'Fat Nocebo' Effect: The only thing we have to fear about saturated fat is the fear itself

July 28, 2:14 PMLow-Carb Lifestyle ExaminerJimmy Moore

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Dr. Deutsch says fear of fat a self-fulling prophecy

If you missed my podcast producer Kevin Kennedy-Spaien’s “State of the Update” post about all the improvements that are happening with the new iTunes page for the show, then be sure to check it out. WE NEED YOUR HELP to get brand new reviews back up on iTunes again to replenish the nearly 90 that were on the old site that are now gone. The brand new podcasts are being added to iTunes and we’re working on getting them to add back the archives. In the meantime, you can access the older episodes at the new podcast web site as well as the new web site feed site. You all have been very patient through all these changes and we are very grateful for your understanding. THANK YOU for your help in getting the show back to where it was before on iTunes.

A few months ago, I was reading a column online called “A Fat Nocebo” which hypothesized that the reason why there is so much heart disease these days isn’t because of the fat and cholesterol we are consuming, but because of our fear of what that fat and cholesterol is going to do to our health. The author of the column says this is what is known as the “nocebo effect” which is the opposite of the placebo effect where people can see improvements in their condition because you expect it to. The nocebo effect, though, brings about negative health consequences because people think something bad is going to happen to them–such as from eating fat and cholesterol. And we have the author of that column as our podcast guest today.

In Episode 274 of “The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore,” we hear from Dr. Marshall Deutsch who is a member of The International Network of Cholesterol Skeptics (THINCS), an organization dedicated to sharing the truth about why saturated fat and cholesterol aren’t the health demons they have been made out to be. Dr. Deutsch writes occasional columns online and the one on the “nocebo effect” was especially fascinating. Listen to him discuss the intricacies of how we become such a fat-fearing populace, how Ancel Keys fudged the numbers for his famous 7-nations study, what the definition and workings of the placebo effect is, why the nocebo effect is causing much more harm to people than saturated fat and cholesterol, the natural trans-fats that are found in real butter that is actually good for you, how the pending expiration of the patents on the statin drugs will likely bring an end to those nauseating cholesterol-lowering television ads, and some of the more than 60 medical inventions that he has been a part of including home pregnancy tests and the A1c test. This is one of the most fascinating discussions I have ever had on my podcast show, so DON’T MISS IT!

There are four ways you can listen to Episode 274:

1. Listen at the new iTunes page for the podcast:

2. Listen and comment about the show at the official web site for the podcast:

3. Download the MP3 file of Episode 274 [39:23m]:

4. Calling (818) 688-2763 to listen via Podlinez

WE NEED YOUR HELP TO PROMOTE THIS PODCAST! Please go to the brand new iTunes page for my podcast and write a review for the show. Now that we’re listed back on iTunes again, it is already back in the Top 20 Nutrition & Fitness podcasts–WOO HOO! Let’s keep the momentum going by flooding the show with reviews that will help continue to push it up the charts. THANKS so much for your efforts to help us expose this podcast to a wider audience.

What do you think about Dr. Marshall Deutsch’s “fat nocebo” effect theory? Do you think it’s possible to get heart disease simply from believing eating saturated fat and cholesterol is bad for you? Talk about it in the show notes section of Episode 274. Read his column “A Fat Nocebo” and watch the YouTube video Christine and I did on this subject. Coming up on Thursday we will have Mark “Dr. Tea” Ukra, author of The Ultimate Tea Diet: How Tea Can Boost Your Metabolism, Shrink Your Appetite, and Kick-Start Remarkable Weight Loss to talk about how consuming tea can benefit your weight loss and health efforts.

NOW MORE THAN EVER, WE NEED YOUR FINANCIAL SUPPORT! Please consider clicking on the DONATE button on the official podcast web site. These upgrades are quite laborious and hundreds of man-hours have already been invested by my podcast producer Kevin to make this transition to benefit you. Our sponsors are helping to underwrite our server costs, but the intensive labor involved warrants payment. Anything you can do to help us keep this podcast online would be greatly appreciated. If you are benefitting from the information provided on this podcast, then please consider making a donation by visiting PayPal and submitting your gift to the e-mail address livinlowcarbman@charter.net. THANK YOU AGAIN!