What All Things Can A Good Fat Do To Your Body?

Learn here why your diet won’t be complete and cannot survive without certain healthy FATS!

If you are trying to lose weight, like many people, you may be under the misconception that you must avoid all types of fat like the plague. That may be because this has been drummed into our heads by the media and pseudo experts for years as we all strive for that beach-ready body. But what if I told you that certain fats are actually good for you and… wait for it…can actually help you to lose weight! Sounds crazy right? But it is so true. The trick is to know that there are different types of fat; some good, some bad.

Let’s break this down and then we’ll go into detail for each kind of fat:

Bad Fats
Good Fats
Polyunsaturated fats
Monounsaturated fats

Bad Fat

These fats are those that are difficult for your body to process and will lead to weight gain if they are not eaten in moderation and combined with some type of exercise. They also lead to increased levels of cholesterol and are therefore bad for your heart. There are two types of bad fats.

See below for a description of both of them:

Saturated Fats: These fats primarily come from animal products. So anything that is a direct product of livestock or uses a product of livestock during its production would include saturated fats in it. This fat triggers the production of cholesterol in the body, which is linked to serious conditions such as heart disease.

Here are a few examples of saturated fats:

• High fat meat cuts such as those from pork, beef, lamb and even chicken with the skin on.
• Butter
• Cheese
• Whole fat milk and cream
• Palm oil
• Coconut oil

Trans Fats: These fats are even worse than saturated fats because not only do they stimulate cholesterol production but they also lower good cholesterol at the same time! The problem is that trans fats are often found in the many tempting things, most of which are sweet treats.

Here are a few examples of items containing trans fat:

• Commercial biscuits, pastries, muffins, cakes, doughnuts, cakes, muffins, pizza dough
• Deep fried foods such as fries, chips, fried chicken and so on
• Candy bars
• Stick margarine

Good Fat

On the other hand, good fats assist in lowering cholesterol levels, aid in vitamin and nutrient absorption and can make you feel satisfied for longer. Of course, this is highly beneficial for your health, especially in terms of having a healthy heart and warding off heart disease. Generally, these fats come from nuts, fish and different types of vegetable oil.

The two types of healthy fats are:

Monounsaturated Fats: These are made up mostly of healthy oils and nuts and include

Almonds, macadamias, pecans, hazelnuts, cashews and peanutsOils including olive, canola, sunflower, peanut and sesamePeanut butterOlivesAvocadosPolyunsaturatedFats: The most popular of these fats are omega-3 fatty acids, which have endless health benefits. These also cannot be produced by the body itself naturally and so have to be ingested. If you are not eating enough omega-3, you should definitely invest in an omega-3 supplement.

Examples of polyunsaturated fats are:

• Fatty fish such as salmon, tuna, herring, mackerel, sardines, trout.
• Oils including soybean, corn.
• Seeds such as sunflower, pumpkin, sesame and flaxseed
• Tofu
• Soymilk

How To Include Saturated Fats In Your Diet

It is important that you include saturated fats in your diet because they assist you in losing weight and are imperative to your general health.

Here are a few ways to eat more saturated fats:

Snack on a small handful of nuts every day. This is a healthy snack that will keep you feeling satisfied for a longer period of time.Avocados are creamy and delicious, making for perfect sandwich toppers. Skip the butter or margarine and you will not even notice due to the avocado’s rich texture. They are also very satisfying and hearty.Olives are an easy low fat snack on their own. Tapenade (olive spread) is so convenient.Use olive oil for cooking and canola oil for baking. Eliminate lard, butter and margarine.

Make your own salad dressings. Store bought salad dressings are often high in trans fats.