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Home › Articles › Nutrition and Your Health › Fat, Food and Your Health

Fat, Food and Your Health

The Truth About The Dreaded F-Word

By Lisamarie Sanders

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It's true. Despite all of the conflicting information on fat, French fries and hot fudge sundaes are still a no-no. Full of artery-clogging saturated fat, these favorites should be saved for rare occasions.

Saturated fat continues to wear the black hat when it comes to heart health. Found primarily in animal products, including meat, milk and eggs, saturated fat is usually a solid at room temperature. It increases LDLs and is strongly associated with numerous maladies, including heart disease and stroke.

And The Ugly
Trans fats are the new fats on the scene, and they may be even worse than saturated fats. They are formed by taking a healthy unsaturated fat, like canola oil, and hydrogenating it to prolong shelf life. Trans fats have been shown to increase LDLs while decreasing HDLs. To use Dr. Hayes' example, the party is getting bigger, the litter is piling up, but the cleaners are being laid off.

"Gram for gram, trans fats have 15 times more risk for inducing coronary heart disease than saturated fats," says Dr. Hayes. Although you get less trans fat in your diet, even small amounts greatly increase your risk.

The other problem with trans fat is that it is not currently represented on food labels. To get an idea of the amount of trans fat in a product, read the ingredients list – the closer to the top you see any form of hydrogenated oil listed, the higher the amount of trans fat it contains.

Low-fat Cooking
A good first step to cutting fat is to buy a good low-fat cookbook. A good one to start with is the American Heart Association's book, Meals in Minutes.

Unlike most low-fat cookbooks, Meals in Minutes is loaded with recipes packed with flavor and tips on how to get healthy. The book begins with basic information for maintaining a healthy diet. You'll learn how cholesterol, alcohol, fats and sodium affect your health. The food pyramid is covered, as well as eating plans and actually shopping for your meal. Other useful information included is what to look for on food labels, freezer basics and how to cook "heart healthy."

The recipes are innovative and delicious! Most of the 200-plus recipes contain easy-to-find ingredients, and most cook up rather quickly. Soup lovers will savor Turkey Tortilla Soup, with only 6 grams of fat per serving, and Creamy Mushroom Barley Soup, featuring two types of mushrooms and only 2 grams of fat per serving. Flank Steak Burritos will keep the meat-lovers happy, with only 5 grams of fat per serving. Sole Mozzarella, with only 3 grams of fat per serving, pairs heart-smart fish with low-fat cheese and garlic. Vegetarians have many recipes to choose from as well, such as Exotic Mushroom Stroganoff and Pasta with Italian Vegetables. And to end your meal, try Yogurt Brulee with Blueberries, which contains 0 grams of fat!

Healthy, low-fat eating does not have to be boring. Meals in Minutes has proven that, and who better to trust your heart with than the American Heart Association?


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