Fat For Testosterone And Brain Health

Did you know that the typical Western Diet advises just 10-20% or your calorie intake to come from fat and 60% of calorie intake should come from carbohydrates? (20% protein.) In fact, in America, MyPlate.gov does not even include fat in its daily recommendations. This is criminal!!! Fat is an essential macronutrient for testosterone, brain health and to fuel every cell in your body. In 1994 The American Diabetes Association recommended that Americans should consumer 60-70% of their calories from carbohydrates and rates of diabetes and obesity exploded. Rates doubled between 1997 and 2007.

Healthy fat does not make you fat, nor cause adverse cholesterol levels, not cause heart attack or stroke. Our brain is comprised of about 70% fat and every cell in our body is made up of 50% fat, yet we’re told to consume low fat diets – still. Even no fat. Not only does a low fat diet seriously deprive your body of an essential macronutrient for these reasons alone (there are more) but to replace them with high glycemic carbohydrates and sugar is causing serious problems in today’s modern world. A high carb and sugar load not only leads to type-2 diabetes, fat retention and obesity, a rise in oestrogen and a decline in testosterone, but a whole host of other problems too, including brain deterioration as a result of inflammation.

Given this site is mainly about testosterone, let’s look at that first. A few weeks ago I told you I was reading a book called Grain Brain – which provides more concrete supporting evidence from a neurologist with 35 years experience studying the effects of grains on our brains, as the title might suggest. Not only is he involved in brain health, but health over all, including helping men and women with sexual problems including low libido. Cholesterol plays a pivotal role in the production of testosterone. It’s a precursor nutrient for the steroid hormones like oestrogen and the androgens, meaning male hormone secretion including testosterone. Without dietary cholesterol, you’re depriving yourself of this vital nutrient. And organic free range eggs are a superb way of getting a healthy dose of cholesterol – not what we’re told about eggs if you dare listen to conventional advice.

One the author’s clients, a 75-year old man with low testosterone who was taking Viagra for erectile disfunction and other drugs for depression and insomnia was advised by him, to go on a gluten-free, high fat diet for one month. In just one month, his depression had improved and he no longer needed to take Viagra.

If you take Statins which are designed to lower total cholesterol levels, your testosterone levels will drop (because you’ll be lacking in cholesterol) and you’ll more than likely experience side effects including fatigue, shortness of breath, problems with mobility and balance, muscular pain, weakness and atrophy (the wasting away of an organ or tissue), loss of coQ10 in muscles and lack of energy production. In severe cases you may even suffer serious damage to your skeletal muscles. According to the author, low libido is one of the most common complaints among those taking statins.

Back to brain health. Since it is made up of 70% fat, dietary fat is your brain’s best friend. The brain
holds only 2% of the body’s mass, yet contains 25% of the total cholesterol – and this supports brain function and development. Cholesterol creates membranes surrounding cells and keeps them permeable. It “waterproofs” the cells so different chemical reactions can take place inside and outside of the brain cells.

We’re told to cut out saturated fat and to not eat too many eggs as they contain cholesterol. This is such bad advice. Examples of healthy fats include avocados, olives, olive oil, coconut oil, coconut meat, nuts, fatty fish, eggs (free-range organic). Take a wide birth of polyunsaturated fats found in most vegetables oils and avoid margarine like the plague!! Unless it’s made from Olive oil as you may notice some are.