High Fat Diet
Introduction

High-fat diets have caused a major controversy during the past decade. In fact, the Western diet, ketogenic diet and other types of high-fat diets have become more and more popular even though studies have been produced that link high fat diets to obesity, brain damage, cardiac disease, liver disease and cancer (Branco et al., 2016; Francois et al., 2016; Freeman, Haley-Zitlin, Rosenberger & Granholm, 2014; Wilson, Deasy, Hayes & Cooke, 2017). Therefore it is extremely important to understand both the benefits and negative effects of a high fat diet on the human body. New research has unmasked the myths that have been believed and applied through the years about this type of diet and its effects on morbidity and mortality in the long run. This paper will examine those issues by defining the high fat diet, where it is practiced, who is impacted by it, when it came into being, and how it affects the body.

What It Is and Where It Occurs

The high fat diet is a diet that is especially high in fats and low in carbs. It is also known as the ketogenic diet and popularly known as the Atkins diet or the Western diet. Meats such as beef, lamb, chicken or pork are typically consumed in the ketogenic diet; and fishes such as salmon or trout along with omega-3 enriched eggs are commonly consumed. Breads are avoided as they are high in carbs. The idea of the high fat diet is to give the body a source of energy it can use to burn its own excess fat instead of adding to it by consuming foods that rather pack on the pounds instead of help the body to be energized enough to shed them. Other benefits of this diet are that it can help to reduce seizures in people who suffer from epilepsy (Wilson, 2015).

The high fat diet occurs nearly globally, as globalization has helped to homogenous the various parts of the world. For instance, fast food franchises like McDonald’s and Pizza Hut can be found on virtually every continent in both the East and the West. And with the rise of social media, ideas and fads (including diets like the Atkins diet) spread quickly around the world and take hold. Though initiated in the West (which is why the high fat diet is sometimes called the Western diet, where meat is viewed as a staple of the Western meal), this diet...…red meat, fatty fish or omega-3 enhanced eggs. The idea is that this diet can help to reduce the sugar content in the body which makes it hard for people to lose weight. However, exercise is typically promoted along with this diet to ensure that weight can be lost. The problem is that most people (especially in the West and other developed parts of the world) do not get the exercise needed to make this diet very effective in controlling body weight. This diet originated in the West and spread throughout the world, and has impacted communities that have leisure time and the funds to spend on meat diets. While the high fat diet can reduce weight for morbidly obese patients, the side effects can include the onset of diabetes, brain damage, liver damage, obesity, cardiovascular disease and cancer. The high fat diet can impact insulin resistance over the long term and can damage one’s ability to tolerate glucose in the blood, which is what leads to type 2 diabetes development in adults. The diet can also advance brain aging and increase metabolic dysfunction. The risks of this diet, therefore, should be considered and the need for exercise should also be understood before adopting.