Let’s assume, one’s staple in the LCHF diet is olive oil, instead of butter, coconut oil or lard:
Would the same benefits such as lowering of the tryglycerides still apply, given that one sticks to the diet and doesn’t sneak in carbs one way or the other?
Are there any other benefits from using SFAs, such as quicker energy pathways?
Or doesn’t it really matter whether to use primarily SFAs or MUFAs, assuming one keeps PUFAs low?
Thanks!
Take a shot at very very complex subject questions, I will:
Olive Oil:
•Would the same benefits such as lowering of the tryglycerides still apply, given that one sticks to the diet and doesn’t sneak in carbs one way or the other?
- “…People with high triglycerides should substitute monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats —such as those found in canola oil, olive oil or liquid margarine —for saturated fats. Substituting carbohydrates for fats may raise triglyceride levels and may decrease HDL (“good”) cholesterol in some people. …” …More
•Are there any other benefits from using SFAs, such as quicker energy pathways?
•Or doesn’t it really matter whether to use primarily SFAs or MUFAs, assuming one keeps PUFAs low?
- What are Essential Fats? Types of Fats Fats are a mixture of fatty acids: Saturated fatty acids (SFAs), such as beef fat, form solid foods at room temperature because they are straight molecules and can pack tightly together. Monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs), such as olive oil, have one ÒkinkÓ or bend. They form liquid foods at room temperature, but pack together as solids when refrigerated. Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), like flax seed oil, have 2 or more kinks. They remain liquid even when refrigerated, because the molecules cannot pack together. Two PUFAs (w3 and w6) are EFAs. Others (w7 and w9) are not EFAs. Dr. Siguel coined the term Òessential fatsÓ to refer to the w3 and w6 PUFAs. The human body can make MUFAs & SFAs, but not w3 or w6. It is the unique, kinked shape of PUFAs which allows them to perform their useful functions in our bodies. PUFAs can assume many different spatial configurations. Each of these different spatial shapes is known as an Òisomer.Ó Isomers have the same number of atoms, but they are arranged in a different way and thus form different physical structures. The highly unsaturated fatty acids can form more isomers than the less unsaturated fatty acids. Heat, light, and many physical processes can change the shape of a PUFA from one isomer to another isomer As far as we know, only one form, known as the ÒcisÓ form, has the necessary biological effects. The cis form is usually found in natural foods.
- WIKI: Which fat is which: “Oleic Acid (Olive Oil)” This one is the monounsaturated fatty acid common in Olive oil, and also commonly stored in human body fat cells. - Richard (the dudes)
- Trans fats: “…The reason that trans fats are not good to eat in large amounts is because of what we do with unsaturated fats in our body. We use them to build the lipid membrane around our cells. If we have nice bendy polyunsaturated fats like alpha-Linolenic acid then we retain flexible cell membranes. If however we have trans[1] fatty acids then we end up with rigid inflexible cell membranes. …” - Richard (the dudes)
Footnotes:
[1] hydrogenated and possibly partiallly hydrogenated fats\oils?
Regarding lowering triglycerides, I have found something interesting:
Throughout the research on lowering triglycerides, two trends emerge. The first is that limiting carbohydrates and increasing fat consumption leads to lower triglyceride levels. The second is that polyunsaturated fats decrease triglycerides more than any other fat.
If we combine these two trends together, we come out with a Mediterranean-style ketogenic diet that restricts carbohydrates more than any other diet and places emphasis on omega-3 rich fish like sardines and salmon and polyunsaturated fat rich nuts and olive oil.
The Mediterranean-style Ketogenic Diet will also provide a healthier amount of vegetables, fiber, and protein than a typical American’s diet, which further improves triglyceride levels.
I see where you are going with this Omega-9’s (oleic acid, or monounsaturated fats) help regulate 3, 6 & 7…
Omega 3==>Omega 6==>Omega 7 (lipokine)==>Omega 9 (improves absorption of all the others)
All work together and are not effective without the other!
so it seems… oddly enough, I wonder how this then compares to ruled.me’s conclusion about serum triglycerides
Ketogenic diet (KD) is one of the most effective therapies for intractable epilepsy. Olive oil is rich in monounsaturated fatty acids and antioxidant molecules and has some beneficial effects on lipid profile, inflammation and oxidant status. The aim of this study was to evaluate the serum lipid levels of children who were receiving olive oil-based KD for intractable seizures at least 1 year. 121 patients (mean age 7.45 ± 4.21 years, 57 girls) were enrolled. At baseline and post-treatment 1, 3, 6, and 12 months body mass index-SDS, total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and triglyceride levels were measured. Repeated measure ANOVA with post hoc Bonferroni correction was used for data analysis. The mean duration of KD was 15.4 ± 4.1 months. Mean total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol and triglyceride levels were significantly higher at 1st, 3rd, 6th and 12th months of the KD treatment, compared to pre-treatment levels (p = 0.001), but showed no difference among during-treatment measurements. Mean body mass index-SDS and HDL-cholesterol levels were not different among the baseline and follow-up time points (p = 0.113 and p = 0.067, respectively). No child in this study discontinued the KD because of dyslipidemia. Even if rich in olive oil, high-fat KD causes significant increase in LDL-cholesterol and triglyceride levels. More studies are needed to determine the effect of KD on serum lipids in children using different fat sources in the diet.
