FAT is not a bad word!

We all need fat as part of a balanced diet. However, like everything, too much fat is not good for us either. In general, our total fat intake should be 20-30% of your daily recommended calories. Most of all we should know how to define which fats are good for us and which ones to stay away from. The healthiest fats are Unsaturated fats, with monounsaturated and polyunsaturated falling into these categories. A quick list of "healthy fats" include olive oil, canola oil, peanut oil, sunflower oil, fish oil, cold water fish, tuna, sardines, mackerel, walnuts and flaxseed to name a few. Unsaturated fats can help improve blood lipid levels.

Olive Oil and Canola Oil are the healthiest

Cold water fish should be consumed at least 2 times a week.

Saturated fats come from animal food sources which includes red meats, chicken, turkey, eggs and dairy, etc. Although these sources are all valuable protein sources and contain many other healthy vitamins and minerals, should be eaten in moderation. Choosing low fat dairy, reducing red meat consumption and replacing with lean chicken or fish in your diet will help to keep saturated fat consumption to a minimum. Avoid tropical oils which are all very high in saturated fats and completely unnecessary due to the many other healthy oil choices. Saturated fats makes the unhealthy LDL blood lipid levels go up, but does not affect the HDL levels negatively.

Trans fat is the evil fat that we should all eliminate from our diets! Trans fat is chemically made from a hydrogenation process of liquid plant oils. The FDA is required to list fats on all nutrition labels, so it is easy to look at these prior to purchase and avoid food that contains trans fat. Trans fat makes the unhealthy LDL blood lipids go up and the healthy HDL levels go down, this is why these should be completely avoided.

A fun little piece of information ~ When and how do we burn fat? Fat is the main fuel source at rest...... yes, "rest" .... and during low to moderate intensity exercise. This just proves that walking is a great way to loose that extra fat that we may be carrying. Be mindful, that while resting, if you are eating a bag of Cheetos, your caloric and fat intake far surpasses the rate that your body is burning the fat.