NOT ALL FATS ARE CREATED EQUAL

I used to think of fats as a basic macronutrient just like protein and carbs… they all broke down to do the same thing regardless of the type. Fat = Fat. Right?

Wrong.

Truth is, there are good/great/amazing/anti-inflammatory fats, then are rancid, chemical-laden, and inflammatory fats. In fact, some fats nowadays are genuinely frightening. Created in labs and factories from crop seeds, these vegetable oils (without any vegetables) are actually the ones that will cause your body inflammation, pain, and even heart disease.

Other fats, though (like the ones our ancestors ate before labs), make our bodies strong, supple, and energized. They calm inflammation, create perfect cellular membranes, and fuel our bodies. Want to find out the difference? Read on.

FATS THAT HURT ENDOMETRIOSIS

REFINED VEGETABLE OILS

Refined vegetable seed oils are the worst thing you can put into your body, endometriosis or not. The science emerging shows these fats cause system wide inflammation, leading to everything from cancer to heart disease to chronic pain. This is a long discussion, and I wrote a detailed article all about it HERE, so if you don’t know about vegetable oils and how they hurt your body and exacerbate your endo, please make sure to read it pronto!

What are refined vegetable oils? The popular canola, grape seed, sunflower, safflower, corn, soy, and vegetable. (Note that sunflower and safflower oils aren't bad if they're cold pressed ... you will probably never find them cold pressed though).

So assuming you now know how detrimental these oils are to your endo body, I want to mention that avoidance of these oils goes beyond cooking with them, since they’re in so many processed foods. When I go to the health food store and check out all the brands, expensive or not, nearly every packaged item on the shelf is full of these oils since they’re, well, super cheap. So, be sure to read labels on things like bread, crackers, chips, baked goods, and condiments like salad dressings and mayonnaise. They’re often loaded with safflower, canola, corn, or soy oil. Even if they’re "organic" it’s just a fancy word to put in front of a foul ingredient. You know what else is organic? Poop. Sorry, that was crude elementary-school humor, but really: you shouldn’t eat poop just like you shouldn’t eat refined vegetable oils. Nuff said.

Instead, if you buy processed foods, look for alternative products that use ingredients made for high heat processing, like avocado or coconut oil. You can more often find chips, crackers, and condiments made with these today, although still check the label! Often they’ll still sneak in some veggie oil on the side.

LOW-QUALITY OR RANCID FATS

A few years back, there was an undercover investigation that revealed olive oil fraud across the US, with bottles labeled extra virgin olive oil being filled with counterfeit or cheap oils, such as soybean, rancid olive oil, and even fish oils mixed with low-grade olive-pomace oil. Gross.

Even though there were recalls and big headlines, contaminated oils still sit on shelves today. UC Davis did a study on olive oil, specifically, that laid out the brands that are still labeled extra-virgin, but fail to meet that standard (because of either rancidity, oxidation, adulteration with a cheaper oil mix, or a poor quality oil made from damaged olives). If you want to see the list, MamaNatural lays it out in an easy-to-read format HERE, a great reminder that we can’t simply trust the companies and stores selling us products with snazzy labels. 

I recommend going the extra length and researching the companies with the highest integrity. They don’t have to be the most expensive (for example, Kirkland olive oil made the pure olive oil cut, while Whole Foods olive oil was found contaminated), but it’s worth the extra effort to know the fats going into your body are healing instead of hurting. 

FATS MIXED WITH SUGAR

One of the issues that skews the heart disease hypothesis in developed countries is that people are eating their fat with an ample dose of sugar, and sugar is a mass inflammation-producing culprit. As are refined veggie oils. So put them together and you have a high-fat, high-sugar bomb ready to react in your body. This is exactly what a high-fat diet should not look like.

Of course not everyone can resist a cupcake here or there (this picture actually is making my pregnant self want to run to the kitchen a bake a batch right now), so learning how to read labels will once again aid your healing journey so you can avoid cheap, inflammatory vegetable oils. Once you do that, you’ll hopefully start getting your sweet fixes at home from real grass-fed butter or coconut oil, almond flour, and chocolate.

POOR QUALITY SUPPLEMENTS

We have to talk about fish oils because, more often than not, people are being sold oxidized, rancid, contaminated, and poor quality oils as supplements. Ugh, I’m so tired of billion dollar industries taking advantage of us! But it’s happening, so let’s address this … especially for us endo girls who NEED omega-3’s to calm that rampant inflammation.

Unfortunately, fish oil is a delicate polyunsaturated fat and, like the vegetable oils, is easily turned rancid by high-heat processing. Rancid oil causes inflammation. So too, do additives like soybean oil, often found in cheap fish oils. So if you take a fish oil pill that’s been heat processed, you’re immediately doing more harm to your body than good.

Instead, aim to get your omega-3 needs from animal sources in their whole form! Think of cold water fish like salmon, sardines, mackerel, anchovies, fish roe. I have a whole post on Omega 3s and endo here.

Fats that Help Heal The Endometriosis Body

Ancestral Fats that are packed with fat-soluble vitamins A, D, + K2

Fat soluble means you need to consume these vitamins with fat in order to absorb them, which is lucky since three of these nutrients are packed within animal fat for the perfect absorption mechanism: A, D, K2.

