Eat less saturated fat and avoid eating a high-fat diet

Personally, I don’t believe that eating a very low-fat diet (around 10 percent calories from fat) is very practical or enjoyable. I have spent 15 years lightening recipes and suggesting alternatives in restaurants and supermarkets, so that people can easily enjoy a lower-fat way of life (around 20 to 30 percent calories from fat). So here we are with a recommendation to avoid eating a high-fat diet because it may help us prevent colon cancer.

Over the recent years, I have altered my emphasis on food fat a little so that people are not only eating a moderate-fat diet, but are also switching to what are considered the more protective fats (monounsaturated fats omega-9 fatty acids and omega-3 fatty acids) whenever possible.

One of the questions people often ask me is “What about butter?” I still use butter when it is truly the best fat for the recipe or dish. I just make a point of using less. The other question people ask me is “Which should I buy, canola oil or olive oil?” I answer, “both.” Olive oil has phytochemicals (found in olives) that canola oil doesn’t have, but canola oil contributes a plant form of omega-3 fatty acid.

Canola oil has a neutral flavor and can be heated at high temperatures. Olive oil has a pleasant distinctive flavor that you want in only certain dishes. So, I use whichever oil compliments the dish best.

Evidence linking cancer of the colon with dietary fat was considered in several reports and studies to be stronger than the evidence linking dietary fat to breast cancer.

A study was published in the April 1999 issue of Carcinogenesis. In it, rats were put on diets with low, medium, or high amounts of fat and either a fermentable fiber source (galacto-oligosaccharide), or a non-fermentable fiber source (cellulose), for nine months. Colorectal tumors were then induced with a chemical.

Generally, the researchers found that the tumor incidence went up along with the fat content of the diet, and the fermentable GOS fiber offered greater protection against colorectal cancer than the diet with the non-fermentable cellulose.

Does the type of fat consumed relate to colon cancer prevention?

It’s still under investigation, but it’s looking like a yes. Some researchers believe that the association between total fat intake and cancer is stronger than the association between any specific type of fat and cancer.

So far, studies are starting to suggest a link between diets high in saturated fat and a risk of several types of cancer. Animal studies have shown that diets with a high saturated fat content are linked with increased numbers of intestinal bacteria (anaerobic, or non-oxygen), which are suspected of producing toxins or carcinogens that encourage polyp formation and enhance tumor progression .

The 15 top total fat and saturated fat sources We can’t really begin to follow the food step to eat less saturated fat and avoid high-fat meals without knowing which foods are contributing the most fat and saturated fat to our diet. Focusing on the top 15 total fat and saturated fat sources seems like a great place to start. Luckily some nutritionists with the National Cancer Institute took a look at data from the USDA 1989-91 Continuing Survey of Food Intakes data, and ranked the top food sources of saturated fat in American adults. Here they are:

1. Cheese (12.7 percent)

• Choose some of the reduced-fat cheeses.
• When you eat or cook with cheese, use less.

2. Beef (12.4 percent)

• Select the leaner cuts.
• Trim off visible fat.
• Eat beef less often.
• Eat less beef when you do have it.

3. Milk (10.5 percent)

• Use reduced-fat milk.
• Take a look at how much you drink. Are you drinking enough water?

4. Cakes/cookies/quick breads/doughnuts (5 percent)

Make or buy them with a reduction in fat or saturated fat but only if you don’t notice a difference in taste and they are truly satisfying!

5. Margarine (4.8 percent)

• When you use margarine, try to use the absolute least amount possible.
• Buy a canola or olive oil tub margarine that has very few grams of saturated fat and trans fat.
• In recipes, use canola or olive oil instead of margarine whenever possible.

6. Butter (4.1 percent)

Same as margarine.

7. Frozen yogurt (3.8 percent)

• There are some great tasting “light” ice creams out there.
• Check the label out to make sure it isn’t just as high in calories and sugar as the regular version.

8. Salad dressings/mayo (3.7 percent)

• Make tasty reduced-fat salad dressings at home.
• Choose bottled salad dressings that use canola or olive oil and contain 5 to 7 grams fat per 2- tablespoon serving.
• When you use mayo, use less.
• Blend 1/3 Best Foods with 2/3 fat-free or “light” sour cream for a tasty but reduced-fat mayo blend.

9. Poultry (3.5 percent)

• Take off the skin before you cook the chicken whenever possible.
• Stick to lower-fat poultry choices and try not to have those deep fried chicken pieces and parts too often.

10. Other fats (3.4 percent)

• Same as oils below.

11. Oils (3.2 percent)

• Switch to canola or olive oil in your recipes.
• Use the least amount of oil you can get away with.

12. Sausage (2.8 percent)

• Switch to a reduced-fat sausage when possible.
• If an ingredient in a recipe, use less.
• Sausage is a “sometime” food.

13. Yeast bread (2.7 percent)

14. Eggs (2.4 percent)

• When making a mostly egg dish, use half real eggs and half egg whites or egg substitute.

15. Potato chips/corn chips/popcorn (2.3 percent)

• Potato chips are a “sometime” food. When you do have them, try not to eat the whole bag.
• Choose the reduced-fat chips out there that you think taste great. Some even use canola oil.

The heavy hitters

The big three saturated fat sources in the typical American diet are cheese, beef, and milk. Add in the next three heavy hitters cakes/cookies, quick breads and doughnuts, margarine and butter (with margarine actually contributing .7 percent more saturated fat than butter) and the top six sources total half of the saturated fat taken in on an average day in America.

The big four total fat sources are beef, margarine, salad dressing/ mayonnaise, and cheese. Add these four up and they account for over a third of the total fat taken in each day. I’ve got to admit to being somewhat shocked by a few things on this list. Can you believe the salad dressings/mayonnaise grouping actually contributes more fat to the American diet than cheese?

And that margarine accounts for almost 9 percent of the fat intake, with butter weighing in at a paltry 2.3 percent of the total fat? Adding up the first seven sources (beef, margarine, salad dressing/mayo, cheese, milk, cakes/cookies/ quick breads/doughnuts, and poultry) not even including oils, totals half of the total fat in the typical American diet.

Here’s my two cents

It sure looks like we should avoid excessive amounts of fat and saturated fat for other types of cancer, heart disease, and to reduce our risk of obesity. So if there is even a glimmer of evidence suggesting it can help reduce our risk of colon cancer, it deserves our attention.

We basically want to keep the trans fatty acids, saturated fat, and omega-6 fatty acids low. This leaves monounsaturated fats (olive oil and canola oil) and omega-3 fatty acids (fish, some plant foods, and canola oil) as our fats of choice. These are the fats that may be beneficial for our health in reasonable, moderate amounts. But remember…it’s not just about the fat, eating less fat is only one step.

All the other food steps to freedom fit together to form a healthier, leaner lifestyle. It isn’t just about the type or the amount of fat. It’s about eating more vegetables, fruits, fish, and whole grains, and eating less sugar and red meat and drinking less alcohol.