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All fats are not bad fats, researcher says By
Heather Wardle
Tilak Dhiman Here's some food for thought. Imagine all those years your parents encouraged you to drink skim milk and eat only lean meat. According to Tilak Dhiman, an assistant professor in the USU animal, dairy and veterinary sciences department, those rules no longer apply, as research indicates that a certain nutrient found in those extra-fatty foods, such as ice-cream and steak, might actually be good for you as it has been shown to help fight cancer, heart disease and diabetes. Dhiman says research shows that this fat called "conjugated linoleic acid," or CLA, found in both dairy and meat products has been shown to reduce body fat, as well as possess anti-cancer properties. One form of the CLA, according to Dhiman, works to reduce body fat. This particular fat is often found in rich supplies of milk. Dhiman says however that we have "doubly punished, " ourselves in two ways. First he says, people tend to grab the skim milk off the market shelves instead of the whole milk and while the skim milk is said to be healthier, Dhiman says the whole milk actually contains much more CLA. Second, he says, we have changed the way we feed animals. In the past, animals mostly grazed in open land. Today many are fed in the barns and receive a grain and foilage mixture. In fact 90 percent are fed in the barns, while only 10 percent graze outside. According to Dhiman, this is another important factor to be considered as studies show cows who are fed in the barns produce a much lower level of CLA than those who are allowed to graze outside. According to Dhiman researchers understand the farmer's need to barn feed the animals, and in order to reach a compromise, have come up with a few ways in which they can increase the CLA content in the cows. Dhiman says so far they have found roasted soybeans and cottonseed will do the trick in doubling the CLA content in the milk produced by the cows. As for eating your steak or pork chops, Dhiman says they too possess a substantial amount of CLA that will help to reduce body fat, and unlike the milk, can also play a part in the reduction of certain kinds of cancer. While they are just beginning to test the actual results on humans, Dhiman said he received word that a study in France of more than 360 people showed that the higher the level of CLA there was in the breast tissue, the lower the incidences of tumors were in that breast tissue. Also in Finland a recent study just completed by researchers there suggests that there is a relation between whole milk and reduced incidences of cancer. Dhiman says he feels that all too often, "we focus too much on a cure, we think that by tinkering with one gene we can solve the whole world's problems." What we need more of, he says, is time spent on the prevention of such things. Dhiman hopes to continue his research in an effort to help people to understand simply that,"all fat is not bad fat." In fact he says, "food is medicine," and is therefore an essential part of our diet. So if you find that you are one of those who are finicky about the fat the best thing to do Dhiman suggests, "is to use moderation. Don't go too far to one side or too far to the other.
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