The Alcohol Rehabilitation Centre in Mumbai and the Alcohol Rehabilitation Centre in India states that the fats are an important part of diet and are one of the three important macronutrients. A healthy balanced diet should have about 15-20% visible fats. One gram of fat gives about 9 Kcal energy on oxidation. The Alcohol Rehabilitation Centre in Mumbai mainly says that fats are often misunderstood and that they are unhealthy for the body but it isn’t totally true. Fats are of different types; some are good while some are bad for the body. You should have knowledge about the different types of fat in the diet so that you only consume the better ones and exclude the harmful ones.
Types of fats
There are basically four types of fats in our diet namely, Trans fats, saturated fats, polyunsaturated fats, monounsaturated fats. Trans fats and saturated fats are unhealthy and should not be consumed in excess amounts while monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids are healthy for the body and should be consumed in required amounts.
Trans fats
It is basically a type of unsaturated fat and the most common example is margarine. It is commonly found in packaged food items where the cis oriented fatty acids are converted to trans configuration. It is done so as to increase the shelf life of the food item. Excess consumption of trans fats results in increased levels of Low Density Lipoprotein (LDL) also called the ‘bad Cholesterol’ and decreases the high density lipoproteins or good cholesterol. All of this increases the risk of coronary artery diseases.
Saturated fats
These fats have single bonds and lack any double bonds. They are typically solid at room temperature, for example butter. Saturated fats are proven to increase the blood cholesterol levels and especially the bad cholesterol. The foods rich in saturated fats are animal foods like meat, dairy products, chips and other fried foods. You should totally limit them in your diet or else face the consequences thereafter.
Polyunsaturated fats
Polyunsaturated fats have more than one C-C double bond. They are good for the body and should be consumed in required amounts. Mostly it is found in plant foods like nuts, oilseeds but is also found in fishes, sea foods etc. it is useful in the synthesis of several steroid hormones. It improves the levels of good cholesterol and helps the body in maintaining homeostasis.
Monounsaturated fats
They are the healthiest of all fats and have one C-C double bond. These fats are liquid at room temperature. Vegetable oil is a good source of MUFA. It is best to replace the trans fats and saturated fats in your diet with this fat. It not only lowers the bad cholesterol but also helps in maintaining the cells of the body. Foods like avocado, nuts are rich in MUFA.
So now that you know which type of fat is good for you and which is not, you can easily eat healthy and eliminate the risk of any disease related to fat consumption.
- Amit
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