Vitamin A (retinoids) is an invaluable fat-soluble vitamin used for immune function, reproduction, eye/skin/mucous membrane health, as well as antioxidant functions. Our immune system is somewhat of a binge drinker of vitamin A because of its anti-inflammatory superpower and critical role in enhancing immune function. This vitamin has consistently demonstrated a therapeutic effect in addressing a variety of diseases. It’s also essential for reproduction and embryo development, as well as essential for detoxifying BPA from the body (and remember, BPA is implicated in the creation of endo-like cells). Even sub-acute deficiency may cause trouble conceiving, poor night vision, acne (skin health), dry skin or eyes, or put you on the “sick train” of constant illnesses.

What does deficiency look like? Depending, it can be reduced immunity, poor night vision, chronic intestinal problems (your stomach and intestines require lots of vit A), liver disfunction, dry hair/skin/mucous membranes, chronic inflammation, acne, psoriasis, weak fingernails, and vitamin D deficiency.

To boost your vitamin A levels, consume it directly in the retinoid form. The best options for this include liver, grass-fed butter, egg yolks, and cod liver oil. Consuming 3 egg yolks or 4–7 tbsp butter (depending on whether it’s grass-fed) or 1 tsp of cod liver oil per day (look for brands that are third-party tested for purity, such as Rosita’s) will provide the RDI for one day. Eating liver will provide your RDI for the week in one single 3-oz serving! Another option to consider is 100 percent grass-fed beef, as it’s been shown to have 7 times more vitamin A than grain-fed beef.

When it comes to plant foods, know that plant-based beta-carotene is not vitamin A. While carotenoids are incredible antioxidants and polyphenols found most abundantly in orange-colored fruits and veggies, your body may not turn much into vitamin A. Due to deficiencies and simple body chemistry, some of us will convert no more than 5 percent of beta-carotene into retinoids. This is why the 700 mcg/day recommendation for omnivores shoots up to 16,800 mcg/day for vegans. Ideally, we should all be consuming plenty of both retinol and beta-carotene, since each has an important (though somewhat separate) role.

Vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) is our fat-soluble “sunshine vitamin,” although technically it’s a hormone. It is essential for proper mineral metabolism, immune function, fertility, and more. It is also important for regulating normal cell growth and chronic inflammatory responses, increasing anti-inflammatory cytokine (a type of immune factor) production, and decreasing pro-inflammatory cytokines. Not surprisingly, multiple studies have found an association linking vitamin D deficiency with endometriosis.

So many of us are vitamin D deficient, and scientists are now even linking vitamin D deficiencies directly to auto immune disorders! The best way to get D is obviously the sun, and without sunscreen. If you’re white, you only need some 20 minutes a day of direct sunlight to meet this requirement. If you're at the darkest end of the skin spectrum, well, you might need 2 hours. But of course it depends on where you live in the world, and what season it is, so check out this Vitamin D Council page that lays it out easily for all you girls out there :)

For those of you who know you need some supplementation, animal fats are a great option. That’s how our ancestors did it, you know, before we could pop into a pharmacy and get some vitamins. Pastured lard, egg yolks, cold water fish, and liver are all exceptional sources of vitamin D. If you find you have to supplement, just make sure you only consume Vitamin D3

Vitamin K2 is the third fat-soluble vitamin synergistic with A and D, forming a sort of fat-soluble tri-fecta. K2 is a fantastic vitamin because it helps us actually utilize minerals. It's the vitamin that can even help you re-mineralize your teeth if you have cavities.

And since K2 is not to be confused with K1 (which is found in plants), you need to eat animal sources such as fish roe, grass-fed cheeses and butter, egg yolks, liver, and butter.

Ancestral fats heal your cell membranes

Every cell in your body is covered in a layer of fat and protein called the lipo-protein layer, which is absolutely essential because it separates each cell in your body from the outside world. That’s why quality fat is critical—because it surrounds and protects cell membranes which allow for the exchange of nutrients and wastes. It is necessary for these membranes to be in top working condition in order for the brain and body to be at their maximum functioning potential.

If you’re not eating enough fats or the right kind, the integrity of this layer is compromised, meaning it’s hard to get nutrients in and waste out. What happens to the cell health if it can’t eat or poop? Yup, it gets sick and tired, and so do you.

The fats that make up your cell membranes are a mix of saturated fats, unsaturated fats, essential fatty acids (think omega 3 and 6), and cholesterol. Hence getting a balance of all 4 is imperative to both human and animal health. Cholesterol, for example, maintains a strong cell wall integrity. Imagine a house made of wood versus one made from particle board, which would you prefer?

In this really cool article, Dr. Dan explains “anyone who has a neurodegenerative disorder, this includes Autism, Multiple Sclerosis, Diabetes, Optic Neuritis, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Fibromyalgia, Alzheimers, Parkinson’s Disease, ALS, Manic Depression, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome is most likely lacking in “good fats” and overloaded in “bad fats”. Bad fats obviously being vegetable oils and trans fats. No, for cells to be in tip top shape, you need to be eating a healthy amount of ancestral fats and cholesterol.

If you have more questions about fat digestion, make sure to check out my Troubleshooting Page.