Excerpt from Bragg’s Healthy Heart Book — Chapter 3
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Atherosclerosis is not brought on by age, but by diet! Autopsies of the American soldiers killed in battle in the Korean War revealed the shocking fact that 77% of these soldiers (average ages 18–22) already had atherosclerosis! In contrast, the Koreans and other Asians who died on the same battlefield, under the same conditions, had only an 11% incidence of this disease. It’s well known, the traditional Asian diet is low in saturated fats. The U. S. is a nation of fat-eaters. Saturated fats make up 40% of the caloric intake of the average American diet. Most of these are the commercial, hydrogenated fats — the most clogging, deadly of all fats and are not natural in any sense of the word. It’s such a solid fat that it cannot be broken down by the body’s 98.6°F heat. The best natural, unsaturated fats break down at body temperature and don’t cause clogging problems. These are perishable foods and don’t have a long shelf life. In time, these unsaturated fats take on oxygen and become rancid, which gives off a strong odor and bitter taste.
Beware of Saturated, Hydrogenated Fats!
Hydrogenated, saturated fat remains stable because it’s impervious to oxygen. In reality, it is embalmed fat! The American consumer has been brainwashed by the greedy, large manufacturers into believing that they are permanently fresh and healthy! A container of this processed fat will keep in the house for years, because it’s impossible for it to turn rancid. Clever advertising says these saturated, hydrogenated, snow white, processed (erroneously called vegetable) shortenings will not smoke. They also make other clever sales claims which have no relation whatsoever to good nutrition. The same applies to unhealthy margarine made to imitate butter. So — instead of the natural, unsaturated fats that will aid health — Americans consume deadly hydrogenated, saturated fats, high in cholesterol that coats and clogs the bloodstream, especially the vital arteries. All this clogging eventually causes fatal or crippling clots (thrombosis) into the bloodstream, causing strokes.
