Weight Management and Dietary Fat
Anyone who has tried to lose weight has been told to cut down on fats. The real fact is that fats alone do not cause weight gain. In fact, a healthy weight management program will require a certain amount of healthy fat.
Fats assist in weight management by providing a feeling of fullness. That’s one reason why low-fat diets don’t work; when we eliminate the fat, we constantly are hungry. How long can you stay on an eating plan that never leaves you satisfied?
The question is – what kind of fats should you include in your weight management program? Most often, the fats that we use – thinking they are healthy – are the worst for us. Margarine is a good example. In order to cut out saturated fats, people use margarine instead of butter, yet butter is the healthier fat.
Some great sources of these healthy fats are:
Monounsaturated fat: Olive oil, peanut oil, canola oil, avocados, nuts and seeds
Polyunsaturated fat: Vegetable oils (such as safflower, corn, sunflower, soy and cottonseed oils), nuts and seeds
Omega-3 fatty acids: Fatty, cold-water fish (such as salmon, mackerel and herring), flax seeds, flax oil and walnuts.
When it comes to weight management and health in general. Two types of fat that you want to limit are saturated fats and trans fats as they can increase your risk of heart disease by increasing your total and LDL (“bad”) cholesterol.
Some common sources of unhealthy fats are:
Saturated fat: Animal products (such as high fat meats, poultry, whole milk and dairy products made with whole, lard and butter), and coconut, palm and other tropical oils
Trans fat: Partially hydrogenated vegetable oils, commercial baked goods (such as crackers, cookies and cakes), fried foods (such as doughnuts and French fries), shortening and margarine
As with any weight management program, prudence dictates; too much of anything is never good for you, but in reasonable amounts, enjoy your fats. As a general rule, 20 to 30 percent of your daily calories should come from fat.
In this article we discussed the role fats play in our weight management program. In our next permanent weight loss article, “Exercise and Weight Loss” we will discuss the importance of physical activity and some great ideas for getting active.
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