What you learned in school
Nutrition education taught that all dietary fats were harmful and should be minimized or eliminated from the diet. Students learned that fat made you fat and caused heart disease, with no distinction between different types of fats. The food pyramid emphasized carbohydrates and portrayed all fats equally as dangerous. Health classes taught that low-fat and fat-free products were always healthier choices, leading to the promotion of high-carbohydrate, processed foods as superior alternatives.
What we know now
Nutrition education taught that all dietary fats were harmful and should be minimized. Students learned that fat made you fat and caused heart disease. The food pyramid emphasized carbohydrates and minimized all fats equally. Nutritional science now distinguishes between different types of fats. Monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats (found in olive oil, nuts, fish) are beneficial for health. Even some saturated fats may not be as harmful as once thought. Trans fats are the most harmful. The body needs essential fatty acids for brain function, hormone production, and nutrient absorption. The "all fat is bad" message led to increased consumption of refined carbohydrates.