How to Get Sufficient Healthy Fats in Your Diet
How to Get Sufficient Healthy Fats in Your Diet
No macronutrient has come under as much scrutiny as fats. There are monounsaturated fats, saturated fats, trans fats, and polyunsaturated fats. Some fats are considered good and some are bad… and most people are unsure about what fats they should be consuming. There have been many misconceptions perpetuated by the food manufacturing companies to sell more of their own detrimental processed vegetable oils. How to Get Sufficient Healthy Fats in Your Diet.
This article will tell you exactly what fats you should be consuming and how you can get these fats in your diet.
* Good fats
For starters, here is a list of good fats:
Fatty fish (tuna, mackerel, salmon, sardines), cold-pressed coconut oil, extra virgin olive oil, avocadoes, flaxseed, walnuts, sunflower seeds, almonds, eggs, bacon, cheese, olives, macadamia nuts, nut butter, cashews, chia seeds, butter, yogurt, lard, mutton, etc.
The list above will more than suffice for people looking to add healthy fats in their diet.
* Why are these fats healthy?
You may be surprised to see foods like eggs, coconut oil, and bacon in the list above. For the past 2 decades, we’ve been told that these foods raise our cholesterol levels. However, studies have shown that dietary cholesterol has little impact on our body’s cholesterol levels.
Inflammation leads to high cholesterol levels because our body produces most of the cholesterol. Inflammation occurs when we consume foods high in sugar or foods that are inflammatory.
Processed foods and hydrogenated vegetable oils are two of the main culprits here. It may seem ironic that the clean, golden vegetable oils which line supermarket shelves and are marketed as healthy are actually highly detrimental to your body. The industrial processes used to produce these oils change the molecular structure of the oil and make them harmful to us. You’re much better off consuming healthy oils such as coconut and olive oil.
These 2 oils are rich in nutrients that the body needs. If you looked at the list above, you’d realize that all of these are natural products… and not processed. Even the coconut and olive oil are merely pressed and don’t go through industrial processes. By consuming healthy fats, you’ll balance the fatty acids in your body. This is crucial because our diets are high in omega-6 fatty acids, but low in omega-3 fatty acids. Your body benefits more from omega-3 fats. Flax seeds, tofu, fish oil, chia seeds, and shellfish are rich in omega-3 fats.
* Consuming healthy fats
Getting a serving or two of healthy fats in your daily diet is no problem at all. One easy way to do it will be to consume a fish oil supplement. It could be Alaskan fish oil or krill or even cod liver oil.
Eggs are easy to consume. Just boil them.
All the nuts mentioned above can be munched on throughout the day. These are very easy fats to get in your system. Just remember that nuts are calorie-dense. So, if you’re trying to lose weight, you’ll want to watch your portions.
Avocadoes, nut butter, etc. can either be eaten as is or used in smoothies.
Bacon and meats can be fried in coconut oil or cooked, as required.
Getting good fats in your diet is crucial to good health. If you’re worried about gaining weight, all you need to do is consume 2 portions of healthy fats a day. It’s more important to keep an eye on your simple carbs and sugars if you’re trying to shed the pounds. Eating good fats actually helps the body to burn fatter, since it’s receiving ample amounts of fat daily.
Start proactively consuming good fats daily.
