Latest news with #PagingDrGupta

CNN

Which Cooking Oils Should You Be Using? - Chasing Life with Dr. Sanjay Gupta - Podcast on CNN Audio

Dr. Sanjay Gupta 00:00:03 Welcome to Paging Dr Gupta! This is the podcast where I get to answer your health questions, and they drive the conversation. Let's see what's on your mind today. Kyra, one of our producers is here, who do we have first? Kyra Dahring 00:00:17 Hey, Sanjay. So Will from Passaic, New Jersey, asks which cooking oils are the worst for your cholesterol, and increase those levels, and which ones actually help lower your bad cholesterol? Dr. Sanjay Gupta 00:00:30 'All right this has been a topic that's been in the news quite a bit lately. Seed oils versus animal fats. A couple things to keep in mind: Saturated fats, and these are typically going to be made of the tropical fats such as coconut and palm tree, but also butter and beef tallow. Lots of saturated fats in there. Saturated fats was something that we used to cook with a lot up until the middle of the last century, when it became clear that they were more likely to elevate your cholesterol and were associated with heart disease. That is when we started to move more and more towards plant based fats and seed oils. Those are things like canola oil and avocado oil and olive oil, but also sesame oil, soybean oil, peanut oil. You get the idea. Those are generally going to be lower in saturated fats. Now, there's no question that seed oils are heavily processed. They can be pro-inflammatory and sometimes when they degrade or decompose, they may give off other chemicals as well. And that's been sort of the concern about those. But again keep in mind they are typically much lower in saturated fat. So Will what decades of research has shown us is that consuming too many saturated fats does increase the risk of heart disease. LDL cholesterol, often referred to as bad cholesterol, that can build up in the blood vessels as well. So replacing those saturated fats with unsaturated fats is going to be better for your heart. In fact, there was this large study following around 220,000 people over 30 years that found about a 15% decrease in mortality overall. If you substituted unsaturated fats instead of saturated fats, and actually an increase in about 16% when it comes to mortality, when you're eating more of those saturated fats. Kyra Dahring 00:02:23 Okay, wait, but what about coconut oil? Because I feel like people are always calling it this, you know, healthy alternative and I feel healthy when I'm using it! But if it's packed with saturated fat, should we not be cooking with it? Dr. Sanjay Gupta 00:02:39 Yeah look, when it comes to coconut oil, Kyra, keep this in mind, it's a lot of calories and it's a lot of saturated fat. It may have some potential benefits, like actually raising your HDL, that's the good cholesterol. That's because of something known as its lauric acid content. There's also a lot of what are known as MCTs medium chain triglycerides in coconut oil and that can be helpful as well. But you know, when you have a lot of calories and a lot of saturated fat, you have to think about using the coconut oil sparingly. So it's not going to be necessarily the healthiest option when it comes to oils that are higher in unsaturated fats. Dr. Sanjay Gupta 00:03:19 Okay, now you've probably heard it a thousand times, drink eight glasses of water a day, but is that really the magic number or is that a myth? We'll get into it after the break. Dr. Sanjay Gupta 00:03:36 And we're on to the next page. Kyra, what's the question? Kyra Dahring 00:03:39 Actually, Sanjay, one of our other producers, Jennifer, had a really great question and was wondering how much water should we actually drink each day? Is the eight glasses a day rule true? A myth? You know, what should we be aiming for? Dr. Sanjay Gupta 00:03:55 'Yeah. It's amazing how many people ask this question on a regular basis. The eight glasses a day rule. It's not necessarily a myth, but many of these guidances and recommendations are not set in stone either. The numbers sort of a rough estimate based on average needs. Some people need more. Some people need less. Depends on your size. Depends on what you've been doing that day. But in general, women about 8 to 10 cups a day. That's 64 to 80oz. Men about 10 to 12 cups a day, 80 to 96oz. But again, factors like climate, your activity level if you've been sick, your personal health, all those things play a role. Now the larger question probably is why does hydration matter so much? Think of it like this. About 60% of your body is made of water. It plays a role in keeping all of your body systems working well, everything from blood pressure to kidney function to joint health to your brain health as well. Just a 2% decrease in hydration can affect your cognitive abilities. Think about that the next time you're going into an important meeting or taking a test. Just being 2% dehydrated may affect how well you perform in those areas. Now, I do want to point out when it comes to hydrating yourself, it's not just water that will contribute to that daily intake. Coffee, tea, sparkling water, seltzers, flavored waters those are all really good low calorie choices. Sugary drinks like regular sodas, energy drinks, sweetened water, things like that, they don't have any nutritional value, so they should be avoided. Now, something to note and I think this is really important, dehydration sneaks up on you. And what that means is by the time you're thirsty, you're probably already dehydrated. So you really need to stay ahead of it. It's better to sip throughout the day rather than occasionally gulp down some water. If you struggle with trying to get the recommended water intake. Here are a couple of tips that I incorporate into my own life: Start your day with water. You've just been sleeping, you've probably gone without water for several hours. So keep a glass next to your bed so you can hydrate first thing. Try to attach drinking a full glass of water to other key routines you do. That's called habit stacking. So drink a glass of water while you wait for your coffee, while you walk your dog, while you heat up your food. Also, don't forget to eat water rich fruits and veggies like watermelons, cucumbers, and oranges. That helps as well. And if you struggle to know exactly how much water you're drinking, try filling a large bottle like a 32-ounce bottle in the morning and then sip from that throughout the day, that helps you keep track. But really keeping that water next to your bed, making sure it's the first thing you reach for in the morning. That goes a long way. And at the end of the day, listen to your body. If you're thirsty, if you feel fatigued, if you feel a headache coming on, it's probably a component of dehydration and that means it's time for a water break. Dr. Sanjay Gupta 00:07:00 'Okay, that's all we got for today's episode, but if you have a health question on your mind, I want to hear it. Record a voice memo, email it to asksanjay@ or give us a call, (470) 396-0832 and leave a message. Thanks for listening. I'll be back next Tuesday. Chasing life is a production of CNN Audio. Our podcast is produced by Eryn Mathewson, Jennifer Lai, Grace Walker, Lori Galaretta, Jesse Remedios, Sofía Sánchez, and Kyra Dahring. Andrea Kane is our medical writer. Our senior producer is Dan Bloom, Amanda Sealey is our showrunner, Dan Dzula is our technical director, and the executive producer of CNN Audio is Steve Lickteig. With support from Jamus Andrest, Jon Dianora, Haley Thomas, Alex Manasseri, Robert Mathers, Leni Steinhardt, Nichole Pesaru and Lisa Namerow. Special thanks to Ben Tinker and Nadia Kounang of CNN Health and Katie Hinman.