Good fat Bad fat
Now that the world has moved on from
the primitive way of thinking that all fat is bad and that fat makes
you fat it's time to learn which fats are good for you health, which
fats you need to avoid like the plague and which fats can actually
help you to lose weight! Read on to find out exactly which is which
and in what foods you can find them....
First of all fats are very important
for your body to run at optimum levels, they help maintain healthy
hair, skin, brain function, promoting healthy cell function and
provide the body with energy. Anyone who has been on a n extremely
restricted fat diet for a long time will probably not lose much
weight and actually feel quite unhealthy.
If you ask somebody to name a bad fat
they general respond with saturated and although that is generally
true and people who consume diets higher in saturated fat have higher
cholesterol levels and suffer more from cardiovascular disease and
strokes that is not true for all saturated fats.
A group saturated
fats called medium chain triglycerides (MCT's) found in coconut nut
oil and palm oil behave differently in the body, rather than stored
as fat in the body they converted directly to energy and what's more
they are more stable when cooking at high temperatures and do not
degenerate to trans-fats.
Eating trans-fats is linked to high
cholesterol levels, coronary heart disease and strokes. Food
companies love to use trans-fats in their foods as they are cheap and
prolong shelf life, so always check the label and avoid ready made
foods.
Back to saturated fats, to avoid the
worst of these avoid dairy products and animal fats such as from
processed meats. The myth about eggs has been proven wrong and
studies show that eggs do not raise bad cholesterol levels, so do not
unnecessarily restrict this good source of protein from your diet.
Now let's talk about unsaturated fat.
There are two types polyunsaturated and mono unsaturated,
polyunsaturated fats can be found mostly in nuts, seeds, fish, fish
oil and leafy greens. These fats have also been shown protect against
insulin resistance which is great for preventing diabetes, the one
bad thing is that they have been linked to certain types of cancers
of the quicker spread of these cancers but this is only in a diet
that is incredibly high in this type of fat.
Mono unsaturated fats have been shown
to lower bad cholesterol levels and can be found in extra virgin
olive oil, nuts, avocados, cereal and oatmeal.
To sum up not all fats are created
equal and it's not as easy a excluding one type of fat or another
from your diet, instead concentrate on healthier foods overall and
you will be fine. Avoid processed meats, always cut all visible fat
from your meat and eat more white meat than red. For medium
temperature cooking use extra virgin olive oil and for high
temperature cooking stick to extra virgin coconut oil, flaxseed oil
is best for cold use but never ever heat this oil up. Eat plenty of
fish and maybe think about supplementing omega 3 fish oil, avoid
butter lard, baked goods and ready meals. Do all of this and you'll
be fit and healthy and you should live a long and fruit full life!
