The Nanny State took an explosive one up its credibility this week.  Once again, science confronted propaganda, and, once again, science won.  It took a lot of money ($415 million), a lot of time (eight years of study, plus analysis) and a lot of people (more than 48,000 women between 50 and 79 years of age, plus a gaggle of researchers).

As reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), a group of studies revolving around the same data base and methodology found that, for women, a low-fat diet has no effect in protecting against heart attack, stroke, breast cancer or colon cancer.  While only women were studied, it is believed that the results should be similar for men.

Because of the size and scope of the incorporated studies, they were variously described as "revolutionary" and the "Rolls-Royce of studies," by researchers.  Most telling were media comments by Dr. Jules Hirsch of Rockefeller University who said, "[The studies]

should put a stop to this era of thinking that we have all the information we need to change the whole national diet and make everybody healthy" (The New York Times).  Dr. Jacques Rossouw, of the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, which sponsored the studies, said, "Based on our findings, we cannot recommend that most women should follow a low-fat diet" (Washington Post).

As typically happens, many who have staked their reputations on contrary advice were out harping and carping before the ink on the studies was even dry.  The studies didn't do this; they didn't do that.  They don't prove this; they don't prove that.  What about this; what about that?  On and on, flat-out flat-earthing, names and specific statements omitted so as to deny them at least this platform for their views.

No.  The studies did absolutely nothing more and absolutely nothing less than the aforementioned.  But they did that in such a large and demonstrative fashion as to be as conclusive as such studies can be in answering the specific questions asked.

Some public health authorities worry loudly that the results of the studies will leave us regular citizens confused in light of the low-fat didactic pushed for so long by so many.  We're not confused at all, and while we would never deign to tell others how to live, because we don't pretend to know, we're going to celebrate with a bag of avocados, crammed full of fat for those who want it, but so-called "good" fat for those who worry about it.