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Still fight­ing the weight loss bat­tle? Are you under doc­tor’s instruc­tions to lose weight? If so, aside from exer­cis­ing and watch­ing your caloric intake, you might want to think about your fat intake. 

There is sci­en­tific evi­dence con­firm­ing the neg­a­tive effects of unhealthy fats in a per­son’s diet. There is also evi­dence that a lit­tle bit of healthy fat in a per­son’s diet is essen­tial for effec­tive weight loss. Why is that? It’s thought that con­sum­ing an ade­quate amount of fat may result in feel­ing more sati­ated. A lit­tle healthy fat slows the emp­ty­ing of the stom­ach with the poten­tial to keep you feel­ing full longer. It makes sense that the less hun­gry you are, the less excess calo­ries you’ll consume. 

Not All Fats are Equal

While all fats have the poten­tial to curb appetites, atten­tion should be made to what is termed good or healthy fat as opposed to bad or unhealthy fat. 

Good or Healthy Fat: Healthy fats include unsat­u­rated fats that fit into three cat­e­gories: monoun­sat­u­rated, polyun­sat­u­rated, and Omega‑3 fatty acids. These fats can be instru­men­tal in low­er­ing LDL (bad) cho­les­terol while boost­ing HDL (good) cho­les­terol. These good fats are found in olive oil, nuts, seeds, cold-water fish, and avo­ca­dos, to name a few. 

Bad or Unhealthy Fat: Unhealthy fats include sat­u­rated and trans-unsat­u­rated fats. These fats can raise LDL (bad) cho­les­terol and increase the risk of car­dio­vas­cu­lar dis­ease, type 2 dia­betes, and weight gain. These fats are found in deep fried foods; com­mer­cially pre­pared cook­ies, pies, and donuts; and processed foods. 

Adopt These Tips

To help you make the right choices where fats are con­cerned, fol­low these tips:

• Read the prod­uct labels on pack­aged foods. If hydro­genated oil is listed in the first few ingre­di­ents, avoid the product.
• Exchange some of the prod­ucts in your pantry. Have some good fats on hand to add to your diet. 
• Keep con­sump­tion of all fats in mod­er­a­tion as all fats are heavy in calories.
• Sauté meats or stir-fry veg­eta­bles in olive oil instead of but­ter or other oils.
• Choose bak­ing or broil­ing over frying.
• Trim vis­i­ble fat from meat, and remove skin from poultry.
• Reconsider low-fat diets. Adding a lit­tle good fat into your diet may help you feel sat­is­fied longer.

The rules of what’s good for you and what’s not con­tinue to change as sci­ence advances. Staying vig­i­lant, read­ing prod­uct labels, and mak­ing small mod­i­fi­ca­tions to your diet will always be required if you’re to reach your goal of avoid­ing dis­ease and main­tain­ing a healthy weight.