# Sugar is more to blame than fat for weight gain Since the advent of the FDA's food pyramid in 1977, obesity, diabetes and heart disease have been on the rise. The food pyramid was designed after the Diet-Heart hypothesis formulated by Ancel Keys, which posited that fat and cholesterol cause heart disease. This controversial hypothesis remains unproven. In fact, cholesterol is essential for all animal life. What is more, our body tends to reduce cholesterol synthesis in accordance to dietary intake: dietary cholesterol has therefore little effect on blood cholesterol. High-density lipoproteins (HDL) and low-density lipoproteins (LDL), common fat indicators, have been shown to bear little relevance to good health. By contrast, triglycerides are a better indicator of disease. Reducing carbohydrate intake, not fat intake, can help lower triglycerides (see [[Hormones cause weight gain, not calories]]). Whereas humans need fat and protein to survive, it is entirely possible to survive without ingesting carbohydrates. And, among carbohydrates, some are particularly harmful (see [[Sugar is poison for the liver]]). --- ## 📚 References - [[@whativelearnedStoryFatWhy2016|The Story of Fat: Why we were Wrong about Health]]