It's Easy To Stay Away From Saturated Fats
It's Easy To Stay Away From Saturated Fats
Basically, fat plays a role in supporting the functioning of the body. However, there are good and bad types of fat. The ideal is to continue to eat good fats and avoid bad fats. Fats that are potentially bad for body health are those that contain lots of saturated fat and trans fat.
Our bodies produce fat from excess calories that enter the body. There is also fat that we eat and serves as a source of energy for the body, namely dietary fat. Dietary fats can come from animals or plants (vegetable oils). Apart from being a source of energy, another function of fat is to help the absorption of several types of vitamins and minerals that enter the body. However, there is a downside to fat, which is high in calories, which can lead to rapid weight gain if consumed in excess.
What is Saturated Fat?
Fats are made up of two types of molecules, namely fatty acids and glycerol. It is these types and levels of fatty acids that determine the impact fat has on your body. Saturated fat is a type of fat that generally comes from animals, such as poultry, red meat, and dairy products that are rich in fat. Saturated fat if consumed in excess can increase the risk of health problems, such as increased inflammation, plaque formation in blood vessels, and insulin resistance. Excess saturated fat is closely related to the risk of heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes. This occurs because of an increase in levels of "bad" cholesterol (LDL) in the blood.
While fats from plants are generally unsaturated fats, although some of them also contain saturated fats, such as palm oil. Unsaturated fats are called good fats because they are fats that can increase levels of healthy fats (HDL) in the blood, and reduce levels of bad fats, such as cholesterol and triglycerides. Research shows that high levels of HDL in the blood can reduce the risk of heart disease, and excess cell damage due to inflammation.
Guide to Avoid Saturated Fats
How can we get used to eating less saturated fat and more unsaturated fat? Here are some guides you can use.
- In general, men are advised not to consume more than 30 grams of saturated fat per day. While the maximum limit for women is 20 grams. With this guide, you can check and select foods by reading the nutrition labels on the packaging.
- When buying meat, ask for cuts of meat with less fat. Remove the skin before processing and remove any visible fat.
- Choose dairy products with low fat content, such as yogurt or low-fat milk, with 1 percent fat.
- When cooking, measure out the oil with a tablespoon before pouring it into the frying pan to control how much to use.
- Change cooking methods from frying to grilling, boiling or steaming.
- Add fruit, vegetables, and nuts to your menu, and reduce consumption of fatty meats.
Specifically, you can use the following tips as a guide to updating your food choices to be healthier.
- Buffet meals: opt for non- coconut milk to avoid saturated fat. Prioritize the choice of vegetable, fish, and chicken dishes over red meat.
- Pizza: choose pizza with healthier toppings, such as fish, shrimp, and vegetables, rather than cheese and red meat.
- Spaghetti: use low-fat minced meat as a mix.
- French fries: cut into larger versions and use olive oil to fry them.
- Eggs: rather than fried, it is better to boil them.
- Pasta: cheese or cream sauce has a higher saturated fat content than tomato sauce.
- Yogurt: choose low fat and low sugar content.
- Coffee: choose regular packaging, not milk and large volume.
- Snacks: Instead of chocolate, donuts or biscuits, choose fruit, nuts and yogurt.
In essence, to stay away from saturated fats, try to always choose foods that are unprocessed and more whole like vegetables, fruit, fish, nuts, seeds, olive oil, cheese, and low-fat meats. In addition, the thing to remember is that disease does not only come from diet, but also from daily habits, including how to deal with stress, exercise intensity, and sleep.
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