of the right fat will make you thin. The right fats increase metabolism, stimulate fat burning, cut hunger, optimize your cholesterol profile, and can reverse type 2 diabetes and reduce your risk for heart disease.

Over the next few months in these blogs I’m going to blow up our myths about dietary fat and show you how this still-maligned macronutrient can help you become lean and healthy.

For now, let’s look at 10 take-home fat facts.

1. Sugar, not fat, makes you fat. The average American eats 152 pounds of sugar and 146 pounds of flour that converts to sugar every year. That’s nearly a pound of sugar and flour combined every day! More sugar means your cells become numb to insulin’s “call.” Your body pumps out more and more insulin to pull your blood sugar levels back down. You can’t burn all the sugar you eat. Inevitably, your body stores it as fat, creating insulin resistance and overall metabolic havoc among other mayhem.
2. Dietary fat is more complex than sugar. There are some 257 names for sugar, but despite very minor variations, they all create the same damage. In other words, sugar is sugar is sugar; it all wreaks havoc on your health. Fat is more complex. We have saturated, monounsaturated, polyunsaturated, and even trans fats, not to mention subcategories within each group. Some fats are good; others neutral; and yes, a few are bad.
3. Low-fat diets tend to be heart-unhealthy, high-sugar diets. When people eat less fat, they tend to eat more starch or sugar instead, and this actually increases their levels of the small, dense cholesterol that causes heart attacks. In fact, studies show 75 percent of people who end up in the emergency room with a heart attack have normal overall cholesterol levels. But what they do have is pre-diabetes or type 2 diabetes.
4. Saturated fat is not your enemy. A review of all the research on saturated fat published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found no correlation between saturated fat and heart disease. As with all fats, quality becomes key here. The fats in a fast-food bacon feedlot cheeseburger will have an entirely different effect than saturated fat in coconut oil. Let’s stop classifying it all as the same.
5. Some fats are unhealthy. They include trans fat and inflammatory vegetable oils. Unfortunately, these fats have increased in our diet as they make us fatter and contribute to inflammation, which plays a role in nearly every chronic disease on the planet.
6. Everyone benefits from more omega 3s.About 99 percent of Americans are deficient in these critical fats. Ideal ways to get them include eating wild or sustainably raised cold-water fish (at least two servings weekly), buying omega-3 rich eggs, and taking an omega-3 supplement twice a day with breakfast and dinner that contains 500 – 1,000 milligrams of omega-3 fats (a ratio of roughly 300 EPA to 200 DHA is ideal). You’ll find several quality professional omega 3 supplements in my store.
7. Eating fat can make you lean. Healthy cell walls made from high-quality fats are better able to metabolize insulin, which keeps blood sugar better regulated. Without proper blood sugar control, the body socks away fat for a rainy day. The right fats also increase fat burning, cut your hunger, and reduce fat storage. Eating the right fats makes you lose weight, while eating excess sugar and the WRONG types of fat make you fat.
8. Good fats can heal. I have many diabetic patients whose health improves when I get them on diet that’s higher in fat. I had one patient with high cholesterol who could not lose weight, so I bumped up her healthy fat content to 70 percent. (I don’t recommend this for most patients; hers was an extreme case.) Her cholesterol plummeting from 300 to 190, her triglycerides dropped 200 points, and she lost 20 stubborn pounds that she couldn’t ever lose before!
9. Your brain is about 60 percent fat. Of that percentage, the biggest portion comes from the omega-3 fat called docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). Your brain needs DHA to spark communication between cells. Easy access to high-quality fat boosts cognition, happiness, learning, and memory. In contrast,studies link a deficiency of omega-3 fatty acids to depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia.
10. Your body gives you signs whether or not you are getting enough quality fat.The higher-quality the fat, the better your body will function. That’s because the body uses the fat you eat to build cell walls. You have more than 10 trillion cells in your body, and every single one of them needs high-quality fat. How do you know if your cells are getting the fats they need? Your body sends signals when it’s not getting enough good fats. Warning signs include:
    • Dry, itchy, scaling, or flaking skin
    • Soft, cracked, or brittle nails
    • Hard earwax
    • Tiny bumps on the backs of your arms or torso
    • Achy, stiff joints

I eat fat with every meal, and I’ve never felt better. The right fats can improve your mood, skin, hair, and nails, while protecting you against Type 2 diabetes, dementia, cancer, and much more.

