According to this interesting column by Dr. Mary Enig, there's even some confusion among experts in naturopathic medicine about the huge difference between saturated fats and trans fats, and how they contribute to type 2 diabetes.

Health professionals ofen use flawed studies to justify their erroneous opinions -- such as studies from the British Journal of Nutrition and Diabetologia, which lump saturated fats together with trans fats. If researchers were to more carefully evaluate the risks of disease by measuring the levels of trans and saturated fat, I believe their results would be very different.

Diabetes didn't become a major epidemic in America until people began moving toward diets heavy in processed, trans fats-laden fast foods that expanded their waistlines and destroyed their health.

Your body needs some saturated fats to stay healthy. Among their many beneficial effects, they are:

• A major part of the phospholipid component of cell membranes
• The preferred fuel for your heart
• Useful antiviral agents (caprylic acid)
• Effective as anticaries, antiplaque and anti fungal agents (lauric acid)
• Useful to actually lower cholesterol levels (palmitic and stearic acids)

Coconut oil, a medium-chain saturated fat, can actually help you to lose weight, lower cholesterol, improve diabetic conditions and reduce your risk of heart disease. The trick is to get your saturated fats from healthy food sources that aren't highly processed or contaminated with trans fats.

Of course, that's something you probably won't find at your neighborhood fast food restaurant. For most of us, that means spending some serious time in the kitchen preparing healthier foods, but it can be done -- and on a budget too.

Vital Votes reader Bryan, from Austin, Texas, suggests some further resources for those of you interested in this subject:

"Great article by Dr Enig.  Just about everyone now agrees that trans fats are bad, but she was an early pioneer in pointing out this problem.  Trans fats combined with too much omega-6 polyunsaturated fat, and rancid and oxygenated unsaturated fats are bad news for modern diets.

"I am almost finished reading Anthony Colpo's 'The Great Cholesterol Con' in which he also presents plenty of evidence that saturated fats are good ... Many thanks again to Dr Mercola for continuing to bring us good articles and information for our health!"

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