Dietary Fats: How To Think About Fat in Your Diet

There are many different types of fats that we consume in our diets but they are too simply categorized into “good” and “bad” fats. Fats are a critical component of our diets. Some offer more benefits while others can be very harmful.

The types of fats we get through our food are saturated, monounsaturated, polyunsaturated, and trans fats. A simple categorization of these fats would be that saturated and trans fats are unhealthy while polyunsaturated and monounsaturated are more healthy. Poly and monounsaturated fats can be generally classified as unsaturated fats.

What is the difference between saturated and unsaturated fats?

Saturated fat are those that in the chemical structure of the molecule (all fats are made up of a chain carbon atoms linked by hydrogen atoms) the structure is full or saturated with hydrogen atoms. This structure means that the fat is typically going to be solid at room temperature. Think butter, cheese, cream, red meat, dairy, animal products, etc.

Unsaturated fats have fewer hydrogen atoms and are typically liquid at room temperature. Think peanut butter, avocados, almonds, sesame seeds, more whole and less processed foods.

Saturated fats should be limited in your diet as much as possible. Consuming too many saturated fats can lead to elevated LDL cholesterol which can cause blockages in your heart and lead to heart disease. Saturated fat is found most commonly in animal products including beef, cheese, chicken, dairy, eggs, but also is found in certain oils like coconut oil. Many plant-based processed foods, like Beyond Meat, will also contain saturated fats. This is why eating a whole food balanced diet is seen as the most optimal. Reducing your saturated fat intake as much as possible is the goal, but the American Heart Associated sets the guidelines as broadly no more than 5-6% of your daily calories.

Unsaturated fats come in two forms as monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. These types of fats are actually good for your heart and should be included in a healthy diet. Monounsaturated fats are found in foods like avocados, olive oil, peanut oils, and a variety of nuts. Polyunsaturated fats are found in flaxseed, corn, soybeans, walnuts, and fatty fish. 

What does dietary fat do in our bodies?

The beneficial is that they give you energy, help to keep you warm, protect organs, help you to absorb vitamins in food, and make hormones for our bodies to function as they should. 

The harmful is that too much fat or eating too much of the “bad fats” can lead to heart disease, cancer, diabetes, stroke, lack of mobility, and the results of this could lead to depression or other self-esteem issues.

Fats are essential to your health but choosing the right fats is important to getting all the positives.

A word on omega-3 and omega-6, these are both categorized as polyunsaturated fats and may have some very beneficial health implications. Omega-3 is the one we most often hear about and has three forms EPA, ALA, and DHA. These fats may be beneficial for heart health and evidence has shown that they may benefit depression, improve eye health, may reduce symptoms of metabolic syndrome, can reduce inflammation, may prevent Alzheimer’s, and many more benefits. These fats cannot be made in your body and so must be consumed through your food. Omega-3 is often found in seafood but is better sourced through algae. Omega-6 is found in leafy green veggies, seeds, nuts, and vegetable oils. Some evidence shows that omega-6 may also be beneficial for heart health.

What about trans fats?

Trans fats are the ones to avoid as much as possible. They are very often found in animal products and dairy and most definitely will be found in food-like products. To make food shelf stable, companies will add hydrogen liquid vegetable oils to foods which also will make them solid at room temp. Some common trans fatty foods are french fries, fried foods, baked goods, margarine, frozen pizza and other food-like products. There are many risks associated with trans fats, which is why these should be avoided. Eating foods with trans fats increases your risk of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and lowers your HDL. Any of this health risks can compound and lead to more health related issues.

What about low-fat or reduced-fat foods?

Just because a food says it is lower in fat does not mean it is healthy. Often times these types of foods are loaded with sugar and or salt which does not make it any healthier. The additional processing that makes foods fat-free is also not beneficial. Any food that is further away from its natural form will be more unhealthy and have more mystery ingredients in it. Avoid low-fat or “diet” foods and always opt for the more whole food, less-processed food.

Takeaways - Fats generally have two categories, healthy and unhealthy. The word “fat” instantly makes you think unhealthy and not good but in reality only some fats should be avoided. You should eat more unsaturated, mono and poly, and eat very little saturated fat and as close to zero trans fat as possible. We all make choices about what we eat on a day–to-day, no one is forcing you to eat anything, make choices that align with living a healthier fuller life.

References

https://www.webmd.com/diet/types-fat-in-foods

https://www.bhf.org.uk/informationsupport/support/healthy-living/healthy-eating/fats-explained 
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/17-health-benefits-of-omega-3#TOC_TITLE_HDR_7