Among my favorite sources of fat include:

• Avocados
• Nuts—walnuts, almonds, pecans, macadamia nuts, but not peanuts (one study showed a handful of nuts a day reduced death from all causes by 20 percent)
• Seeds—pumpkin, sesame, chia, hemp
• Fatty fish, including sardines, mackerel, herring, and wild salmon that are rich in omega-3 fats
• Extra virgin olive oil (a large study showed that those who consumed 1 liter a week reduced heart attacks by 30 percent)
• Grass-fed or sustainably raised animal products (I recommend the Environmental Working Group’s Meat Eater’s Guide to eating good quality animal products that are good for you and good for the planet).
• Extra virgin coconut butter, which is a great plant-based source of saturated fat that has many benefits. It fuels your mitochondria, is anti-inflammatory, and doesn’t cause problems with your cholesterol. In fact, it may help resolve them.

Want to learn more? Watch my Q&A video on Fat. Here are just some of the questions I answer in this video:

• If it’s not fat, what is the true cause of heart disease, diabetes, and disease?
• How can we differentiate between good and bad fats?
• Is butter really good for you?
• And how did we get into this big, fat mess?

Go here to watch this video: http://bit.ly/1R6DRdo

Wishing you health and happiness,

Mark Hyman, M.D.

DON'T EVER SAY FARMS ARE BORING !!!

You know I love visiting farms and being close to nature as much as possible. It’s a great way to ground ourselves and balance ourselves from the technology overload. A lot of people think farms are boring and so you will see from this blog that Maris Farms have captured a vibe of being one of the most fun filled, exciting and entertaining packed farms in the world!!! I was recently visiting Washington State USA and during a Halloween themed weekend I had the opportunity to visit Maris Farms! It is the Halloween month and so some willing friends gathered and decided we would go get frightened for the night at a Haunted Woods! Here we are, us willing participants with a sense of frightful anticipation for the unknown...

This farm meets nature with entertainment, an amazing healthy combination to fulfill our human playtimes.  I wanted to share this blog post with you because if you get a chance to visit this farm – DO! Right now during this Halloween season they have an epically fun adventurous “Haunted Woods” which is now a famous attraction, so known in fact that when we arrived people were lining up for 3 hours!! But it is well worth the wait for a Halloween fright treat! Entertainment value included brightly colored lights, dense heavy fogs, and wrenching screams from all angles. My first experience of actual live people jumping out and scaring you during a walk through was at Dream World on the Gold Coast in Australia, about 10 years ago and I remember thinking surely only people with strong hearts and good sense of humor could handle this type of attraction. Maris farms added theirs in 2003 which took the farm to “legendary status” claims the locals!  There are more than 35 sets and 50+ actor types inhabiting a 35-45 minute walk though trail. If you practice meditation you know how challenging it can be at times to focus and be in the present moment, well this trip through the haunted woods certainly forces you to be in-the-now! It is an extremely refreshing way to put yourself in the present moment. 

As you wait in line there is still entertainment value to help make the wait go quicker, including a live band, an 8-foot tall menacing clown and the cackles of an evil white-faced witch as she snakes her way through the crowd. 

 

TIP: Visit Maris Farms in the beginning of October when it’s quieter to avoid long lines. And don’t bring your kids at night, unless they are up for the adventure of being shocked and frightened. Bring the kids during the day as Maris farms is known as a family farm. It’s also known as Pierce County’s favorite family daytime destination! And it all started with a little pumpkin patch! If you love searching for pumpkins they have 8+ acres of beautiful pumpkin patch to choose from! Plus an added bonus is Mt Rainier is just majestically hanging out in the background, such a beautiful view. 

