Low Fat, fat free and diet food and beverage products do not have a very good track record at helping people lose weight or keep it off. At Optimal Body Balance, we know this. We believe that healthy fat must be part of a well-balanced diet. You have to eat fat to lose fat. You also have to eat fat for your brain to function effectively, to create necessary hormones, to absorb fat-soluble vitamins and to be a happy person. Fat free dairy is a huge thing in our society. Almost any doctor or dietitian you talk to will say that fat free dairy is the way to go — never buy the full fat version. Recently though, there have been a few interesting studies about fat free milk vs whole milk and weight gain in children.

Most families buy fat-free or reduced fat milk for their families. This is often per the guidance from doctors and pediatricians. The recommendation is based on studies that low fat milk reduces concentrations of bad cholesterol and also the idea that reducing calories will protect against weight gain.

A study published in the Archives of Disease in Childhood, found the opposite. Pre-school children who consumed fat-free or low-fat milk actually weighed more than their full fat drinking peers. The trend was found to hold up across all racial and ethnic groups as well as socio-economic groups. Other studies have has similar findings. Brigham and Women’s Hospital found that fat-free and low-fat milk consumption also resulted in weight gain among 9 to 14 year olds. Children’s Hospital in Boston found that preschoolers who grew up drinking whole milk has lower BMI’s (body mass index).

Cutting out fat is not helping protect kids against obesity. Calories in, calories out does not work.

Any fat-free or low-fat product is a processed product. It has to be processed in order to remove the fat. And then they usually end up adding more stuff in or taking more stuff out as well. Instead of choosing processed foods, choose foods as close to the state that nature intended them to be. That means you’ll be buying full fat dairy. These high fat foods need to be balanced with protein, vegetables and carbohydrates; that is the key. You can’t just eat as much high fat dairy as you want — you have to balance it.

You also have to get a variety of healthy fats, so not just fat from dairy, but fat from nuts and seeds, healthy oils, olive and avocados, to name a few. One of the reasons including fat in your diet is so important is for satiety reasons. Full fat foods are much more satisfying than their fat-free counterparts. They will fill you up faster and cut cravings; that is what they are supposed to do. If you don’t satisfy your needs, you will find yourself eating more than you should. Full fat, real foods will have you eating less because you’ll get more satisfaction from your food.

Source: http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2013/03/19/174739752/whole-milk-or-skim-study-links-fattier-milk-to-slimmer-kids

This post comes to us from out friends at Optimal Body Balance.