If the study is right and olive oil does increase serum trigs, I wonder if that’s necessarily a bad thing… on the other hand, it seems logical, that a high sat. fat diet would lower trigs, because the body appears to make “better” on-the-fly use of the energy, right?
”…Higher levels of triglycerides are also associated with higher levels of LDL-cholesterol and lower levels of HDL-cholesterol (12). In other words, keto diet is rich in fat which in the beginning is not oxidized but flow free in the bloodstream. …” “…A clinical trial among epileptic children also showed that a regime of the ketogenic diet for 6 months resulted in increased mean LDL cholesterol levels, elevated triglyceride levels and decreased HDL-cholesterol levels. However, the authors suggested that high cholesterol levels could have been caused by antiepileptic medications as well (7, 8). …” …More
If your fully ketoadapted and using more ketones than glucose from amino acids for fuel? The cells in the body tissue would actually be making better use (not massively floating around in the blood stream) of the ketones rather than glycogen from skeletal muscle tissue and/or amino acid(s) converted glucose for energy; meanwhile the liver would be working to convert (hydrolysis) trigs stored in fat cells, as well as dietary fat or e.g. medium-chain triglycerides like MCT oil into ketones for fuel or energy?
Reference:
- “…Ketone bodies are formed by ketogenesis when liver glycogen stores are depleted (or from metabolising medium-chain triglycerides). … Most cells in the body can use both glucose and ketone bodies for fuel, and during ketosis, free fatty acids and glucose synthesis (gluconeogenesis) fuel the remainder. …” …More
- Lipids are available to the body from three sources. They can be ingested in the diet, stored in the adipose tissue of the body, or synthesized in the liver. Fats ingested in the diet are digested in the small intestine. The triglycerides are broken down into monoglycerides and free fatty acids, then imported across the intestinal mucosa. Once across, the triglycerides are resynthesized and transported to the liver or adipose tissue. Fatty acids are oxidized through fatty acid or β-oxidation into two-carbon acetyl CoA molecules, which can then enter the Krebs cycle to generate ATP. If excess acetyl CoA is created and overloads the capacity of the Krebs cycle, the acetyl CoA can be used to synthesize ketone bodies. When glucose is limited, ketone bodies can be oxidized and used for fuel. Excess acetyl CoA generated from excess glucose or carbohydrate ingestion can be used for fatty acid synthesis or lipogenesis. Acetyl CoA is used to create lipids, triglycerides, steroid hormones, cholesterol, and bile salts. Lipolysis is the breakdown of triglycerides into glycerol and fatty acids, making them easier for the body to process. …More
Oddly lard seems to have a good balance of sfa, pufa, mufa, . Olive oil is not all mufa. This article leans veggie, but the graph is good and shows balance of O3,O6, O9 etc.
http://appforhealth.com/2011/10/is-coconut-oil-really-all-that/
That and seed oils , due to processing, are not great. So a mix in your daily diet makes sense. Lard, butter, olive oil. Yum!
Just listened to 2kd podcast on low carb breck. #108. Some discussion on not eating oils high in linoleic acid by Doctor Eades… Making butter a better choice than olive oil in some ways.
K
I was listening to Stephen Phinney discussing the apparently benign influence of saturated fat in the diet on saturated fat levels in the blood. It’s apparently a more complex relationship than fat in the mouth = fat in the blood, and in fat adapted people, the saturated fat gets burned first and really doesn’t have a big impact. His words, “in this case, you are Not what you eat.”
My personal thought on fat and oil: if your body can’t derive a fat from food by itself, your body was not designed to eat it. The more work you have to do, the less likely it’s a genetically natural fat to eat, or at least to eat in quantity. You can chew, press, stomp, soak or boil corn, soybeans or rapeseed all day long and you’ll never budge the tiny bit of fat in it, that takes an industrial machine, superheating, and most likely a chemical not found in nature. I do wonder about olives, which are simply horrible, horrible things without some processing, but at least it’s relatively simple and benign processing, and we’ve had several thousand years to adapt to them.