Photo from Christie Fierro Flikr

And who enjoys a maze? I for one am a major maze lover, especially when creative people use actual nature to create human sized mazes where we get to use our entire bodies rather than just our brains – the best kind of physical activity is when it’s a fun experience and we are really enjoying the movement!  Maris farms have a 5+ acre corn maze! 

Photo from: https://www.pinterest.com/hideesmith/labrynth-of-corn/

For those seeking a farmish vibe visit there are also some Earth Diet food options, you can take a scenic hayride around the pumpkin patch and they even have an animal barn full of goats, sheep, rabbits, chickens and pigs. Don’t ever say farms are boring! And especially this one, Maris farms have adrenaline-driven activities including live pig and duck races! Kids can enjoy a huge jumping pillow, that doesn’t exclude us playful adults too! My sister and I first jumped on giant pillows in New Zealand almost 8 years ago! Another great way to get a physical workout without being bored of the activity!  There are also zip lines at Maris Farms, mechanical bull riding for the game, large tube slides and a new activity ‘bubble soccer’. There is so much to do which includes the great outdoors, fresh air, and being connected with nature – you can imagine I was in heaven! 

TIP: Spend at least half the day at this farm! There is an activity for every age group and it’s affordable wholesome entertainment and fun.

Photos from MarisFarms.com

Quite a first impression for my first time to the farm, one I will remember indefinitely. Farms like these deserve to be acknowledged. Plan your visit to Maris Farms! Comment below if you have been to this farm or plan to go – I’ll share the excitement with ya!

I already can’t wait to go again next year!!!

AND HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Love Liana 

P.S Locally, Maris Farms has been featured in the Enumclaw/Bonney Lake/Sumner Courier Heralds, The (Tacoma) News Tribune, Seattle Times, Seattle PI, KOMO TV and KING 5’s Evening Magazine. Nationally, Maris Farms has had air time on National Public Radio and on MSNBC.com….. and now THE EARTH DIET BLOG:p !!!

P.P.S For the maize seekers... Maris Farms is part of a larger organization known as The MAiZE , which has more than 250 mazes in the U.S., Canada, Italy, Poland and the United Kingdom. Each MAiZE affiliate offers its own form of “agritainment” in its marketplace but the group shares ideas and advice in the areas of marketing/promotions, employee training, accounting, farming, maze cutting and several other areas necessary for a successful agritainment business. There is also instant name recognition and credibility connected to this organization. Since the introduction of its first location in 1996, MAiZE sites have drawn millions of visitors.  Making a name for itself, The MAiZE has attracted the attention of newspapers, television and radio stations across the country-among them: Paul Harvey News, CNN, USA Today, The Today Show, Progressive Farmer, Time, Newsweek, National Geographic and Family Circle.

I love farms that can attract people to check out that part of the Earth, unique and wherever it may be in the world!

Plan a visit at www.MarisFarms.com

Shoot for Your Best Health or be Unfulfilled

In this life we should shoot for our best health achievable to each individual - otherwise we will never be satisfied and will live with guilt, shame and regret. That sounds terrible I know but that is the reality of many people who live unsatisfied stuck in a rut of eating unfulfilling foods that provide no nutrition to the body at all. We know at a deeper level when we eat foods that are processed and devoid of proper nourishment that something isn't quite right. Junk foods rarely give us lasting fulfillment. The only time when junk foods give us fulfillment is if you live with a great balance of health being immaculate majority of the time and letting junk food pass right through you. However most people when they eat junk food know deep down that they are not doing enough on a daily basis to take care of their health, and hence guilt attaches itself to every junk food binge. I am grateful that I broke a strong addiction to junk foods - a vicious cycle that I was stuck in for 5 years. It ruled my life and now I am completely free of it. I may have other stressors in my life, but health, food and eating is not one of them. When the body is nourished & energized it makes every other issue in life much easier to get through and handled.  

