dieting

During the past 10 years we have learned a great deal in the fields of pathology, chemistry, biology, and nutrition that has provided us with clues to the mystery, and a practical approach to treatment for the first time. Widespread popular interest in the heart and in the aging process has helped immeasurably in the conquest of disease. But at the same time, it has been responsible for a good deal of fear and confusion among lay people. Some of these misconceptions are reflected in the questions my patients ask after reading articles of the kind that now appear in many newspapers and magazines. Take diseases of the heart and blood vessels, for example. Terms such as atherosclerosis, coronary thrombosis, and cholesterol are today fairly commonplace, even in publications for the general reader. But few non-medical people know exactly what these words mean. What is the cause of this new epidemic? Before taking up our discussion of ways to forestall a heart attack, it might therefore be well to understand more clearly the basic physiology involved.

The question may still arise, “Isn’t fat necessary for normal health and nutrition?” As discussed previously, the need for fat in humans has never been established, although certain essential fatty acids contained in some vegetable oils are helpful for keeping blood fats low. To some people, fat are necessary. For example, the Hottentots, South African tribes, related to the Australian bushmen aborigines, are unique amongst humans in that their women have enormously developed behinds, due to extraordinary deposits of fat!