3 Healthy Fats You Must Eat
When it comes to fat, let’s all be upfront and say we think fat is bad.
Our minds have been conditioned to think that certain foods are “fattening” and that certain foods will harm our health and bodies. Fat is one of those very foods.
Whether it be the fat-free or low-fat products that are constantly being pushed out in the stores, or even foods that aren’t cooked or prepared with fat, we live in a society that sees fat as bad.
I confess that I used to also think fat was bad. I ate fat-free and low fat foods all the time when I went on diets. And you know what? I lost weight and got results.
Yet, there is one thing I didn’t realize until I started eating more healthy fats: how hungry I felt when I didn’t eat much fat.
You see not only do we need fat for energy, important metabolic processes that happen in our body, and to provide the right building blocks for our organs and cells, we also need fat to simply feel satisfied (via taste), satiated (via our gut communicating to our brain that we are full), and get the calories we need (to fuel our activity levels and maintain our body weight).
Fat is a food source that is absolutely essential to our health and overall well-being. The problem is that most of the foods we eat are filled with bad fats such as trans fats (canola, soybean, corn, etc.) which are hydrogenated and can cause inflammation in the body. Therefore, we have come to believe that all fat is bad when in reality that is simply not true.
So what fats are good fats? Which ones should we try to include in our diets?
There are three main sources of fat that we should all actively try to incorporate into our diets. These are:
- Monounsaturated fats
- Saturated fats
- Polyunsaturated fats
Monounsaturated Fats
Monounsaturated fats (MUFAs) are found in a variety of plant foods, oils, and animal products. As Dallas and Melissa Hartwig note in their book It Starts with Food, diets that are rich in “MUFAs may improve blood pressure, reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, benefit insulin and blood sugar levels, and may even have an anti-inflammatory effect on the body.”
Examples of monounsaturated fats include:
- Avocado and avocado oil
- Hazelnuts and macadamia nuts
- Olives and Olive Oil
However, just as with the other two healthy fat sources, the key is to make sure you get the most unrefined and organic fat source out there to ensure you are getting all of the available nutrients from the fat.
I personally eat monounsaturated fats all the time! I love making guacamole, using olive oil on my salad, and LOVE my friend Vero’s macadamia nut paleo waffles 🙂 These waffles are so good that honestly, I’ll eat fat any day if they are in the form of these waffles!
Saturated Fats
Saturated fats have long been considered as “bad fats.” They are sourced from animals and can be found in animal fat products (i.e. butter, dairy, cream, cheese, etc). Most of us have been warned at some point in our lives not to eat red meat or eggs as they are high in saturated fat, which used to be associated with heart disease and other autoimmune conditions.
However, it’s actually not fat that may cause us to gain weight or lead to more fat stored in our bodies – it’s eating too many refined carbohydrates and sugars. Eating too much carbohydrates and sugar causes the excess that our bodies don’t need to be stored as fat, in particular visceral fat (a fat that forms around our organs). For more on the harmful effects of too much carbohydrates and sugar, check out a blog post I wrote on eating paleo in the Caribbean and another one on my journey with breaking up with sugar.
Furthermore, did you know that saturated fats are actually the healthiest and safest choice for cooking at high temperature? They are more stable at these high temperatures when exposed to air and heat, thus making them ideal for roasting, broiling, pan-frying, sautéing and more. Some saturated fats such as organic butter actually have high amounts of anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acids and Vitamin E.
Examples of animal saturated fats include:
- Clarified Butter
- Duck fat
- Ghee
- Goat fat
- Lard (pig fat)
- Tallow (beef fat)
I personally sometimes love cooking with beef fat in the form of ground beef. Whenever I make hamburgers and allow them to cook in in their own fat, it always adds flavor and a sense of satisfaction to the meal!
Coconut (known as the Other White Meat!)
Coconut products have to be my favorite sources of fat. Whether its coconut oil, coconut flakes, coconut milk, or coconut jelly, I have come to really embrace coconut products as my primary source of fat.
As pointed out in It Starts With Food, “Coconuts actually contain a very large proportion of a healthy form of saturate fat called “medium chain-trigylceries” or MCTS. MCTS are shorter-chain fats that are more rapidly absorbed and metabolized by the body, leaving them to more likely be burned as fuel by your muscles and organs, instead of being stored as fat!” Can I get an amen to that one?!
MCT’s also may help prevent cardiovascular disease and even may reduce unhealthy cholesterol levels! They also don’t require bile for digestion, making them a great fat source if you have any liver, digestive, or malabsoprition conditions.
Examples of coconut products include:
- Coconut oil (get the organic, extra virgin, unrefined kind)
- Ccoconut butter/manna
- Coconut (meat or flakes)
- Coconut milk (canned- unsweetened)
I personally use coconut oil in my cooking, on my skin, in my hair and to apply essential oils! I also use coconut milk in a chocolate mousse I make (sugar free – yep!), in my coffee, and to make my own ice cream!
Have I convinced you yet to get some coconut products? I hope so 🙂
Polyunsaturated Fats
The two main types of polyunsaturated fats that I’ll share on are the omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids. Both are needed, but too much of one over the other can lead to inflammation in the body.
The most common naturally-occurring polyunsaturated fats are nuts and seeds. However, if you consume these in excess, you could be putting more omega-6’s into your body than you need.
It Starts with Food outlines that when it comes to consuming nuts and seeds, there are some best choices and some ones that you should consume in moderation and limit. These are as follows:
- Best choices: Cashews, hazelnuts, macadamias
- In moderation: Almonds, brazil nuts, pecans, and pistachios
- Limit: Flax seeds, pine nuts, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, and walnuts
How much fat should I eat?
Whole30, a 30 day program focused on eliminating processed and refined foods and eating more whole foods, published a meal planning template on their website with guidelines on the amount of fat that is recommended at each meal. See below:
- All oils and cooking fats (olive oil, animal fats, etc.): 1-2 thumb-sized portions
- All butters (ghee, coconut butter, nut butters, etc): 1-2 thumb sized portions
- Coconut (shredded or flaked): 1-2 open (heaping) handfuls
- Olives: 1-2 open (heaping) handfuls
- Nuts and seeds: Up to one closed handful
- Avocado: 1/2 – 1 avocado
- Coconut milk: Between 1/4 and 1/2 of one (14 oz.) can
So what’s the verdict?
Do you still think fat is bad or are you maybe thinking twice about it? Is eating healthy fats such as the ones above something you want to start incorporating into your diet?
If so, make it a priority to pick one fat source and type of fat from above and start to include it in your diet a couple times a week.
Some examples would be:
- Eating avocado in your salads
- Using olive oil and balsamic vinegar on your salads instead of pre-made dressing
- Use coconut milk in your coffee
- Roast your vegetables in coconut oil
- Make your own trail mix with raisins, coconut flakes and cashews for a snack
It’s time we start exploring for ourselves what healthy eating really is, and make it a priority to educate and empower ourselves to make real, natural, and healthy food choices.
Be sure to let me know in the comments below which new fat you are going to try to incorporate into your diet!
P.S. If you are interested in learning more about whole foods and how incorporating them into your diet can greatly improve your health, be sure to join us in the Restart Your Health Community where we journey together each day to live healthier and happier lives.
Reference used for post:
Hartwig, Dallas and Melissa (2012). It Starts With Food. USA: Victory Belt Publishing, Inc.
