Random Thoughts: Fats & Weight Loss

Because our society loves fat, and lets face it - that is where all the flavor, satiety, and mouthfeel come from, a lot of research is being conducted on the effects of dietary fat on our body fat. Scientists are trying to find out what fats are better (or worse) for us and the answer doesn't seem to be an easy one.

These researchers were trying to determine how where you store your fat (apple vs pear shapes) influence your body's response to dietary fats - and apparently it does!

Obesity related disorder treatments have been utilizing the conversion of patients from PUFAs (polyunsaturated fatty acids) to MCTs (medium chain triglycerides). This is because they metabolize differently, MCT breaks down quickly and goes to your liver rather that going to fat storage. However, their research suggests that this conversion is only really good for pear shaped people. Apple shaped patients fed MCT rich diets had inflammation of their fatty tissues, not the result they were going for!

So, research will continue, and those of us who carry more weight around their middle (like me) will just have to wait to see what works best for us!