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Bad Fats Should Be Avoided

by Beth Hoover

What we eat is very central to our overall health and well-being. However, what we consume might somehow be damaging to our health also and can be a major cause for the occurrence of serious health conditions especially if we are unaware of how certain substances behave inside our bodies.This is what makes proper nutrition a confusing topic in wellness and hence, and a goal that is often hard to achieve.What we can do to get proper nutrition and to gain more protection against the risks of diseases and threats of other health conditions is to be more aware of the foods we eat.

In trying to avail of proper nutrition and more importantly a healthier body, the rule is very basic.Stay away from the unhealthy substances and consume the healthy ones only is the rule, as what many health and fitness experts would suggest.On the other hand, there exists this dilemma over some substances which can either be good for the body while at the same time can pose harm to our health. There are some substances which are important for our body and are required to be consumed on a regular basis while there are also some substances that should be taken in small amounts only.

There is no greater example of this dilemma over certain substances than the misapprehension that is present on good fats and bad fats.Fats are crucial nutrients for our body and are needed in some of the important processes in our body. Fats are needed in nutrient absorption, nerve transmission, maintaining cell membrane integrity and other bodily processes which play an important part in our overall health. While fats are vital nutrients for our body and play an important role in some of our bodily processes, too much fat intake; bad fats in particular, can cause serious health consequences such as heart diseases and uncontrolled weight gain.

To solve this confusion and create a fine line that can separate good fats from bad fats, we need to be more familiar with the fat list. The fat list is an essential tool that can help us become more familiar with the difference between good fats and the bad ones and how these fats behave differently in our bodies. Moreover, this list can also provide vital information on the foods which we should stay away from since they contain too much fat.

Saturated and trans fats are not good fats. Foods which have too much saturated fats and trans fat should not be consumed in large amounts since they are the types of fats which are unhealthy for our body. Saturated fat helps in the building up of cholesterol inside the body increasing the chances of developing cardio-vascular diseases. These unneeded fats also can slowly increase our cholesterol levels which can be harmful to our health and can cause heart disease and other cardiovascular diseases, and uncontrolled weight gain which can lead to obesity.

Foods from animal products such as fatty meats, organ meats and some dairy products must be stayed away from since they contain a lot of saturated fats.Other foods that should we should stay away from are eggs, bacon, salami, sausages; all of which contain high levels of saturated fats. Products extracted from plants such as coconut oil, palm oil and palm kernel oil might also contain high levels of saturated fats. Packaged food products and commercial fried foods such as French fries and microwaved popcorn should not be consumed in large amount also since most of them have hydrogenate liquid oils which helps in the formation of trans fatty acids.

While fats are important nutrients in our body and are vital to some of our bodily processes, some fats are bad fats. The fat list can help us become more aware on the difference between good fats and the bad ones and how these fats behave differently in our bodies. Foods that contain too much saturated fats and trans fat should be avoided since they are the types of fats which are bad for our body.

Published June 1st, 2010

Filed in Health, Weight Loss