The obese seek out the “fat-free” label in hopes of losing weight. It doesn’t do the job – but that doesn’t stop them from getting ensnared over and over again. I can hear the rationale: “It just seems so plausible. I want to reduce my body fat, so I should eat fat-free foods.” Wrong.

After the fat is removed from the foods, high-carbohydrate sweeteners are added, such as high fructose corn syrup, which are nothing more than fat fertilizers and future heart attacks. Look for these sweeteners listed also as sucrose, dextrose, or cane sugar on the labels of your favorite foods. Then buy something else – like an all-natural food, high in healthy fat.

Healthy fat – which you can find in wild Alaskan salmon or salmon oil, coconut and olive oil, grass-fed beef, seeds, nuts, avocados, and eggs – is essential for proper growth and development, and the maintenance of good health. It provides your body with vital energy without causing you to gain weight. In sharp contrast to refined carbohydrates, sugar, and transfats, healthy fats tell your body to burn fat. They also make you feel fuller quicker. Add them to your grocery list.

See full article, “Processed Food Fat Trap,” by Shane Ellison, B.Sc., in Well Being Journal, Vol. 16, No. 5, www.wellbeingjournal.com or 1-775-887-1702. Also in “Fats” special CD.

Well Being Journal

January/February 2013