Some fats are healthy and needed by the body, others are very harmful. So what are the different types of fat? What are the most important facts you need to know?
One of the criteria of a healthy and balanced diet is that it contains a percentage of healthy and trans fats. So what are the types of fat? What do you need to know about it?
Fat – Damages and Benefits
Fat is very important and beneficial to the body, for the following reasons:
- Source of energy.
- A source of many fat-soluble vitamins, such as vitamins A, D, E and K.
- A source of essential fatty acids that the body cannot manufacture.
But it should be noted here that there are harmful fats, for example, saturated fats may:
- Lifts cholesterol in the body.
- Be a direct cause of heart disease.
- Eating them exposes you to gain weight, especially when you exceed the daily limit, as they are high in calories.
It is known that obesity and weight gain may increase the chances of developing chronic diseases, such as type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure.
Types of fats
So, as we mentioned earlier there are types of fats: saturated fats, trans fats, and trans fats. The following will explain the difference between them and where each species exists:
All about fat: useful, harmful and dangerous!
The synonym of fat has been entrenched by some with a negative character, and honestly. But do you know that there are also useful fats? Find out in the following video what types of fat:
Saturated fat
A healthy balanced diet is a diet that contains a percentage of fat in which saturated fat does not exceed the recommended limit.
According to the British Dietetic Association, the amount of saturated fat consumed daily should not exceed 30 grams for men and 20 grams for women.
Saturated fats are found in many foods, such as:
- Meat and meat products.
- Non-skimmed milk and dairy products, such as cream and ice cream.
- Cheese, especially hard species.
- Butter and margarine.
- Some types of biscuits, cakes, and pastries.
Trans fats
Trans fats are naturally present in small amounts in some foods, such as meat and dairy products, or artificially in others, especially in foods that contain hydrogenated vegetable oils.
It is harmful to health, such as saturated fats and may cause high cholesterol, so it is not recommended that the daily ration of more than 2% of the total daily energy derived from food, which is about 5 g per day per adult.
3. Unsaturated fats
Nutritionists recommend eating unsaturated fats from fat types, because of the benefits they carry to the human body, they help to lower the level of LDL cholesterol in the body, and raise the proportion of good cholesterol HDL.
Examples of unsaturated fats are omega-3 and omega-6, which are found in many natural food sources, such as:
- Vegetable oils, such as olive oil, canola oil (flaxseed oil).
- Oily fish, such as salmon, sardines, and mackerel.
- Nuts, such as walnuts and almonds.
- Seeds, such as flax seeds, sunflower seeds.
- Some types of vegetables and fruits, such as avocado, coconut.
Our tips for eating less fat
Of course, it is preferable to replace saturated fats with unsaturated fats and reduce the total intake of all types of fats in the diet.
Here are our top tips that may help you reduce the amount of fat intake and make healthier decisions:
- Read the label when shopping and compare the different fat contents, choose the product with the lowest fat content, and remember that rations may vary from product to product.
- Choose low-fat, cured meats of white fat (ly), and in chicken remove the skin before cooking.
- Choose low-fat or non-fat dairy products (0-1% fat).
- Use healthy cooking methods, such as grilling or steam instead of frying.
- Use measuring tools and a spoon when adding oils instead of pouring them directly.
- Increase the number of vegetables used in the cooking process at the expense of the amount of meat, for example:
- If using minced meat, increase the number of onions and parsley added to reduce the amount of meat.
- In the case of sandwiches, increase the amount of salad at the expense of the amount of meat.
- Avoid using butter and margarine and replace them with vegetable oils.
How do you distinguish high-fat foods from high food labels?
Thus, with these readings you can distinguish and know the percentage of fat in food :
- High-fat foods: Each 100g of product contains 17.5g or more of fat, and maybe colored in red as a symbol of high-fat content.
- Low-fat foods: Each 100g product contains 3g or less fat, and maybe colored in green as a symbol of low-fat content.
To distinguish foods high in saturated fats from low, these are the readings:
- Foods high in saturated fats: contain 5 g or more per 100 grams of the product, and maybe colored red.
- Low saturated fat foods: contain 1.5 or less saturated fats per 100 g of the product, and maybe colored green.
It should be noted that food is not required to be called a low-fat product to be healthy already, it may contain a high proportion of fat, but the intention is that it is lower in the proportion of fat than other products of the same type.
Commercially, when we say low-fat, we mean about 30% less than the “standard” basic product.
For example, mayonnaise and low – fat mayonnaise is at least 30% of the original fat mayonnaise, ie, it is still high in fat, and certainly not a low-calorie product.