Eat the Right Fats for a Heart – Healthy Diet

Most people think that fat is one of their number one enemies. They think that all fat could let you develop cardiovascular diseases, let you gain some weight, and the like. However, it is now actually a misconception. For a time, the food pyramid recommends several servings of complex carbohydrates while lesser servings of fat. But with the ongoing research studies on food and nutrition, many health experts think that it is already flawed and outdated. Many people cut back on fat in their diets since they think that it is not good for the health. However, not all fat is bad. In fact, some are helpful in promoting a healthier condition.

Two kinds of good fat

Not all fat clogs the arteries and promotes weight gain. There are actually two kinds of good fat that must be included in the diet. These are the monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fat. These two kinds of fat decrease your cholesterol levels and help in achieving a healthier weight loss result. Well, monounsaturated fat increases your good cholesterol (high-density “HDL” lipoprotein) levels and lowers the bad cholesterol (low-density “LDL” lipoprotein). These two kinds of fat also help in decreasing hunger and cravings. And believe it or not, some research studies show that these monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fat stabilizes the blood sugar and insulin levels. Therefore, it reduces hunger.

Sources of good fat

There are several food choices and ingredients that can be a good source of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fat. Some can be found in avocados, flaxseed, olives, nuts, salmon, and tuna. For oil, it is best to use canola oil, olive oil, safflower oil, and sunflower oil.

Fatty food sources to avoid

Saturated fat is the opposite of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fat. It can be found in dairy products, sweets, steaks, and butter. It does not bring any good to your body. In fact, it also offers a lot of health risks. Another kind of fat to be avoided is trans-unsaturated fatty acids. It is a synthetic type of fat that is being used for the production of margarine, packaged food, and fast food. It increases the shelf life of several processed food. However, this kind of fat raises the bad cholesterol levels and triglycerides. At the same time, it decreases the good cholesterol in the body. Trans-unsaturated fatty acid and saturated fat is not safe for the body. When you are in the groceries, try to be a smart buyer and read the amount of trans fat on the labels of chips and packaged food that you will purchase.

All in all, fat is a necessity in the body. However, it is important to choose which kind of fat to cater. It is best to avoid processed, pre-packaged, and fast food options as they contain a lot of bad fat. Most people think that if you eat fat, you will absolutely get fatter. However, this is not the case anymore since there are monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fat. All you have to do is to focus on food choices that bring a lot of benefits to your body and health.

Dom is a free lancer writer and content builder of many health niches. Currently he is doing online research on Phen.