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Fat was bullied by the food industry about 50 years ago and has been trying to restore it’s reputation ever since. Big Food decided fat was the reason for heart disease and started replacing it with sugar. Hello high-fructose corn syrup, good-bye butter. Nothing could be worse for your arteries. Now the TYPE of fat you eat does matter. In this post I’ll break down types of fats and how to use them to improve your health and restore that wonderful flavor without the guilt.
There are two main types of fat, saturated and unsaturated. Both contain a few sub-categories, which will be explained below.
Unsaturated fat remains liquid at room temperature. Here’s a simplified breakdown of some examples-
Monounsaturated fats:
Olive, peanut, canola, nut/seed oil, avocado
Poly unsaturated fats (aka PUFAs):
Corn, safflower, sunflower, sesame, soy, flax
Essential Fatty Acids (better PUFAs):
Salmon, sardines, krill, walnut, flax, hemp, chia
Vegetable and seed oils are very high in Omega 6 which leads to inflammation, cell damage and increased risk for cancer. These oils have a low smoke point which means when heated they oxidize and become toxic to your health.
Avocado oil has a high smoke point at 425 so it’s best if you’re cooking, baking or frying.
Grapeseed has a medium smoke point and is appropriate for sauteing.
Flax and walnut oils have a low smoke point and are better for use on salads or adding to already cooked foods.
I recommend staying away from corn, canola, soybean oils because they are so high in Omega 6s and almost always genetically modified. Your body shouldn’t battle to breakdown the food you eat. It’s also best practice to buy organic and cold-pressed when it comes to oil.
Saturated fats are solid at room temperature. Examples include butter, ghee, tallow and coconut oil. Let us not include Crisco or margarine here. Trans fats are saturated fats stable at room temp after hydrogen molecules have been added to them. Trans fats are notorious for causing heart disease, DM2 and a host of other health concerns. Please, please, please do not eat them.
Ghee has a high smoke point at 450.
Tallow is also high around 400.
The smoke point of butter is around 350 however clarified butter can be used at 450.
Smoke points are important because after oil reaches a certain temperature it begins to breakdown. When this happens the molecular structure of the oil changes into things like free radicals which are damaging to your health.
Omega fatty acids are generally healthy but some more so than others. Omega 6s are more than bountiful in our modern diets and too much leads to systemic inflammation and chronic disease. Dave Asprey makes a comparison in one of his books about how he’d rather smoke a cigarette than eat a French fry cooked in broken down oil because it would have less carcinogens! That example has stuck with me.
Making a conscious effort to get a balance of Omega 3, 6, and 9 in your diet will improve your health on so many levels. Contrary to popular belief, good fats are actually good for your heart and can lower bad cholesterol (LDL) and coronary artery disease. Not to mention good fats also help manage blood sugar, promote healthy weight, skin and hair while reducing chronic inflammation.
If you want to go further down the rabbit hole here are some suggested readings:
The Fat Burn Fix: Boost Energy, End Hunger and Lose Weight by Using Fat for Fuel by Dr. Cate Shanahan
The Big Fat Surprise: Why Butter, Meat and Cheese Belong in a Healthy Diet by Nina Teicholz