This is me after my brother told me about his nutrition class today.
This one is going to be a short, but important post.
Today my brother’s university nutrition prof said that fats are emulsified by phospholipids in the small intestine and repeatedly called HDL high density lipids… HOW IS THIS WOMAN A PROFESSOR OF NUTRITION?! I wanted to hop on a plane, fly to Halifax, just to raise my hand in her lecture and say:
“Actually fats are emulsified by bile salts in the small intestine where they are then broken down by various lipase enzymes before being transported to the liver via the lymph system in chylomicrons. Once in the liver they are then packed into a lipoprotein for transportation throughout the body.”
This explanation is very basic, but you get my point. And yes it’s smart Alecky, slightly bitchy, and pretty rude, but I think as an educator you have a responsibility to stay up to date on current research in whichever field you are practicing and to make sure you always know the fundamentals well enough that you could explain them to a six year old. Luckily my brother knows better, but what about the rest of the people in the class who are being taught the fundamentals of human metabolism incorrectly? Blerg. I don’t normally rant on the webs, but this kind of misinformation just gets me all a-riled! It’s instances like these that remind me why people need to take it upon themselves to learn about their bodies, health, and nutrition. Do the research for yourself and don’t ever believe what someone says about what you should or shouldn’t be eating or how your body works without a healthy amount of skepticism. Even if it comes from such a reliable source as myself 😉
Now please excuse me while I go make a dinner full of butter to calm myself down, which for the record will be emulsified by bile salts, not phospholipids.
