Dietary fat seems to still have a negative image and people feel it is unhealth, however, that is not true. There are dietary fats that are important to our health. Dietary fat has several sub-categories that have different structures and function for our health. Yet, we tend to categorize them as the same and because of that we get confused with how important they are.
Fat and Energy
In terms of calories per gram, carbohydrates have 4 kcal, proteins have 4 kcal and fats have 9 kcal. So, when you compare gram to gram, fat has higher calories and because of that people tend to think this is bad. However, this has no correlation or evidence to show that fat is bad. In fact, because fat has higher calories per gram, satiation will be longer and slower to digest better than carbohydrates that have less calories per gram. Which means, when you look at fat loss, because of slower digestion, fat can be a useful resource for it keeps us full longer.
Saturated and Unsaturated Fats
Fat can be divided into two categories, saturated fat and unsaturated fat. Term saturated or unsaturated depends on saturation of these chains with hydrogen. With saturated fat, it is a single bonded carbon chain saturated with hydrogen atom. Unsaturated fat is double bonded carbon chain and are not saturated with hydrogen atom.
Majority of natural food sources do contain both saturated and unsaturated fat, however, animal products such as beef, egg, cheese tend to have more saturated fat, where fish, nuts and plants have more unsaturated fat. Saturated fat is solid at room temperature and consumption of too much saturated fat is considered less healthy. Unsaturated fats are liquid in room temperature and consumption of them is considered healthy. Some of the well-known unsaturated fats are EPA and DHA.
Although food sources higher in saturated fat, such as meat and eggs, are considered unhealthy, there is plenty of evidence that shows that both meat and eggs have a health benefit especially for those who want to build muscle, improve in cognitive function, improve on fat metabolism, and so forth. If you are concerned about health but still want to enjoy meat or eggs you can cook or serve them with olive oil. Olive oil is unsaturated fat with high omega 3 and polyphenol, which helps support your health and when cooked with any food sources, it helps minimize the oxidation. For example, soaking the meat with olive oil for 10-15 minutes prior to cooking may keep the fat content from oxidizing while cooking.
MCT Oil
With in dietary fat there is saturated fat, unsaturated fat, and there is another one that you may be familiar with, MCT oil. MCT stands for medium chain triglycerides. Both saturated and unsaturated fats are long chain triglycerides and take longer time to process them in our body. This is a benefit for those who want to lose weight because it keeps you full longer. MCT is a shorter chain triglyceride which can get digested and absorb 4 times faster than long chain triglycerides, which means MCT can be utilized by the body faster. MCT oil can be found in coconut oil and palm kernel oil. Along with energy benefits, MCT oil also has benefits in cognitive function and blood sugar control.
CLA
One another fat that you might want to know is CLA. CLA stands for conjugated linoleic acid. CLA is known for improving insulin function, promoting secretion of enzymes to break down fat, and slowing down the creation of fat (lipogenesis). CLA can be found in animal meats especially in those are grass-fed.
Trans Fat
Trans fat is a type of unsaturated fat. Unsaturated fat is healthy fat in liquid form. However, this healthy fat can be processed through heavy machinery into solid form of fat, which is called trans unsaturated fat or trans fat.
Trans fat can be found mainly in procced food such as snacks, pastries, margarines, shortenings, processed meat and so on. Some of the health problems you may encounter there will be a increase in risk of heart disease, inflammation, obesity, and metabolic disorders.
Not All Fats Are Bad
Depending on type of diet you are on the amount of fat you should be consuming may vary. However, avoiding consuming good source of fat will lead to health problem. There are health benefits by consuming fat. It is also important to realize that there are good fat and bad fat. Therefore, knowing your source will also help you choose a healthy fat. This is same for carbohydrate, protein and even water.
Kota Shimada
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