Back to Basics – Fat 101

Fat…friend or foe? A low fat diet is your friend. You should use fat or oils that reduce cholesterol in the blood. To think of food in terms of its health effect should be our goal. I know…I sound like a geek!

There is “good fat” and “bad fat”…especially in terms of health effects. How much of the healthy fat should you have? The recommendations say…<30% of your calories should come from fat. I don’t know about you …but I do this for a living and I’m not sure just what that means.

First let’s look at why we need it. Like carbohydrates and protein…fat also has a basic unit. Fat is broken down to supply fatty acids. Most all fats in food and in the body start out as triglycerides. When broken down …well…this is where it can get complicated. For our purposes, let’s keep it really simple and relevant to food consumption.  

Fat does play an important role in the body. It is an energy reserve when stored in the body’s fat tissue, insulates against temperature extremes, it helps the body use carbohydrate and protein efficiently. A very important function of fat is to carry fat-soluble vitamin A, D, E and K throughout the body. Like protein, fat has 2 essential fatty acids…they must be obtained from eating certain foods. The 2 essential fatty acids serve significant functions. They serve as structural parts of cell membranes and they help to make up other fatty acids that can make powerful compounds that participate in blood pressure regulation, blood clotting, and our immune response to injury & infection.

THAT is IMPORTANT STUFF!  So you are probably thinking…give me some of that!

We should keep in mind that fat is the most concentrated source of calories in the diet. Fat has 9 calories per gram, while carbohydrates & proteins have 4 calories per gram.  In essence, fat packs on twice as many calories per gram than other nutrients.

Before we talk about how much…here’s the good, the bad and the ugly truth about fat!    

BAD…Saturated fat, raise blood cholesterol and may encourage the formation of plaque…deposits that may block blood flow. This situation could easily promote heart disease!

Trans fats, alter blood cholesterol the same way as some saturated fat. They appear to increase inflammation and insulin resistance (hallmark of diabetes).   

Fats from animal foods, like butter, lard, meats and some fish are mostly saturated. Coconut and palm kernel oils are too. Trans-fat include commercially prepared baked goods and all types of processed foods

BETTER…Polyunsaturated fat, help to lower blood cholesterol. However, it’s been shown to alter the balance between HDL (good) and LDL (bad) cholesterol.  

Good sources of essential fatty acids would include…safflower, sunflower, corn, vegetable oils and the wonderful Omega-3’s. Also, think of adding flaxseed, walnuts, wheat germ, nuts and seeds to get this vital fat.

BEST…Monounsaturated fat, help to lower blood cholesterol without lowering HDL (good) cholesterol.

Another good source of essential fatty acids is canola oil, olive oil and peanut oil. Olive oil contributes to the lower rate of heart disease among people in the Mediterranean region of the world.

NOW…remember the total amount & the type of fat you eat will influence your risk of heart disease and some types of cancer. Dietary cholesterol is another thing to factor in…but another time and place!

HOW MUCH? I don’t think the <30% of calories coming from fat is very helpful…so I like to monitor my daily fat intake by keeping up with the GRAMS of fat I eat in a day. The number of grams you personally should have in a day is simple to calculate.

Here goes…

*How many calories should you eat in day to be healthy? For me it’s about 1600 calories.

Thirty percent of 1600 calories would be 480 calories…divided by 9 (calories per gram) is 53 grams of fat for the day. Calculate this for yourself….and commit that number to memory.

As you consume your calories, try to keep in mind the amount of fat your food choice will bring.

My typical breakfast contributes ~15 grams of fat…1/2 cup fiber one, walnuts, blueberries and soy milk.  

*Reduce your consumption of visible fat…like butter or sour cream… and that fat in the middle of prime rib. Meat has varying amounts of fat…make GOOD choices. Choose very-lean & lean cuts…like poultry (white meat, no skin), which would be ~3 to 5 grams of fat for a 3 oz serving. Fish …like cod, tuna, and flounder would be equivalent to that of poultry. Some choices of meat are deadly. For example, spare ribs (think summer) would run you 24 grams of fat for 3 oz of meat.     

*use the nutrition facts label to make decisions on the appropriateness of your food choices.

This topic is so huge and I could go on forever…but ALL good things must come to an end.

If you have specific questions …please leave a comment. I’ll get back to you!

Your personal nutrition nerd, Le Greta