These fats are actually good for you

Most Americans have a bone to pick with fats. And this is understandable. Some fats have been associated with heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and more. These “bad fats”—trans fats—are a product of hydrogenation, a process that turns healthy oils into solids to preserve them. Trans fats play absolutely no role in a healthy diet and have been banned domestically.

But not all fats are bad. In fact, fats are part of a healthy diet. Between 20% and 35% of a balanced diet consists of fat calories. They’re an excellent source of energy, and help with absorption of some vitamins and minerals. Fats are needed to build cell membranes and myelin sheaths around nerves. They help with blood clotting, inflammation, and muscle movement, too.

The “good fats” are monounsaturated or polyunsaturated, and sources include vegetables, nuts, seeds, and fish. (In between the good and the bad fats are saturated fats, which include red meat, whole milk, cheese, coconut oil, and commercial baked goods.)

Here’s a quick rundown of the good fats and their beneficial effects on your health.

Monounsaturated fats

Monounsaturated fats contain a single carbon-to-carbon double bond, resulting in two fewer hydrogen atoms than saturated fats. This difference in chemical structure keeps these fats liquid at room temperature. Probably the best-known example of a product containing monounsaturated fats is olive oil. Other products containing monounsaturated fats include canola oil, peanut oil, avocados, and several types of nuts, as well as high-oleic safflower and sunflower oils.

Experts have known that monounsaturated fats are a healthy choice ever since the 1960s when research showed that people in Mediterranean regions, such as Greece, had lower rates of heart disease despite consuming a high-fat diet. The source of fat in the diet, however, was not animal but instead olive oil. This discovery popularized the “Mediterranean diet” and the consumption of olive oil.

Polyunsaturated fats

Liquid cooking oil used by most Americans is polyunsaturated. Examples include corn oil, safflower oil, and sunflower oil. These fats are an essential component of the diet and needed for life functions.

Polyunsaturated fats have two or more double bonds in their carbon chains. The two main types are omega-3 fatty acids and omega-6 fatty acids. Foods with omega-3 fatty acids include salmon, mackerel, sardines, flaxseeds, unhydrogenated soypbean oil, canola oil, and walnuts. Foods that are rich in linoleic acid plus other omega-6 fatty acids include vegetable oils such as corn, safflower, soybean, sunflower, and walnut.

Experts recommend replacing trans and saturated fats with mono- and polyunsaturated oils as much as possible. By trading bad fats for good ones, the cholesterol profile improves—and reduces low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglyceride levels.

Polyunsaturated fat consumption has also been linked to the prevention of lethal arrhythmias. Furthermore, people with rheumatoid arthritis who eat more polyunsaturated fats need lower levels of corticosteroids. Finally, these fats have been tied to decreased risk of dementia and other types of disease, although findings are mixed.

Switching to healthier oils

The American Heart Association recommends switching from solid fats—such as butter, lard, hard-stick margarine, and shortening—to healthier non-tropical vegetable oils.

When reading ingredient lists at your local supermarket, choose oils with fewer than 4 g of saturated fat per tablespoon, with no partially hydrogenated oils or trans fats. Additionally, if you find a product labeled “vegetable oil,” check the mix of oils to make sure that they’re only mono- or polyunsaturated.

Healthy oils come in a variety of flavors and can provide variety for your palate. It may be a tasty idea to experiment with different oils in your cooking and keep a variety in your cupboard.