Saturated Fats

The most common saturated fatty acids include butyric acid, lauric acid, palmitic acid, and myristic acid. These fatty acids can be found in many foods including breast milk, coconut oil, palm oil, cashews, soybean oil, cow milk, and cocoa butter. These foods are known for having many different and varying health benefits and should be included as part of the diets of you, and your family. The necessity of having a balanced and nutritious diet is a recognized and well-understood fact among health care professionals. Though good nutrition is exceptionally important, it’s ignored by a large majority of the world’s population. For example, while the role of saturated fats as a chief ingredient in a nutritious food is proven, many tend to either avoid fatty foods, or consume too much.

It’s important to understand that fats come in many categories. Saturated fats are composed of various types of fatty acids that are fully saturated with hydrogen atoms. There are several kinds of naturally occurring saturated fatty acids, which are equally important for good nutrition. Despite the fact that the percentage of fat consumed as part of your diet is normally much lower than the percentages of other nutrients consumed, their importance and effectiveness can’t be downplayed. Some common foods that contain a considerable amount of saturated fat include coconut oil, butter, ground beef, dark chocolate, salmon and eggs. These foods are essential in building protection against various diseases.

Besides maintaining body temperature and promoting healthy cell function, saturated fats also provide energy for your body. It protects our organs, aids hormones and chemicals when entering and leaving cells, it gives our body shape, and makes our food taste good. However, saturated fats can also have negative effects on individuals if they’re not consumed in reasonable and healthy proportions. Nutritionists and doctors all over the world regularly advise people to limit their consumption of saturated fats. Excess consumption can and does frequently lead to various types of cardiovascular disease.

There is good news however. You don’t have to cut out all of these tasty foods in order to cut your saturated fats. There are steps you can take to lower the amount of saturated fat that you consume while not eliminating all animal products from your diet. It’s all about the way that you prepare the foods that makes a huge difference in the amount of saturated fats that are in the food.

• Buy kosher or organic meat!
• Buy meats that are labeled “lean” especially when buying ground meat.
• If you can see the fat on a piece of meat, cut it off before cooking.
• Don’t over eat. A typical portion of meat is only about the size of the palm of your hand.
• Avoid frying—instead grill, poach, or steam your food.
• When eating seafood, choose a lower fat fish and avoid dipping in butter or other sauces.
• Eat organic dairy, it does not have antibiotics, growth hormones or dangerous pesticides.
• Cut back on the amount of cheese you eat and try a cheese made with skim milk.
• Avoid trans fats!

Learn to read labels when eating processed foods. Note that the ingredients are listed in order of prominence in the product, so if there are a lot of tropical oils up higher on the list of ingredients then you should probably steer clear of that food while if lower on the list it is more desirable.

Try to replace some of the saturated fats in your diet with monounsaturated fats as these types of fats are much better for you since they are proven to actually lower your risk of heart disease and lower the bad kind of cholesterol.

A few ways you can incorporate monounsaturated fats into your diet are:

• Replace vegetable oil with canola oil or olive oil; this is a much healthier way to substitute or fry your foods.
• Use nuts in your cooking, on salads, or as a snack.
• Include some avocado in your diet. Sliced avocado is wonderful on a sandwich or salad.
• Look for olive oil based mayo and salad dressings to replace your ordinary ones.

Using these tips along with common sense you can cut your fat intake and lower your cholesterol and lose weight. There is no magic cure for weight loss but cutting your saturated fats is certainly an important step in the process as is exercise. Even if you don’t have heart or cholesterol problems now, they can pop up quickly especially with age, so it is important to take steps now to prevent problems later on. Don’t give in to all the fast food temptations that are lurking around every corner, take just a little time to invest in making heart healthy meals for your family.