Fats

Image Courtesy: http://healthimpactnews.com

In this era of expanding waistlines and increasing risk of diseases, ‘FAT’ is a term that is often under radar for reasons good or bad. Fats and oils are blamed for causing all the damage to our bodies which are actually a result of our unbalanced diet and blind eating. Fats are naturally present in many foods in the form of invisible fat, e.g., meat, poultry, fish, dairy products, eggs, nuts and seeds. Visible fats such as lard, cooking oils, salad oils, margarine and butter are derived from these products.

The term ‘fat’ is used for those fats which are solid at room temperature and ‘oils’ is a term used for fats which are liquid at room temperature.

Fats play an important role in food preparation as well as in nutrition. Fats are an essential constituent of the membrane of every cell, they are energy stores of the body, they help in regulation of body functions, acts as an insulator in the form of subcutaneous fat and its most important function is that it provides protection to certain vital organs from physical damage and shock.

Fat is the most concentrated source of energy in the diet, 1g of fat releases 9 calories of energy. It serves as a carrier of fat soluble vitamins such as Vitamins A, D, E and K. The presence of fats in food or its addition to food is responsible for much of the texture and flavor of food.

Fats and fatty acids are broadly classified as saturated fats/fatty acids and unsaturated fats/fatty acids based on their chemical structure.

Saturated fats are short chain, medium chain and long chain fatty acids and are found in animal fats such as butter, cheese, lard, whole milk, ice cream, cream and fatty meats and oils such as coconut, palm and palm kernel oil. Saturated fatty acids are closely associated with increase in total and Low Density Lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol. Every 1% increase in calories of dietary saturated fatty acids correlates to a 2% increase in LDL cholesterol.

Unsaturated fats are monounsaturated fatty acids and polyunsaturated fatty acids. These are linked to a lower risk of heart disease.

Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) are of 2 types – Omega 3 and Omega 6 fatty acids – Omega 3 fatty acids found in corn oil, safflower oil and sunflower oil, Omega 6 fatty acids are found in fish, shell fish, flaxseed, walnut, soyabean and rapeseed oil. PUFA help to reduce the amount of newly formed cholesterol and can help lower blood cholesterol levels when substituted for saturated fatty acids in the diet.

Monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) constitute Omega 9 fatty acids which are found in olive oil, avocados, peanuts and almonds. MUFA also reduce blood cholesterol when consumed with a diet very low in saturated fats.

In simple terms, more of MUFA and PUFA in the diet in comparison to the saturated fats helps maintain better cholesterol levels in the blood viz. no excess cholesterol and less risk of a heart disease.

Another type of fats/fatty acids are trans-fats/fatty acids and these are found in fried foods, commercial baked goods, processed foods and margarine. Increased dietary intake of trans-fatty acids causes rise in LDL cholesterol.Saturated fatty acids and trans-fatty acids are linked with a high risk of heart disease.

Cholesterol occurs in all animal and human tissues, it forms an essential part of bodily functions. Cholesterol is of two types – Low Density Lipoprotein (Bad cholesterol) (LDL) and High Density Lipoprotein (Good cholesterol) (HDL). High consumption of dietary cholesterol is associated with an increased serum cholesterol and increase in LDL cholesterol which increases the risk for Coronary Heart Disease. Dietary cholesterol is obtained only from animal foods.

Fats are associated with a lot of heart diseases, hence intake of the right fats in right amounts is essential to keep risks at bay and also exercising will help in better utilization of fats.

Post by Faiz Lahori