Why eating the good fats is good for us, and how to avoid the bad ones Wine News

Dietary fats are essential for good health, but many have negative connotations. Over the years we have been told that fats are ‘bad’ and have been advised to switch to low fat foods including highly processed oils and hydrogenated spreads. But this advice has not made us healthier and, on the contrary, has been detrimental to our well-being as obesity and type 2 diabetes have increased. Now is the time to stand up for this vital food group.

We need fat to survive. It is a crucial source of energy, vital for cell growth, hormonal regulation, blood clotting and the brain. Fat helps the body absorb certain fat-soluble vitamins and minerals, and supports good heart, bowel, eye, skin, bone and mental health. Fat also plays an important role in making food satisfying and helping us feel fuller for longer.

However, good health is not about looking at a food group in isolation, but how fats work in tandem with other macronutrients, such as good quality protein and unrefined carbohydrates, to support our physical well-being. and mental. We’d better avoid low-fat processed foods in favor of fresh, low-processed foods that offer a wide array of nutrients and health benefits, even if they contain fat.

There are two types: saturated and unsaturated. Saturated fat is mainly found in animal products such as butter, whole milk, cream, cheese and meat as well as coconut oil. It is solid at room temperature. Unsaturated fats are made up of polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats. It tends to be liquid at room temperature.

Unsaturated and saturated fats are often labeled “good” and “bad” or “good” and “bad” respectively, but many argue that this is too simplistic and even misleading. First, it ignores the fact that many foods are a combination of the two types.

A healthier way to compare “good” fats versus “bad” fats is to consider how a food is processed and what else it contains in terms of additives, salt, sugar and more. refined carbohydrates. Growing evidence suggests that saturated fat from unprocessed foods (those that are as close to their original state as possible) may not be as harmful as suggested.

Many “good fat” foods are at the heart of the popular Mediterranean diet. Interestingly, people living around the Mediterranean consume three times as much fat as those who follow a strict low-fat diet. Olive oil is at the heart of the Mediterranean diet. Rich in monounsaturated fats, it has been shown to protect the heart by maintaining HDL (good) cholesterol levels and lowering LDL (bad) cholesterol levels. Nuts, seeds, fish and shellfish as well as small amounts of meat and poultry are also mainstays of the diet (along with fruits and vegetables). These provide a range of good fats, especially omega-3 fatty acids, which are as important in infancy as they are in old age.

The recipes here focus on the positive attributes of the right fats from the right foods. They celebrate these ingredients, not only for their many health benefits, but also for the incredible diversity, taste and enjoyment they bring to our cooking and eating. Don’t eat less fat or low fat, just eat the right fats.

Well done: the good fats

• Oils: extra virgin olive oil, cold pressed non-genetically modified (GM) rapeseed oil, sesame oil, walnut oil, hazelnut oil, hemp oil, avocado oil, coconut oil.
• Meats and poultry: grass-fed, organic beef and lamb preferably, free-range pork, organic chicken.
• Fish and shellfish: salmon, mackerel, sardines, sprats, herring, trout, pilchards, mussels, clams, oysters, crab, squid, sea bass, sea bream, turbot and halibut.
• eggs: farmhouse, organic, preferably enriched with omega-3.
• Dairy products: whole milk, cheese, cream, butter from cows, sheep and goats fed on grass, preferably in organic farming.
• Nuts and seeds: flax seeds / linseeds, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, hemp seeds, pumpkin seeds, walnuts, hazelnuts, Brazil nuts, almonds, pecans, cashews.
• Others: soy beans / edamame, tofu, avocado.

Chia cherry breakfast pots

These fruit jars are thickened with chia seeds, which, while tiny, provide a range of nutrients from plant-based omega-3s to protein and fiber, and more.