I had lots of space to reflect during the Bumbershoot festival in Seattle.

Ever wondered why it's so easy to over eat on candy, chocolate, chips, breads etc? When those foods hit the stomach and digestive system, they send a signal to the brain 'didn't get nutrition, still hungry, send more food please.' Hence we can overeat on junk foods wondering how on earth did I manage to consume all that? And see its impossible to binge on a bowl full of carrots or broccoli pieces - because our body stops eating when it gets all the nutrition we need. 

Many of us have accepted a certain level of suffering and live with it until it gets worse and worse, until it blows up in our face one day. Which is what happened to me after binge eating on junk foods everyday for 5 years and I landed in hospital when my lymphatic system exploded with a tumor. My body forced me to break down and surrender to change. I was once obsessed with being "skinny" and as I sat in hospital hearing these depressing results at age 21 my entire world shifted and my priority became - I would achieve consistent health. Forget wanting to lose weight, I just want to FEEL good. And I wanted to not just feel good a little bit, I wanted to feel good majority of my time. Someway some how I would break the addiction to junk food and over eating and I would achieve a harmony of health, so that I felt healthy from moment to moment to moment. At this point I didn't care what weight I was - my health was taken away from me and all I wanted was to feel good in my body again. My goal changed, and I realized that for the rest of my life I would shoot for the best health I could possibly achieve.

I was sick and tired of being unfulfilled and sick of suffering so much which is why I declared to myself that I would eat only foods from the earth for 365 days and call it a blog "The Earth Diet" and here we are. I knew I would travel, study, work and go here and there - yet I was committed that wherever I was in the world I would stick to it - I would stay on course and eat only natural foods, and focus on what nature provided me. That one year did me good, it detoxed my body, cleaned my system of excess toxins, boosted my immune system and healed my body; the tumor dissolved. 

Years later I am still traveling the world sharing my story of transformation and assisting others in achieving the same. Last weekend I had the opportunity of attending Bumbershoot music festival at the Seattle space needle! When I heard on the radio what bands were playing I got so excited... The Weeknd, Ellie Goulding, Zedd, Hozier, Flying Lotus, Ben Harper, Bassnectar, Cake... Just to name a few. In fact I since learned that 89 bands played over the 3 days during Labor Day Weekend. Aside from music there was also comedy, film, performing arts, dance, spectacles theatre, visual art, a youngershoot playground, a laser dome, I words & ideas! They also had a silent disco - one of my favorites! A main sponsor for the event was the Center for Infectcious Disease Research "Spreading HOPE to find s CURE." I wrote an article years ago on the possibilities of curing cancer, and received some negative attacks of people saying I was giving people false hope. The thing is hope is a positive emotion that moves people towards healing, whereas a negative emotion felt over a long period of time will lead to dis-ease. 

Every week on my radio show - Wednesday's at 6pm EST www.HayHouseRadio.com - I encourage people to tap into their inner wisdom and move forward the best they can. 

To get un-stuck always just show up, keep moving and do your very best! 

Bumbershoot kicked off on Saturday night which was The Weeknd and Cake! 

I just love his song "I can't feel my face when I'm with you, but I love it." When you get that feeling from being around someone, embrace them! What a great feeling! You know that saying "Love the ones your with." 

Photo by Dave Lichterman 

I grew up listening to Cake - not really by choice haha - my parents played it a lot which im now really thankful for, especially at night when we were sleeping so it somehow seeped into my subconscious so now I know all the words to their original songs! 

Photo by Dave Lichterman

After arriving you get schedule and map of the entire event. The very first thing on the list of "What can we bring into Bumbershoot?" 

1. A smile and positive attitude 

And the first point on the "Sorry, you can't bring" list: 

1. A grumpy attitude 

This was not a place to be dwelling on anything other than being in the present moment!! 

The vibes were high and everyone was having a great time - aware that this was probably the most epic festival of the year for Washington State! 

