- It is important to remember that excess intake of any nutrient, whether sugars, carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins, minerals or fats, can be harmful
- Genetics, inflammation, blood vessel health, and the body’s ability to use cholesterol all play major roles in heart diseases
- Fats are also required to absorb fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K, which play roles in cardiovascular health
DR VARUN BANSAL
‘Don’t Miss a Beat’ is the theme of this year’s World Heart Day. Celebrated on 29 September every year, it urges people to commit to daily movement to help prevent cardiovascular disease (CVD), the world’s leading cause of death. While CVD claims 20.5 million lives annually, accounting for over 33% of global deaths, up to 80% of early heart attacks and strokes are preventable. With an unbalanced diet being a prime cause of these diseases, dietary fats, particularly oils, are often blamed. Several diet plans suggest complete elimination of oils from our diet to ensure optimal heart health, but this concept overlooks the relationship between essential elements that oils provide for the human body’s structure and adequate function.
Fats, one of the three macronutrients essential to human health alongside carbohydrates and proteins, serve many critical functions, including building cell membranes, supporting hormone production, providing energy, absorbing fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, and K), and maintaining brain function, as well as supporting the body’s shape and structure. At the same time, it is important to remember that excess intake of any nutrient, whether sugars, carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins, minerals or fats, can be harmful.
Sorting the Good Fats from the Harmful
Dietary fats are classified as saturated or unsaturated. Saturated fats have no double bonds and are usually solid at room temperature, while unsaturated fats have one or more double bonds and are mostly liquid. Saturated fats often form Low-Density Lipoproteins (LDL), commonly called “bad cholesterol,” while High-Density Lipoproteins (HDL) carry fats back to the liver.
LDL itself is not harmful, as it transports fat from the liver to tissues. Problems arise when lipid metabolism is disturbed. Excess fats get trapped by immune cells (macrophages), forming foam cells which trigger inflammation and plaque build-up in blood vessels. Over time, this plaque, along with deposits of platelets, fibrin, and calcium, can narrow arteries and raise the risk of heart disease.
Heart disease, however, is not caused by diet alone. Genetics, inflammation, blood vessel health, and the body’s ability to use cholesterol all play major roles. Ironically, despite the reduced use of saturated fats and a greater use of unsaturated fats, heart disease continues to rise worldwide.
When discussing fats, it is important to note that trans fats (unsaturated fatty acids oxidised by repeated heating and air exposure at high temperatures) are much more harmful than saturated fatty acids with respect to atherosclerosis and heart diseases. These trans fats are commonly found in fried foods, baked goods and processed meats, and have been linked to a higher risk of heart diseases.
Choosing Oils for Better Heart Health
This indicates that rather than avoiding fats altogether, it is important to identify and consume oils which provide balanced nutrition in terms of energy, saturated and unsaturated fatty acids, and essential vitamins. Sources of saturated fatty acids such as desi ghee and coconut oil have been used in our diet for a very long time, and several publications and studies in Ayurveda promote the use of desi ghee in the diet for nutrition and various ailments. Widely used oils like palm oil provide a balanced mix of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids, vitamin E, and precursors of vitamin A, which are essential for our body. Other oils such as olive oil, avocado oil, flaxseed oil, and canola oil contain polyunsaturated fatty acids. All these oils, when consumed part of a balanced diet, have shown health benefits in one way or another.
Know the Causes of CVD
Chronic inflammation is another driving force behind heart disease. Smoking and lifestyle diseases such as hypertension and diabetes are known to cause sub-clinical (not evident) inflammation in the blood vessels and the body. Certain oils, particularly those rich in omega-3 fatty acids, such as flaxseed oil and walnut oil, and trace components of palm oil (tocopherols, tocotrienols and carotenoids) have shown anti-inflammatory properties. Including these oils in a balanced diet can help reduce markers of inflammation and lower the risk of heart-related complications.
Studies have shown that regular exercise and modest reductions in blood pressure, especially in individuals with hypertension or metabolic syndrome, both of which are risk factors for heart disease, decrease the risk of heart diseases.
Fats are also required to absorb fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K, which play roles in cardiovascular health. For example, vitamin D deficiency is linked to increased cardiovascular risk. Without adequate fat in the diet, your body may struggle to absorb these nutrients efficiently. Recent studies have also shown that serum vitamin B12 deficiency has a strong role in the development of heart diseases, as this deficiency prevents the breakdown of an amino acid called homocysteine, which contributes to rising blood pressure and heart diseases.
Importantly, fats also help maintain satiety, slowing digestion and keeping you fuller for longer, supporting healthy weight management, which is key for heart disease prevention.
Eliminating oils from our diet can have detrimental effects on health, leading to nutritional deficiencies, hormonal imbalance, cognitive decline, and disruptions in the sustainability of the food chain. Thus, evidence increasingly supports quality over quantity when it comes to fat. A better approach is balance, not elimination.
Dr Varun Bansal is Consultant Cardiac Surgeon, Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals, who specialises in Minimally Invasive and Robotic Cardiac Surgery in addition to routine and complex cardiac surgical procedures for various heart ailments
