The Skinny on Fat
After years of being afraid of it, turns out FAT can be your friend. GOOD fats will NOT make you fat, they can actually AID in weight loss! Your body needs it in order to function. Good fats can help you to absorb vitamins A, D, and E, and they are vital for your nervous system. Have a small amount of fat at every meal. It digests slowly, so you’ll feel satisfied for a longer period of time, and you’ll eat less overall. Eating a solid meal high in fat and protein sets you up for a slow release of insulin and creates a more stable blood sugar level. Having stable blood sugar enables you to go longer without food. Bingo!
My top 5 GOOD fats are:
- Avocados – They don’t call this Gods Butter for no reason! Avocados don’t just contain any fat, they contain oleic acid – a monounsaturated fatty acid that is linked to reduced inflammation and been shown to have beneficial effects on genes linked to cancer.
- Nuts and seeds – Are the perfect snack to get you through the day. Not roasted or salted or flavoured though. Raw or dehydrated are best. Go for almonds, cashews, walnuts and hazelnuts. Sesame seeds as well as sesame seed butter or tahini and sunflower seed butter, pumpkin and flaxseeds provide some monounsaturated fats.
- Fatty fish – like sardines, salmon and tuna (but only small amounts of tuna as it is high in mercury)
- UDOS oil – Full of essential fatty acids. (EFA’s – the body cannot make these so hence essential)
- Flax seeds and Chia Seeds all contain lots of Omega 3’s (again an EFA) In fact, chia seeds contain more Omega-3s than salmon, gram for gram.
Of course, moderation is key so even with the good fats, don’t overdose, as there are links between too much unsaturated fat and health problems. There are fats to be aware of, and these are mostly found in
Low Fat Foods:
Please don’t think that LOW FAT is the way forward. Low fat foods have the good fat removed, and replaced by sugar to make them taste yummy. And we all know that sugar in turn, turns to fat and is toxic!
Trans Fats:
This type of fat rarely occurs in nature and therefore manufactured by those interested in extending the sell by date on their product. Notice how I say product and not food because by the time a ready meal, chocolate bar, bag of crisps or take away has been pumped full of trans fats it really shouldn’t be considered edible! Most nutritionists recommend the only genuinely safe level of dietary trans fat, is ZERO!!!!!!! Fear not… there are plenty of alternatives for snacks like fruit, nuts, carrot sticks and hummus. Even times when you want to indulge, there are higher quality cakes and chocolate need not contain trans fats.
