We have seen a great deal of discussion in our community and in the media about whether you should be eating a low fat or a high fat diet to lose weight and lower your cholesterol.  There has been a great deal of discussion, but I am not sure that I have heard much wisdom.

The main controversy seemed to begin when the high fat Atkins diet leapt onto the scene in the last few years.  Many decided, apparently prematurely, that the high fat diet would alter cholesterol in a bad way.  Recently, a studied demonstrated that you could lose weight and lower your cholesterol with a high fat diet just as you can with a low fat diet.  So the argument begins about whose diet is the right diet. 

So should you do the Atkins diet, follow the American Heart Association guidelines, or apply the Schwarzbein principle.  Perhaps you should get in the zone or eat for your blood type. 

I find that there are a couple things that I have learned in the last 20 years.  Number one, if you lose weight your cholesterol goes down.  It is probably going to go down simply due to the weight loss, regardless of how you lose it.  Number two, weight loss books and diets are not the answer. 

This country has a tremendous problem with overweight and its medical consequences.  We also have more fad diets and diet books than anywhere else in the world.  Let’s not fool ourselves.  There is still no magic.  It still looks like it is simply calories in versus calories burned.  Our country has abundant, delicious, relatively inexpensive food compared to the rest of the world.  We drive everywhere, and watch TV all the time.   Most people have very low activity levels.  There is no mystery here.  It is not about high fat or low fat.  It is about how much we eat and how much we sit. 

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