Dave's Old Fashioned Canned Meats
 
Here's a quick chemistry lesson: All fats and oils are made from "building blocks" called fatty acids, which come in three different forms: saturated, monounsaturated, and polyunsaturated.

Saturated Fat

  • Usually solid at room temperature.
  • Examples: Red meat trimmings, poultry skin, whole milk, cream, butter, cheese, lard, solid shortenings.
  • Tropical fats like coconut, palm, and palm kernel oils, also contain high amounts of saturated fat, even though they come from plant sources.
  • Tends to raise blood cholesterol, especially LDL ("unhealthy" or "bad") cholesterol.
  • Goal: 10% or less of daily calories.

Monounsaturated Fat

  • Usually liquid at room temperature.
  • Examples: Olive oil, canola oil, peanut oil, sesame oil, almonds, peanuts, peanut butter, avocados, olives.
  • Helps lower total blood cholesterol without lowering HDL ("healthy" or "good") cholesterol (we'll describe LDL and HDL in more detail later).
  • Goal: 10% of daily calories.

Polyunsaturated Fat

  • Usually liquid at room temperature.
  • Examples: Fish oil, soybean oil, corn oil, cottonseed oil, sunflower oil, soft margarine.
  • Helps lower total blood cholesterol, but may also lower HDL ("healthy" or "good") cholesterol.
  • Goal: 10% or less of daily calories.

Butter, Margarine, or What?

With all of this talk about fats and oils, you might be wondering what you should spread on your toast or use in tonight's stir-fry! Here are a few guidelines to help you:

Is butter better? Don't let the fear of trans fats in margarine lure you to the butter dish. Butter contains far more artery-clogging fat than margarine. Many of the tub margarines and spreads now available contain little or no trans fats. Check the label to be sure that liquid oil is the first ingredient. A tub margarine is usually a better choice than stick margarine.

Oil is oil. All fats or oils get 100% of their calories from fat. No oil is "less fatty" than another. Whether it's palm oil or canola, one tablespoon packs about 120 calories and 14 grams of fat.

Olive oil is considered by some to be a "healthful" choice because it's primarily monounsaturated fat.

Canola-can I? When it comes to choosing an oil, canola runs a close race with olive oil. Olive oil has a bit more monounsaturated fat than canola, but canola oil is the lowest in saturated fat.

Less is better. That's the bottom line when it comes to deciding how much fat or oil you should eat. If you want to cut your dietary fat intake, you'll need to eat less butter, margarine, and oil-no matter what type. Worried about not getting enough fat? Most whole grains, fruits, veggies and beans contain small amounts of fat, so there's little chance of a fat deficiency in a varied diet.

When less is more. If you are using less oil, choose ones that give you the most flavor-like extra virgin olive oil in salad dressings, and peanut or sesame oil in stir-fries.