Approximately thirty-five years ago public health authorities in the United States decided that people should limit fat in their diet, primarily saturated fat. The main concern was as that saturated fats raise blood cholesterol and increases the risk of heart disease. The McGovern committee's report, "Dietary Goals for The United States" was published in 1977. Although possibly not based on solid scientific data, the committee's main results were confirmed a few years later by the USDA. The main conclusion was that Americans should "avoid too much fat, saturated fat and cholesterol".
Soon, the demonization of fat, primarily saturated fat, spread around the globe. Public health authorities in Scandinavia and the rest of Europe based their recommendation
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But, fat is difficult to replace, because it is an essential component of good and tasty food. Instead of fat, different types of refined simple sugars, such as the famous high fructose corn syrup were used to make people like the low-fat varieties.
As the years went by it became apparent that obesity was on the rise. People were getting fatter and fatter, despite all the low-fat food. Furthermore, type 2 diabetes seemed to be skyrocketing. Was it because we were not following the public health guidelines or was it because of the guidelines themselves? Is it possible that public authorities were wrong? Is it sensible to make general recommendations on diet and nutrition that applies for everybody? Should the obese, sedentary, middle-aged male follow the same diet recommendation as the thirty years younger normal weight, well-trained university student?
Death rate from coronary heart disease has declined in the United States and Europe for the last 25-30 years. This is due to many different factors. Medical and surgical therapy has improved, smoking has become less frequent, cholesterol levels are lower and treatment of high blood pressure has improved. We do not know whether dietary recommendations have been helpful in this respect. However, many specialists believe that the increased frequency of obesity and type 2 diabetes may soon reverse the declining death rate from heart