When consuming fat, make healthy
choices — olive oil, vegetable oils,
avocado, nuts and nut butters, and the oils
that come from nuts.
These fats are the most heart healthy. But
all fats contain about the same number of
calories, so even the healthier kinds
should be consumed sparingly to better
manage weight.
How:
-Check food labels. Compare similar
foods and choose the one that’s lower
in fat (but make sure that it’s also
lower in calories — some low-fat and
fat- free foods may be higher in sugar
and not much lower in calories).
-The types of fat in commercially
made products are listed on Nutrition
Facts labels. Reduce foods high in
saturated fat and trans fat, and select
more foods made with unsaturated
fats (polyunsaturated and
monounsaturated).
-To reduce saturated fat intake,
choose reduced-fat or fat-free milk,
yogurt, sour cream, cheese and other
dairy products.
-Select reduced-calorie or fat-free
dressings, flavored vinegars or oilvinegar
dressings for your salads. If
you don’t use reduced-calorie
dressings, use a small amount of
extra-virgin olive oil and vinegar (try
balsamic, red wine and others).
Sprinkle salads with a spoonful of
slivered nuts or sunflower seeds.
-Low-fat cooking techniques save
unwanted calories. Try grilling,
broiling, baking, roasting or steaming.
A good-quality nonstick pan may
allow you to cook food without using
oil or butter. You can also try cooking
spray, low-sodium broth or water
instead of using cooking oil.
-Choose meat with the least amount of
visible fat. Trim most of the fat from
the edges of the meat. Remove all
skin from poultry before cooking. Eat
smaller amounts of meat (about the
size of a deck of cards). Even small
amounts of lean meat and poultry
have fat.
Check out your kitchen cupboards and
refrigerator. Identify sources of animal fats
(cream, butter) and trans fats
(shortenings) and get rid of them. Replace
with olive oil, vegetable oils and trans fatfree
buttery spread. Whenever you use fat,
measure it out by the teaspoon.
FATS: THE GOOD AND THE BAD
-Monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats
are the best choices. Look for products
with little or no saturated fats, and avoid
trans fats — both increase blood
cholesterol levels. Remember that all fats
are high in calories.
Monounsaturated fats are found in
olive, canola and peanut oils, as well
as most nuts and avocados.
-Polyunsaturated fats are found in
other plant-based oils, such as
safflower, corn, sunflower, soybean,
sesame and cottonseed oils.
-Saturated fats are found in animalbased
foods, such as meats, poultry,
lard, egg yolks and whole-fat dairy
products (including butter and
cheese). They’re also in cocoa butter
and coconut, palm and other tropical
oils, which are used in many coffee
lighteners, snack crackers, baked
goods and other processed foods.
-Trans fats — also called
hydrogenated vegetable oil — are
found in hardened vegetable fats,
such as stick margarine and
vegetable shortening, and in foods
made with them (including many
crackers, cookies, cakes, pies and
other baked goods, as well as many
candies, snack foods and french
fries).
