Healthy fats for a perfect wobble…
During the 1990’s diets and healthy
eating regimes focused on reducing fat and the ‘low fat’ craze became the
guiding light for nutritionists and dieticians. Food manufacturers of high fat
products responded by introducing a wide range of low fat variants – low fat
yoghurt, low fat cheese, low fat biscuits… the list is literally endless, and
changed the way we eat and our attitude to fat.
However, obesity is at an all-time
high, science has moved on and conventional wisdom has notably shifted in its
approach to fatty foods. Nowadays it’s all about healthy fats but there is still quite a lot of uncertainty and
nervousness about including high fat foods into our diets. FEAR NOT! ace has done the hard work for you! Here is our healthy fats download. Get
ready to smash those avocados and dig in…
The benefits of good fats:
- ENERGY – our bodies use the fat we consume to provide energy
for most of our life functions. Fat cells also store energy for future
use.
- GROWTH - essential fatty acids help growth development and
cell function, which are not naturally made by our body. It also helps
vitamins (A,D,E and K) get to where they are needed. Fats also form
steroid hormones – needed to regulate many bodily processes.
- BRAINS – fat improves brain and nerve functionality – our
brains contain large amounts of essential fats, and the fatty material
which wraps around our nerve cells helps to send electrical messages to
the brain.
- SKIN – fats help maintain healthy skin, give it plumpness
and glow.
- HEART - “Healthy” fats lower “bad” cholesterol in the blood
– decreasing heart attacks.
These benefits are found in
polyunsaturated fats, monounsaturated fats and saturated fat. Trans-fats, on
the other hand, which are artificially processed fats, can lead to all sorts of
health problems - high cholesterol, heart disease, heart attacks, strokes and
are a fat worth avoiding.
‘Good
fat’ foods
- Cold water fish: high in monounsaturated and omega-3 fats, salmon,
mackerel, trout and tuna are an excellent source of healthy fat. If you do
not like fish, then fish oil supplements are worth considering instead.
- Plant oils: hemp, grapeseed, flax seed, olive, canola... are all a
great source of polyunsaturated fat. Use for pouring over salads (they
hydrogenate at a high temperature so benefits are lost when cooking).
Canola oil is a good one to cook with as it doesn’t downgrade at high
temperatures.
- Nuts and seeds: these are an excellent source of good fats. Hazelnuts,
almonds, cashews and peanuts all derive more than half of their fat
calories from monounsaturated fats. Walnuts and Chia seeds are extremely
rich in omega-3 fats. Sunflower, sesame and pumpkin seeds as well as
Brazil nuts all offer a balance of both poly and monosaturated fats. The
oils derived from these seeds and nuts are similarly rich in healthy fats.
- Avocados: smash on wholemeal toast, add some seasoning, bit of
chilli… and now we’re talking.
Avocado are a great source of fibre and contains mostly
monounsaturated fat which lowers risk of heart disease and high cholesterol
as well as helping control blood glucose levels. They’re staging something
of a major comeback so get them on your shopping list!
- Dairy products
and meats: also known as saturated fats.
These fats are not as healthy as poly or monounsaturated fats but have some
important functions in the body, e.g., needed for healthy cell membranes
and is involved in hormone synthesis, therefore, a little saturated fat is
required. Be careful, an excessive amount can contribute to raised
cholesterol.
- Coconut oil: also a saturated fat but has loads of health and
beauty benefits. Nearly 50% of coconut oil is medium chain fatty acids or
lauric acid, which converts to monolaurin in our bodies. Monolaurin is
found in abundance in human breast milk, and is very effective at boosting
immunity. It is a great oil to fry and bake with and doesn’t downgrade at
high temperatures.
Check out the ace website for lots of
ideas and recipes for cooking with good fats www.ace-london.com.
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