I haven’t met many people in my life, especially women, who weren’t looking to get rid of some kind of fat in their lives. Whether it was the fat on their body, their significant others body, their child’s body, or fat in their diet, fat has been public enemy #1 for longer than it deserves.
Granted some fats are pure evil. I’ll give just one example, that’s all that’s really needed.
Trans fat, also known as hydrogenated oils.
Trans fat is pure evil.
There are a few others, but really, the rest of the fats aren’t evil.
In fact, you actually need some of those fats in order to be healthy.
Uh oh.
When did that happen?
Did you miss that memo during the last low-fat diet craze?
The fact is that our bodies need some kind of fat in order to function properly.
Do you like your brain? Or your nervous system?
Yeah, neither one can function properly without fat.
Fat is the substance that our nerves use to send impulses throughout the body. Without them, no communication, no movement, no breathing.
I think you get the point.
Before I completely rock your world, let me be perfectly clear. I am suggesting that the inclusion of some heart healthy fats are good for you. I am not suggesting that you sit down with a can of lard and start spooning it into your mouth.
I am also not suggesting that you go ahead and fry everything in your kitchen in these said heart healthy fats either.
Here is what I’m suggesting.
I am suggesting that low fat is never the way to go.
Why?
Because low fat equals low satiety in my book. Low satiety means that your body is not satisfied. When you are not satisfied, what do you do? Well with food, you just eat more.
In this way, adding a bit of heart healthy fats to your diet is a way of using portion control. Funny use of words, huh? Who would have thought that there was a connection between healthy dietary fat and a healthy diet that does not include over eating?
To add insult to injury, you need fat in your diet because you need fat to aid in the absorption of certain vitamins and minerals from your food. Think of your fat soluble vitamins such as Vitamins A, D, E and K. I don’t think that asking them to absorb into your body with little to no fat is going to cut it.
You need some fat in your diet.
If you’d like to maintain proper immune function or proper functioning of your heart and all its vessels, you are going to have to include some heart healthy fats in your diet.
Fat is an insulator. If your body is not properly insulated, you become prey to more colds and viruses than the average person. You will also become more susceptible to injuries, bumps, bruises as well as joint pain and inflammation. Again, the fat in your body is protective, not just decorative.
Cholesterol get a bad rap. What people are starting to understand is that there are two types of cholesterol- high density and low density. We like the high density or HDL cholesterol. This helps protect the heart. We do not like the low density or LDL cholesterol. Both are made of fat.
Without some level of cholesterol in the body, we cannot function at all. Not only will our heart not function optimally but we would not have our hormones. Cholesterol is a main building block for testosterone and for estrogen. Ever heard of those? They’re pretty important for full functioning of the adult body.
So yes, we do need some heart healthy fats in our diet.
Fat is indeed our friend.
What are these heart healthy fats?
Here are my favorites:
1. Extra Virgin Olive Oil, 1st cold press
2. Canola oil
3. Sunflower oil
4. Sesame oil
5. Flaxseed oil
6. Nut oils, such as walnut, peanut or almond
7. Avocados
On a side note, I also highly value the fat that comes from cold water fish such as salmon or tuna. As long as the fish is clear of contaminants such as heavy metals, feel free to add these bad boys to your list.
The U.S Dietary Guidelines recommend keeping total fat intake to 20-25 percent of your total daily calories. Adjusting for a strenuous exercise routine, you would aim more towards the higher end of those guidelines.
Aim to keep the majority of your total fat, about 80% of it, with the mono-unsaturated and poly-unsaturated fats such as the ones listed above.
