Excess carbohydrates in the body are converted to fat – this is why eating too many carbs, not too much fat, makes you fat.
Specifically, the carbs are converted to palmitic acid, or palmitate, a saturated fat also found in palm oil, soybean oil, and sunflower oil. All three of these fats are widely, if not ubiquitously used in food processing, and are consumed by nearly everyone in the US.
If you have read my book, or read any modern doctor who knows about fats, you will know that we don’t recommend any of those oils for multiple reasons.
But here’s another reason.
New research shows that palmitate “jet lags” cells, causing systems to function out of sync. Inflammation is a result of this lack of synchronicity of systems, and this disruption is a contributing factor to metabolic disease. High palmitate consumption or creating it in the body from too many carbs appears also to alter insulin secretion and suppress the body’s natural appetite signals (leptin and insulin).
This research suggests that higher fat meals should be eaten in the morning (but I’m sure this needs to be explored further), and here’s the hack – it appears that DHA (omega-3) actually blocks the negative effects of palmitic acid in terms of our cellular clocks and probably other damage it may cause.
So, if you are going to devour that frozen pizza, just remember to take your fish oil to help keep your system in sync.