Fats |
Some fats are healthy and needed by the body, while others are very harmful. What are the different types of fats? What are the most important facts you should know? Details here.
What are the types of fats? Is fat good for the body? In addition to important information about fats:
What Are The Types Of Fat?
There are three types of fats, which are the following:
Saturated Fat
Saturated fats are considered harmful to health if they are consumed in quantities that exceed the recommended limit, which is medically estimated according to the following:
- 30 grams per day maximum for men.
- 20 grams per day maximum for women.
Saturated Fats Are Found in Many Foods, Most Notably The Following:
- Meat and its products.
- Non-skimmed milk and dairy products, such as cream and ice cream.
- Cheese, especially hard types.
- Butter and margarine.
- Some types of biscuits, cakes, and pastries.
Trans Fats
Trans fats are just as harmful to health as saturated fats, and they can cause high cholesterol.
Therefore, it is not recommended that the daily share of trans fats exceed 2% of the total daily energy derived from food, which is approximately 5 g per day for an adult.
Trans fats exist in two forms:
Natural Trans Fats: Often found in small quantities in natural products, such as: meat and dairy products.
Manufactured Trans Fats: They are often found in large quantities in processed products, such as: hydrogenated vegetable oils.
Unsaturated Fats
Nutrition experts recommend eating unsaturated fats because of the benefits they bring to the human body. They help reduce harmful cholesterol in the body (LDL) and raise good cholesterol (HDL).
Among the most prominent examples of saturated fats are: Omega-3 and Omega-6, which are found in the following foods:
Vegetable Oils: olive oil, canola oil, which is another name for flaxseed oil.
Oily Fish: salmon, sardines and mackerel.
Nuts: walnuts and almonds.
Seeds: flaxseeds, sunflower seeds.
Some types of vegetables and fruits: avocado, coconut.
Is Fat Good For The Dody?
After getting to know the types of fats, many people may wonder, are fats good for the body?
Yes, unsaturated fats are very beneficial to the body, while other types may lead to health problems, especially if they are eaten in quantities that are more than the medically recommended amounts.
The benefits of fats are as follows:
- source of energy.
- A source of many fat-soluble vitamins, such as: vitamin A, vitamin D, vitamin E, and vitamin K.
- source of essential fatty acids that the body cannot manufacture.
However, it should also be noted that the harmful effects of saturated and trans fats are as follows:
- Raise cholesterol in the body.
- Heart disease.
- Weight gain, especially when exceeding the permissible daily limit, as it is high in calories, at a time when it is known that obesity and weight gain may be a reason for increasing the chances of developing chronic diseases, such as: type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure.
Tips For Eating Less Fat
Previously, the types of fats were mentioned, and thus you have the ability to distinguish between what is useful and what is not, so you have to do the following:
- Replace saturated fats with unsaturated fats in your food.
- Reduce the total intake of all types of fats in the diet.
- Read the food label when shopping and compare the different fat contents, and choose the product with the lowest fat percentage.
- Choose low-fat, lean white meat (lei), and in chicken, remove the skin before cooking it.
- Choose low-fat or no-fat dairy products, with the fat around 0-1%.
- Use healthy cooking methods such as grilling or steaming instead of frying.
- Use measuring utensils and a spoon when adding the oils, rather than pouring them directly.
- Increase the amount of vegetables used in the cooking process at the expense of the amount of meat, for example:
- In the case of using minced meat, increase the amount 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 A High-Fat, High-Fat Food From A Nutritional Label?
With the following readings, you can distinguish and know the percentage of fat in foods:
High-Fat Food: Every 100 grams of the product contains 17.5 grams or more of fat.
Low-Fat Food: Every 100 grams of the product contains 3 grams or less of fat.
As for distinguishing between foods that are high in saturated fats and those that are low, the following readings are specific to them:
- Food High in Saturated fat: where every 100 grams contains 5 grams or more.
- Foods Low in Saturated Fat: each 100 grams contains 1.5 grams or less.
It should also be noted that the food called a low-fat product is not required to be really healthy, as it may contain a high percentage of fat, but the intent is that it is lower in fat percentages 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, low-fat mayonnaise is 30% less fat than the original mayonnaise, meaning that it is still high in fat, and certainly not a low-calorie product.
Comments
Post a Comment