Fat: the new health paradigm
The Credit Suisse Research Institute released a report entitled "Fat: The New Health Paradigm" which explores the influence of medical recommendations on fat consumption globally, the recent change in consumer perceptions of fat, and what impact this shift has for investors. While historically medical recommendations encouraged dramatically reducing consumption of saturated fats and cholesterol and placed no limits on polyunsaturated fats and carbohydrate intake, consumer buying patterns and medical research are now moving gradually away from these recommendations to favor food products with more natural unprocessed fats and rich in saturated and monounsaturated fats (organic dairy, grass-fed meats, natural oils , and nuts). The report illustrates this evolution by evaluating over 400 medical research papers and books written by academics and industry experts, and at the same time reveals the results of two proprietary surveys of doctors, nutritionists, and consumers.