sunshine ahead

The weather forecast may disagree with my claim but I don't mean good ol' Mr. Sun anyhow, I'm talking about optimism, positivity, and a sunny outlook on life. Yesterday I read my first issue of Ode magazine and Alison just happened to ask about it. Haven't heard about it either? I'm not surprised. Ode actually began in the Netherlands and was solely published in Dutch for the first nine years of their existence. Now, nearly four years since it was launched in English, the "print and online publication about positive news, about the people and ideas that are changing our world for the better" boasts a global circulation of 100,00+.

That's certainly something to smile about :). I stumbled across the magazine at Fitness' wonderful giveaway table last week, was intrigued by their cover story, Fat is Where it's At and seemed to have become a huge fan overnight. In addition to the stories about "positive social, environmental and economic change" I took special interest in this fat article because of my newfound knowledge concerning the food group.

I was already aware that fat doesn't make you fat, that I need more Omega-3 fatty acids in my diet, that monosaturated fats promote health and reduce the risk of the number one killer of women in America, heart disease... what I didn't know was that saturated fat shouldn't be feared either. I finished reading Dr. Michael Aziz's book, The Perfect 10 Diet just last weekend and have began to look at butter, dark meat, and full-fat dairy products in a brighter light. Have I gone mad? Of course not, I'm just more informed than ever. Did you know that...?

• Dr. Mary Enig personally analyzed the USDA data and essentially concluded that the use of vegetable oils seemed to predispose to cancer while animal fats seemed to protect against cancer.
• Greece, for example, had less than one-fourth the rate of breast cancer compared to Israel but the same dietary fat intake.
• Spain had only one-third the breast cancer mortality of France and Italy but the total dietary fat intake was slightly greater.
• Puerto Rico, with a high animal fat intake, had a very low rate of breast and colon cancer.
• The Netherlands and Finland both used approximately 100 grams of animal fat per capita per day but breast and colon cancer rates were almost twice in the Netherlands what they are in Finland.The Netherlands consumed 53 grams of vegetable fat per person compared to 13 in Finland.
• A study from Cali, Columbia found a fourfold excess risk for colon cancer in the higher economic classes, which used less animal fat than the lower economic classes.
• Saturated fats enhance the immune system, are necessary for healthy bones, provide energy and structural integrity to the cells, protect the liver, and enhance the body's use of essential fatty acids. Not to mention that stearic acid, found in beef tallow and butter, has cholestrol lowering properties and is a preferred food for the heart.

[Source: http://www.westonaprice.org/knowyourfats/oiling.html#animal]

I sure didn't. Thankfully Dr. Aziz and Janet Paskin, a contributor to Ode magazine, exposed me to this under-covered news. Our focus should be on low-sugar, unprocessed, and organic... not fat.

Now before I go, I want to make sure you're not completely disheartened because you were fed the "healthy diet" that turned out to be so totally wrong and untrue. Ode's ten rules for an optimistic life are as follows:

• Fall in love
• Feed your positive thoughts
• Indulge your passions
• Laugh
• Keep a feel-good journal
• Enjoy the simple things
• See the glass half-full
• Find positive friends
• Volunteer for a cause you believe in

Their tenth is a suggestion to subscribe to Ode... but I'm just an realistic optimist and I don't work for Ode magazine, I'll leave that choice up to you and your bank account. Hope you have a phat day blog friends! ;)