Good Fats vs Bad Fats - patientawareness.in

Good Fats vs. Bad Fats

What You Need to Know

Is the cholesterol in samosas the “good” or “bad” kind? Can you “burn” cholesterol by exercising? Which has more cholesterol, a tablespoon of ghee or a cup of oil? For years, we were urged to banish fat from our diets whenever possible. We switched to low-fat foods. But the shift didn’t make us healthier, probably because we cut back on healthy fats as well as harmful ones.

You may wonder isn’t fat bad for you, but your body needs some fat from food. It’s a major source of energy. It helps you absorb some vitamins and minerals. Fat is needed to build cell membranes, the vital exterior of each cell, and the sheaths surrounding nerves. It is essential for blood clotting, muscle movement, and inflammation. For long-term health, some fats are better than others.

Learning more will clear up the confusion and help you to dodge the “bad” fat in your diet.

The Facts about Cholesterol

Cholesterol is a type of lipid, just as fats are. However, unlike fat, cholesterol can’t be exercised off, sweated out or burned for energy. It is found only in animal products, including meat, chicken, fish, eggs, organ meats and high-fat dairy products. The body transports fat and cholesterol by coating them with a water-soluble “bubble” of protein. This protein-fat bubble is called a lipoprotein.

Cholesterol: The good and the bad

Two types of lipoproteins carry cholesterol to and from cells. One is low-density lipoprotein, or LDL. The other is high-density lipoprotein, or HDL. A test measures the amount of each type of cholesterol in your blood.

LDL (bad) cholesterol

LDL cholesterol is considered the “bad” cholesterol, because it contributes to fatty build-ups in arteries (atherosclerosis). This narrows the arteries and increases the risk for heart attack, stroke and peripheral artery disease (PAD).

HDL (good) Cholesterol

HDL cholesterol can be thought of as the “good” cholesterol because a healthy level may protect against heart attack and stroke.
HDL carries LDL (bad) cholesterol away from the arteries and back to the liver, where the LDL is broken down and passed from the body. But HDL cholesterol doesn’t completely eliminate LDL cholesterol. Only one-third to one-fourth of blood cholesterol is carried by HDL.
HDLs and LDLs are found only in your blood, not in food.

Test Your Cholesterol

Your risk for heart disease can be assessed with a blood-cholesterol test. In this test, your total-cholesterol reading should approximate the sum of your LDL, HDL and other lipoproteins. If you have 3.5 mg of total cholesterol, or less, for every 1 mg of HDLs, then your cholesterol ratio is ideal. According to guidelines from the National Cholesterol Education Program:

Total cholesterol should remain below 200 mg/dl, unless HDL is high.
LDL should be lower than 130 mg/dl.
HDL should be 35 mg/dl or higher.
People under age 30 should shoot for an even lower total cholesterol of 180 mg/dl.

Fat facts

Dietary fat, also known as fatty acids, can be found in foods from both plants and animals. Certain fats have been linked to negative effects on heart health, but others have been found to offer significant health benefits.

Fat is as essential to your diet as protein and carbohydrates are in fuelling your body with energy. Certain bodily functions also rely on the presence of fat. For example, some vitamins require fat in order to dissolve into your bloodstream and provide nutrients. However, the excess calories from eating too much fat of any type can lead to weight gain.

Triglycerides

The fats that supply calories, float in your blood and accumulate in your thighs and hips are called “triglycerides.” They can be saturated or unsaturated, and the unsaturated ones can be either monounsaturated or polyunsaturated. For every gram of triglycerides you eat, you add 9 calories to your diet. Only saturated fats increase blood levels of cholesterol and heart-disease risk.

Good monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats

Doctors consider monounsaturated fat and polyunsaturated fat more “heart-healthy” fats. These are fats that are better choices for your diet. These good fats are the type of fat you should eat the most of as part of a heart-healthy diet. Foods that primarily contain these healthier fats tend to be liquid when they’re at room temperature. An example is vegetable oil.

Pecans, hazelnuts, almonds, sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds, olive oil, peanut oil, and canola oil have high concentrations of monounsaturated fats. Fish, flaxseeds, flaxseed oil, corn oil, soybean oil, and sunflower oil contain polyunsaturated fats. Omega-3 fatty acids — found in some types of fish, such as salmon and herring, and in plant products, such as soybean oil, canola oil, walnuts, and flaxseed — are a type of polyunsaturated fat that is thought to be particularly good for the heart.

Saturated fats

Eating foods with a lot of saturated fat raises your risk for heart disease; this causes the amount of bad LDLs in your blood to increase while good HDLs decrease. Cut the saturated fat, and your blood-cholesterol levels and your risk for heart disease drop. Your risk for cancer also decreases.

In general, the harder a fat, the more saturated it is. Saturated fats occur naturally in some animal products. This includes meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy items, such as cheese, cream, and whole milk. Palm, coconut, and other tropical oils, as well as cocoa butter, contain saturated fat.

Saturated fats are necessary for the body – but in small amounts. It is recommended that that less than 7 percent of your daily calories should come from saturated fats, preferably from lean poultry and low-fat or fat-free dairy products. For people who consume 2,000 calories per day, 15 grams at most should come from saturated fat.

Bad trans fats

Hydrogenated fats are liquid vegetable oils made creamy when manufacturers convert some of the unsaturated fats into saturated ones through a process called “hydrogenation.” This process also rearranges the molecular shape of the remaining unsaturated fats.

The resulting shape is an abnormal “trans” shape.

Trans fatty acids constitute up to 60 percent of the fat in processed foods containing hydrogenated fats. TFAs raise blood-cholesterol levels and increase heart-disease risk just like saturated fats.

Trans fats are found in a lot of processed foods such as baked goods (cookies, cakes, pastries), processed snack foods (crackers, microwave popcorn), fried foods (French fries, doughnuts, deep-fried fast foods), Vanaspati, margarine, sweets (jalebi, laddoo), etc. All food companies have to list trans fats on nutrition fact labels. However, foods can have up to .5 grams of trans fat per serving and still show 0 grams. Check the ingredients list and look for the words “hydrogenated oil.”

Take Home Message

Knowing your fats gives you an edge when it comes to buying and preparing the right foods to eat. You don’t have to cut all fat out of your diet. However, you should limit the amount of fat you eat. There are 9 calories in each gram of fat. This is more than twice the calories in carbohydrates and proteins. They each have 4 calories per gram.

Try to eat foods that contain unsaturated fats and omega-3 fatty acids. Avoid foods that are high in saturated and trans fats. The bottom line is:

Eat less fat, especially saturated fat.
Limit your intake of fatty meats, fatty dairy products and processed foods that contain hydrogenated vegetable oil.
Use olive oil, but in moderation if you’re watching your weight.
Fill your plate with fruit, vegetables, whole grains, fish and legumes.

Adapted from:

American Heart Association. HDL (Good), LDL (Bad) Cholesterol and Triglycerides; as accessed on 15th August 2021
Family doctor (by American Academy of Family Physicians). Dietary Fats: What’s Good and What’s Bad; as accessed on 15th August 2021
WebMD. Cholesterol & Triglycerides: Facts About Cholesterol; as accessed on 15th August 2021
Everyday Health. Heart Health: Good Fats vs. Bad Fats: Everything You Should Know About Fats and Heart Health; as accessed on 15th August 2021.