Healthy Fats in An Ancestral Diet: A Complete Guide

What do you think of when I say healthy fats? Vegetable or seed oils and spreads, and avoiding animal or saturated fats like the plague, right? I hope what comes next will change your mind.

Until I was 36, I thought I should avoid saturated fat. Eating animal fat was for those who didn’t care about health – those beer-guzzling, junk food-eating, cigarette-chuffing kinda people.

The problem was, I was eating well but I wasn’t healthy. I was chronically fatigued. That was until I listened to a podcast that said animal fats are healthy and we should be eating them.

I would’ve normally laughed and dismissed the idea. But I was desperate for some relief from the misery I was living – the lethargy, brain fog, anxiety, and most of all, the deep, dark depression that was consuming me.

So I thought, “fuck it – I’m gonna try this.” So, I stopped eating human-made foods, including seed oils, and started eating animal fats.

My meals went from pesto pasta to ribeye steak cooked in butter and topped with peppercorn sauce. From a ham salad & mayo sandwich to scrambled eggs, bacon, cream, and loads of butter.

It all tasted bloody good but felt wrong. It contradicted everything I’d ever been taught about healthy eating.

But within days, my symptoms started to disappear. It was no more than 2 weeks, and I felt like a light bulb had been switched on in my head – one that hadn’t been on for a long time.

It was like a miracle, but I was so confused.

But as I considered it further, it became clear that animals and their fats have existed for millions of years, and human-made seed oils were only recently invented.

So it makes sense that humans would struggle with something we’ve never eaten before, and when we introduce back the fats our ancestors ate, we would start thriving again.

Suddenly, it all became so obvious to me—the next stage was anger. How could we have been led down such a destructive path? We put faith in the advice we were given, yet it was so clearly wrong. WTF!

Now that we know what “healthy fats” are, let’s explore their role in ancestral diets, their benefits, and how to incorporate them into our modern lives.

You’ll learn why fats like grass-fed butter, pastured animal fats, and wild-caught fish are essential for long-term health.

Let’s relearn the wisdom of ancestral eating and fuel our bodies as nature intended.

TL;DR

• Healthy fats, such as animal fats and cold-pressed oils, have fueled humans for millennia. They support energy, brain health, hormone production, and overall vitality.
• Our ancestors thrived on fats from animal meats, organs, wild-caught fish, and location-based oils like olive or coconut oil, which are unprocessed and nutrient-dense.
• Modern processed foods, seed oils, and refined sugars disrupt health. Returning to ancestral, whole foods reduce inflammation and restore metabolic balance.
• Healthy fats strengthen immunity, improve cardiovascular health, and reduce the risk of chronic disease. They offer sustainable energy and long-term wellness.

What Are Healthy Fats and Why Are They Important?

Healthy fats are natural animal fats that support bodily functions and overall health. Unlike processed seed oils and trans fats, these fats have been part of the human diet for thousands of years.

Fats are so much more than this annoying thing that hangs around our midriff. They have roles in the body that go way beyond energy.

Body Roles

Healthy fats have these roles in the body:

• Energy Production: Fats are a concentrated energy source for long-lasting physical and mental performance.
• Hormone Production: They are required to regulate metabolism, mood and stress response.
• Brain Health: The brain is 60% fat and needs omega-3 and other healthy fats for memory, cognition, and emotional stability.

Ancestral Sources

Our ancestors got their fats from whole foods like:

• Animal Fats: Ruminant animals, definitely. Maybe some poultry if it was available.
• Seafood: If they lived by a water source, no doubt wild-caught fish and shellfish.
• Dairy: Raw, full-fat dairy products like butter, cheese, and cream.
• Plant-based Oils: Cold-pressed oils like extra virgin olive oil and unrefined coconut oil are location-dependent.

These fats fuel survival, physical endurance, and mental sharpness. Returning to these nutrient-dense sources can rebuild our health from the inside out.

Healthy Fats in Ancestral Diets

Imagine yourself as a hunter-gatherer. Your number one stressor and job for the day is to find food for yourself and your tribe. You’re dressed in a loincloth and armed with a spear. You go searching for food.

It’s been a few days since your last feast and stomachs are growling.

As you walk across the plains you see an elk in the distance – your prayers are answered. You chase the beast and secure the kill using the skills and knowledge passed down from your elders and gained over the years.

Today, you and your tribe will eat well.

Now, do you cut off the fat and throw it away? The stuff that makes the food taste just a little bit better and makes you feel full?

Would you let anything go to waste, knowing you may not eat again for a while?

I think we both know the answer to this.

How Ancestors Used Nutrient-Dense Animal Fats

Animal fats have been part of the human diet for thousands of years. Before mode