Fats

There are two basic types of fats grouped by their chemical structure. Each is used differently in your bodies and has a different effect on the health. Eating too much fat may increase the risk of getting diseases like cancer, heart disease, high blood pressure or stroke. Health experts recommend that you should get no more than 30% of your calories from fat to reduce our risk of getting these diseases. Fats can also be called visible or invisible fats depending on their source. A lot of fat is hidden in foods that you eat as snacks, pastries or prepared meals. You can reduce the amount of fat you eat by cutting down on the fat that you add in cooking or spread on foods. You can eat skim milk and low fat cheeses instead of whole milk and cheese. You can also use less fats, oil, butter and margarine.

Saturated fats are found in meats and whole dairy products like milk, cheese, cream and ice cream. Coconut, palm kernel oil, margarine and vegetable shortening are also saturated fats. When you eat too much saturated fats, it increases your chances of getting heart disease. You can reduce the saturated fats in our diets by using skim milk and low fat cheeses instead of whole milk and cheese. You can also use less fat, oil, butter and margarine. Mostly vegetable oils and liquids at room temperature, polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats does not increase our risk of heart disease as they contain “good cholesterol”. Eating these fats, but in moderation is a healthy eating habit.