fats for health
Know your fats and stay healthy...
Fatty foods are nurturing & satisfying to eat in the cold weather but what types of fat are best for us? Let’s explore the main ones..
For most people eating fat equals being fat. From my perspective as a nutritionist this is definitely not always the case.
SATURATED FATS
These are found predominantly in animal fats such as lard, butter and suet but are also present in coconut and palm oil. The more saturated the fat, the more hydrogen atoms it contains and the more solid it is at room temperature.
Vegetable fats can be made more saturated by a controversial process called hydrogenation which creates harmful trans fats.
UNSATURATED FATS
Monounsaturated fats. Found in nuts and some fruits. They can also be manufactured by the body from carbohydrates. Olive oil is particularly high in mono-saturates.
Polyunsaturated fats. Found predominantly in vegetable oils such as safflower, sunflower, sesame, soya and corn oil. They are usually liquid at room temperature.
There are several different types of polyunsaturates, three of which cannot be made by the body and must therefore be included in the diet. These are called essential fatty acids, known as linoleic & arachidonic acids (omega 6) and alpha linolenic acids, EPA & DHA (omega 3). These oils are essential for cell membrane & overall health. Omega 3 particularly is often lacking in the western diet causing many health challenges.
DAMAGED FATS
Also known as partially hydrogenated or trans fats. The majority of these are unsaturated vegetable oils that have been damaged by heating. These fats cannot be utilised and are often stored as body fat.
For more info: ‘Know Your Fats’ by Mary Enig Ph.D
AM I LACKING GOOD FATS IN MY DIET?
Symptoms may include dry skin & hair, flaky nails or sore eyes. You may feel stressed, emotionally up & down or experience slow memory & impaired concentration. Good fats & oils are an essential part of everyone’s diet for endocrine, brain, nervous system and cell membrane health. Without them hormone imbalance eg. adrenal exhaustion, reproductive & thyroid issues and blood sugar imbalance may manifest. Consult a health professional or nutritionist or visit your local health food store to get more information.
IN A NUTSHELL...
Eat good quality oily fish 2-3 times a week & take raw nuts, seeds and olive oil daily (or flax oil if you are veggie) for endocrine, nervous system & prostaglandin support.
Eat ALL vegetable oils RAW including flax, sunflower, olive oil etc.
Cook ONLY with saturated fats: butter or ghee (clarified butter which doesn’t burn), coconut oil or animal fat.
Remove trans fats & cooked oils from your diet.
Eat pure organic butter. Margarine and soft butter blends usually contain trans fats.
Fatty foods are nurturing & satisfying to eat in the cold weather but what types of fat are best for us? Let’s explore the main ones..
For most people eating fat equals being fat. From my perspective as a nutritionist this is definitely not always the case.
SATURATED FATS
These are found predominantly in animal fats such as lard, butter and suet but are also present in coconut and palm oil. The more saturated the fat, the more hydrogen atoms it contains and the more solid it is at room temperature.
Vegetable fats can be made more saturated by a controversial process called hydrogenation which creates harmful trans fats.
UNSATURATED FATS
Monounsaturated fats. Found in nuts and some fruits. They can also be manufactured by the body from carbohydrates. Olive oil is particularly high in mono-saturates.
Polyunsaturated fats. Found predominantly in vegetable oils such as safflower, sunflower, sesame, soya and corn oil. They are usually liquid at room temperature.
There are several different types of polyunsaturates, three of which cannot be made by the body and must therefore be included in the diet. These are called essential fatty acids, known as linoleic & arachidonic acids (omega 6) and alpha linolenic acids, EPA & DHA (omega 3). These oils are essential for cell membrane & overall health. Omega 3 particularly is often lacking in the western diet causing many health challenges.
DAMAGED FATS
Also known as partially hydrogenated or trans fats. The majority of these are unsaturated vegetable oils that have been damaged by heating. These fats cannot be utilised and are often stored as body fat.
For more info: ‘Know Your Fats’ by Mary Enig Ph.D
AM I LACKING GOOD FATS IN MY DIET?
Symptoms may include dry skin & hair, flaky nails or sore eyes. You may feel stressed, emotionally up & down or experience slow memory & impaired concentration. Good fats & oils are an essential part of everyone’s diet for endocrine, brain, nervous system and cell membrane health. Without them hormone imbalance eg. adrenal exhaustion, reproductive & thyroid issues and blood sugar imbalance may manifest. Consult a health professional or nutritionist or visit your local health food store to get more information.
IN A NUTSHELL...
Eat good quality oily fish 2-3 times a week & take raw nuts, seeds and olive oil daily (or flax oil if you are veggie) for endocrine, nervous system & prostaglandin support.
Eat ALL vegetable oils RAW including flax, sunflower, olive oil etc.
Cook ONLY with saturated fats: butter or ghee (clarified butter which doesn’t burn), coconut oil or animal fat.
Remove trans fats & cooked oils from your diet.
Eat pure organic butter. Margarine and soft butter blends usually contain trans fats.
