Every grocery store is stocked with items that tout “Low Fat” and “Diet” as their main selling points. Your doctor was trained in medical school to recommend these. These are a direct result of a 1979 Senate Committee Report, Diet and the Killer Diseases, that urged the food industry and doctors support the low fat diet. These recommendations remained unchallenged for over 30 years. During that period, the United States has had a steady rise of obesity and diabetes. Is there a relationship? This course examines the science and politics that led to this recommendation. We will begin with basics of dietary fats and their roles in health, then play a simulation game based on the Congressional hearings. Our class will decide during the simulation whether to agree or disagree with the recommendations based on the scientific evidence available in 1979. After the simulations, we will discuss the current state of nutritional research and the challenges of applying scientific methods to diet. We will discuss the various types of studies reported in the media and how a person can be a skeptical reader. We will try to discern what really constitutes a healthy diet.