Good morning!!
Wanna know what I find disturbing? Well, I?m going to tell you anyways. J I find it disturbing when politics and profit-mongering set the stage for poor health. I would like to use a stronger word than ?disturbing?, but my Create Vibrant Health: BodyMindSpirit? blog is a G-Rated publication, so let?s stick with that adjective for the operative mood of what follows.
This week?s Body Sass? tip is that trans-fats are very bad for you. Period. Notice that I?m not saying ?in moderation, they?re fine? or ?once in a while isn?t a big deal? or anything mollifying like that. Trans-fats = very bad.
Trans-fats are strongly correlated with heart disease, and are linked with many types of cancer. And that is just the short story. Because here?s the thing. (Please bear with me through a little biochemistry, then I promise I?ll provide a fun metaphor.)
Your cell membranes, per epigenetic research, are the ?brain? of each of your 60-90 trillion cells. It should actually be spelled ?cell membrains?! J These membranes are the gate and ?decision-maker? of what goes into, and comes out of, your cells. Saturated fats are a pivotal part of the integrity of these membranes, as they make up a large portion of the membrane, and give them their necessary stiffness and ability to function well. Hooray for functioning well. Thank you happy saturated fats.
Enter trans-fats. Boooo. Our bodies cannot tell the difference between natural saturated fats and lab-created trans-fats. So, the creepy trans-fats get incorporated into the cell membrane in place of saturated fats and make the cell membrane ?stupid.? This leads to things getting into the cell that shouldn?t be there, things that need to get in not getting in, things not getting out that need to get out, and things that need to get out not getting out. That?s a whole lotta trouble in one sentence, my friends. Basically, it?s total mayhem. Too much biochemistry for ya? Okay. Let?s go to a nightclub and do some dancin?! Woot woot!
Imagine the healthy saturated fat as a bouncer at a nightclub (the club is your cell). Let?s call him ?Andre.? Andre is strong, stable, and wise and keeps the drug- and gun-toting patrons out of the club, and invites the happy fun-loving patrons in. He escorts patrons out before they become unruly from over-cocktailing and wreck the lovely, fun dance atmosphere inside the club. Everything is well-run and beautiful. Yay for Andre.
Now imagine that Andre has a twin named Disaster who has had a partial lobotomy and is also drunk. He is now manning the door. The club managers let him stand watch because he looks almost exactly like Andre, so they think he IS Andre. Complete mayhem ensues. All the great patrons (vitamins, minerals, protein, fats, blood sugar, hormones, etc) are standing outside the club and Disaster won?t let them in. Inside the club are drug lords and murderers (toxins and metabolic byproducts) that need to be ousted. AND newly created healers and law enforcement officers (energy molecules and regulatory hormones) need to get out into circulation to protect the peace and health of the community. But drunk, lobotomized Disaster is standing blocking the door. He has no clue, because he?s an imposter. He is doing a very bad job and he doesn?t care because?well?he?s had a lobotomy and is inebriated.
Who cares about dumb ‘ole cells and cell membranes? You do. That?s what you are, sweet peeps. You are a neatly organized system of cells, walking around and doing your thing. In Europe, many countries have banned trans fats, as kind-of a no-brainer. The U.S., not so much. In fact, in the U.S., a food manufacturer can legally put ?Zero Trans-fats? on the label of their processed nastiness, when in fact they ARE in there, as part of a ?snazzy? loophole allowed by the FDA.
What to do? Read the ingredient list of everything you buy. If that list has the words ?hydrogenated? or ?partially-hydrogenated? anywhere in the ingredient list, then you are buying trans-fats. You are giving Disaster the job of head bouncer for the nightclub that is your health.
What you DON?T choose to eat is often as important, if not more important, than what you DO choose to eat. Check those ingredient labels!
The food you eat builds your body, every day, for better or for worse.? Make choices for health!
With love & clarity,
Laurie
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