You know this word, "fat"? We use it in so many ways, to describe someone or something, also known as the adipose tissue in our bodies, and the many different types of fat in our food (trans fat, saturated fat, monounsaturated fat and polyunsaturated fat). But does fat in our daily meals always mean that we will, in turn, become fat? Not necessarily. Let's talk about the good-for-you fats and how to incorporate them into our everyday meals.
Monounsaturated fat: Can help to improve cholesterol levels and reduce risk of heart disease.
What Foods?
Nuts: sprinkle nuts over top a salad with cheese and chopped fruit.
Olive oil: replace all cooking fats (butter, lard) with olive oil. Make sure to measure 1 tbsp. at a time, it's easy to go overboard when we're in the kitchen pretending to be Rachel Ray.
Avocado: make an ALT sandwich (avocado, lettuce and tomato)....yum!
Peanut butter: stir peanut butter and banana into your morning oatmeal.
Polyunsaturated fat: Omega-3 fatty acids are a type of polyunsaturated fat. These may help lower cholesterol levels in improve the risk of heart disease as well.
What Foods?
Fatty fish (salmon, mackerel, albacore tuna, lake trout): Have salmon broiled or pan fried for dinner, or grab a to-go pack of canned salmon (found next to canned tuna) and place atop a salad, or enjoy with crackers.
Walnuts: sprinkle atop oatmeal, salad, or mix into your favorite homemade bread recipe.
Chia seeds: mix with yogurt or make your own chia pudding!
Flax seeds: need to be ground in some way to release their benefits, put in smoothie and the blender will do it for you.
Some eggs (check the label): Remember our ALT sandwich idea from above? Make it an EALT sandwich, (egg, avocado, lettuce, tomato), just pan fry an egg and place on top.
Losing/gaining weight is much more than calories in vs. calories out, but the answer is not cutting out fat either. If you cut out fat entirely, what are you replacing it with? Most likely refined carbohydrates and sugar, and this has shown to not be any better. So, add a little good-for-you fat in every day and enjoy it!!
References:
http://www.eatright.org/resource/food/nutrition/dietary-guidelines-and-myplate/choose-healthy-fats
http://www.eatright.org/resource/health/weight-loss/tips-for-weight-loss/want-to-get-lean-eat-fat
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