Balancing Cholesterol & Fat: The Key to Good Taste and Good Health

Many of our favorite foods contain significant amounts of fat. That is because fat provides much of the great taste we enjoy in foods. Fats are also important to the texture we enjoy in foods – the creaminess of ice cream or chocolate; the silky smoothness of salad dressing; the light, moist texture of cakes; and the tender crispiness of cookies.

Cholesterol

Cholesterol and fats are necessary to good health, too. Cholesterol is a waxy-looking fat made by your liver. Your body uses it to help make hormones and build healthy cell membranes. Cholesterol travels in the blood wrapped in lipoproteins. These are substances that contain protein and fat. There are 2 types of lipoproteins to be concerned with:

• LDL: low-density lipoprotein. It is “bad” cholesterol that can stick to the walls of your arteries

• HDL: high-density lipoprotein. It is the “good” cholesterol. It is used as needed and the excess is dis-carded. HDL may also remove excess LDL cholesterol from artery walls. You want more HDL and less LDL in your body.

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Fats

Dietary fats provide energy, vital hormone-like substances and essential fatty acids for healthy skin. They also carry and help the body absorb the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K. While we cannot do without fat in foods, we are wise to limit how much of it we eat. Too much saturated fat may increase your risk of chronic disease. Any saturated fat you eat causes your liver to make more cholesterol, whether you need it or not.

Animal fats [suet, lard, butter], any hydrogenated oil [margarine, shortening], and some vegetable oils [coconut, palm and cocoa oil] are saturated fats.

Eating too much fat also plays a role in becoming overweight because ounce for ounce, fats contain twice as many calories as protein and carbohydrates.

Use Lower Fat Foods to Help Meet Your Goals

Many of the new lower-fat and fat-free foods in supermarkets today have been in the making for several years. Using lower-fat foods may help people come closer to meeting dietary fat goals.

Lower-fat foods are one way to reduce the fat in your diet. It is also important to recognize that calories still count – even in lower-fat or fat-free foods.

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Be sensible about portion sizes

Make small changes over time in what you eat and the level of activity you do. After all, small steps work better than giant leaps. Balance what you eat over several days. No need to worry about just one meal or one day. Use lower-fat foods as part of an overall healthful diet. Be active. Walk the dog, don’t watch the dog walk! Remember, it is all about making smart choices.

Together, balance, variety, and moderation form the basis for a healthful meal plan. A varied meal plan includes many different foods because no single food supplies all needed nutrients. A balanced diet includes appropriate amounts of grains, vegetables, fruits, milk-based foods, and meat/meat alternatives to supply the right amount of calories and nutrients for you. Calorie needs vary depending on your age and activity level. Moderation means carefully selecting foods and beverages to get the right amount of calories, fat, and other nutrients. That’s right – calories still count! Too much of even low-fat foods can add up to too many calories. For more information on portion sizes, click here .

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Balance

Enjoy all foods, just don’t overdo it.

• Eat foods from the 5 major foods groups each day. Include plenty of whole grain breads and cereals, brown rice, pasta, fresh vegetables, and fruits which includes fiber.
• Have one helping and enjoy every bite.
• Eat foods that contain fat replacers in the same moderate portion size as you would the full-fat versions.
• Remember – the recommended portion size for foods that contain fat replacers is the same as that of the full-fat version.

Be Adventurous

Expand your tastes to enjoy a variety of foods.

• Pick up a food you don’t normally buy each time you grocery shop.
• Try new lower-fat and fat-free versions of your favorite foods.
• Enjoy reduced-fat and fat-free cakes, cookies, chips, and other snacks in moderation! Remember, fat-free desserts may be low in fat but high in sugar.

For a more indepth article regarding cholesterol, click here .

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