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Saturated Fat *IS* Healthy!

Food Renegade

challenging politically correct nutrition

Articles by Kristen Michaelis CNC

Kristen Michaelis CNC is a published author and teacher. She's created a general nutrition curriculum used by classrooms around the US and written Beautiful Babies -- a book on nutrition for fertility, pregnancy, and breastfeeding that premiered at #1 on Amazon in its category, beating out What to Expect When You're Expecting.

Your Extra-Virgin Olive Oil Is Fake

Did you know that the Mob makes money hand over fist by selling you fake olive oil? According to Tom Mueller, an intrepid journalist who wrote a scandalously revealing book on the subject, 70% of the extra virgin olive oil sold is adulterated — cut with cheaper oils. Apparently, the mob’s been at it so long, that even most so-called “experts” can’t tell a real olive oil from a fake olive oil based on taste alone.

Why I Chose Advanced BRK Pressure Cookers

Once I decided that pressure cooking is actually a healthy way to prepare meals, I knew I had to find a pressure cooker I could trust, a pressure cooker that would NOT explode on me, a pressure cooker that was easy to use but ultra safe. I chose advanced BRK pressure cookers. Here’s why.

Coconut Oil Charms Health Food Community

You knew it would happen eventually. Coconut oil has been making headlines again — and this time it’s not playing the part of a villainous saturated fat. The New York Times ran a piece on the nutrient-rich hero of vegetable fats last week, and (wonder of wonders!) decided it was good for you, in addition to being downright tasty.

5 Ways to Get More Fat in Your Diet

When I tell people that my diet runs between 55% and 65% of my total calories from fat, they look at me like I’m growing a second head. “How do you do that?” they ask with a look that says they suddenly suspect me of deep fat frying everything I eat. Next up, the inevitable, “Why do you do that?” The answer to both is simple.

The Definitive Guide To Pork

I’d never before considered that the world of pork labeling could be nearly as confusing as, say, the world of egg labeling. But it is. It totally is. As with egg labels, a lot of terms get thrown around on labels, and hardly anyone seems to know what they actually mean. Now you’ll know.

What’s More Healthy: An Apple, Or Liver?

Which side of the fence do you fall on? Do you believe the apple must be healthier because it’s a colorful plant food, full of important and necessary vitamins and minerals? Or do you believe the liver is healthier because it’s packed with more nutrients per gram than just about any other food on the planet?

Butter vs. Margarine Showdown

It’s no secret I’m a fan of butter. I love the way it tastes. I love the way it makes other foods taste. I love the way it melts, the rich creamy texture it imparts to delectable recipes, and I love that it is REAL. If I wanted to, I could put a cow out to lush, green pastures every day, milk it, and use my haul to create fresh butter in my own kitchen. I can’t create margarine in my kitchen.

Butter from grass-fed cows is arguably one of the best kinds of fats we can eat, but when you tell most people this they roll their eyes. Where’s the science to back that claim up? They ask. Everyone knows butter is bad, bad, bad for you. Don’t they?

Ah. Well now you can point them to a recent study which broke down the results of the 20 year Framingham Heart study, specifically comparing butter consumption to margarine consumption. Guess which tasty, spreadable fat wins?

Gelatin: A Healthy Protein Powder

I’m not exactly sure when protein powders became so mainstream. It used to be that only body builders bothered with them, but now everyone from suburban moms to high-rise living hipsters is on the protein powder bandwagon. After all, they promise so much: extra protein without extra food.

Why I Stopped Using Tampons & Pads

Ladies, this post is for you. In this post, I explore the dangers of tampon use, talk about why I don’t like pads, and share my own experience switching to the Diva Cup for menstruation.

Dangers of Soy

Are you convinced yet about the dangers of soy? Many aren’t. “Is soy bad for you? …Really?” I hear the question so often I want to scream. After decades of hearing marketing spin about how soy is a wonder food, a protein-rich legume able to rescue us from our dependence on meat, I suppose it’s understandable why so many people have yet to understand fully the dangers of soy. Really, you’re not going to get the full story unless you research it on your own. And why would you, when soy is “universally” touted as a health food? Well, it isn’t.