I happened to be in Seattle during this time for assisting the launch of TigerNuts (Organic Gemini) into Washington State! This is the first year I've visited Washington State and it is really booming with life, nature, organic and greenery. It is known as the Evergreen State! It's an honor to travel around the state and educate people on the newest superfood on the market: TIGERNUTS!! My favorite fact about them is they have the same amount of iron as red meat! Which makes TigerNuts an excellent festival superfood snack! 

At Bumbershoot on Sunday I checked out the food options! Extremely important to nourish ourselves especially at a high energy event like Bumbershoot! 

I was so happy when I spotted.... Chipotle!!! What an awesome go-to healthier upgrade fast food for protein and fresh vegetables! From farm to foil... 

Other "cleaner" options included... 

And chocolate lovers your all set! Plenty of organic handmade raw and even vegan chocolate! Blissful wunders...

Monday night was Ellie Goulding night! She posted earlier that day on Instagram... Cake at Flora a veggie cafe in Seattle! A must check out for people wanting to have their cake and eat it too! Getting nutrition from your cake as well as pleasure = winning! 

Ellie Goulding is a vegan and regularly promotes a plant based lifestyle on her social media and interviews. 

The excited crowd waiting for Ellie Goulding...

Ellie represents health, growth and possibility... 

Young women especially love Ellie Goulding and inspired by the messages in her music... Especially her "Anything Can Happen" song!!

Ellie is an example of someone who is living a full life and shining her light... 

Blasting light on stage with the Majestic Seattle Space Needle background! 

BUMBERSHOOT is truly epic.

Monday I also got to check out the booths! So many incredible options for us to spend our energy (money) on services and people who are creating positive life giving products. A highlight booth for me was Lauren Harkness...

I was drawn to the soothing, empowering and beautiful energy of the handmade pieces by Lauren Harkness. This neck piece in particular! I was so excited to meet the founders, and Lauren and I even named this piece "I AM HEALED" which is a significant affirmation behind a neck piece as much of our communication and empowerment comes from our neck/throat/voice. When I healed the tumor in my neck I approached it from all angles of mind, body and spirit. Every time I wear this piece I will remember the affirmation "I am healed" and be grateful for where I am at with my health. I never want to take my health for granted again. Each one of their pieces represents an affirmation which has power when you wear them. 

Lauren Harkness is handmade luxury - jewelry pieces made with love designed to empower the one wearing it. Lauren describes it as "power symbols". For more story and to get some for yourself check out www.laurenharkness.com 

The creator Lauren Harkness says... “For me, making jewelry feels like a dialogue about beauty with women. I love adorning women and seeing their face light up when they put a stunning piece of jewelry on their body. Making things with my hands, creating forms of beauty is a compulsion. It feeds my soul.”

Lauren Harkness-Hand Made Luxury is about jewelry as power symbols. A great piece of jewelry can make an outfit, and it will also do MORE than that. You can look at your “Desire Ring” at a party and tap into your feminine power. You can put on a “Dahlia Necklace” and know that you are safe, protected, and sensual.

Great jewelry ties you to a memory and a place. It will remind you of health, wealth, attraction, and the best that life has to offer.

Jewelry made with PINECONES!!!

A Little Sun!

There was also plenty to explore for the kids! Also adult friendly playground to tap into the inner adventurer! 

Later that evening I had a huge organic feast! Sweet potato fries, and organic burger with organic kethcup & Justin's Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups. Special thanks to you Blake. 

Organic food keeps the body in a happy place!

What kind of health are you shooting for? What do you really want to feel? What do you want to experience? Don't die with your music still in you - as Wayne Dyer would say.

Special thanks to Mikhael Mei. 

Remember you can be healthy anywhere, anytime, it's just a choice; an inward decision to always shoot for the healthiest possible choices. 

Love Liana 

P.S Thank you to my new friends who gave me your belt - that was kind - but then we lost each other in the Chance The Rapper crowd. 

If you really want to transform your health and live your healthiest life possible, try the Earth Diet for 365 days! And I'll see you next year at Bumbershoot to celebrate! 😝