There are several different kinds of fats, some good and some absolutely horrible for you.  Here’s a look at the “bad” fats that you should be trying to avoid:

Trans Fats – These were created to keep foods from spoiling. They add an extra dose of hydrogen to an oil to make it more stable at room table. Once you ingest your body has no idea what to do with that extra hydrogen, it doesn’t break down in the body and is sent right to fat storage. These fats do absolutely nothing good for your body and increase your total cholesterol levels without adding any “good” cholesterol to your diet. For the most part these types of fats have been banned here in the US. You would typically find them in heavily in processed and fried foods.

Saturated Fat – These are found  in meat, seafood, and dairy products so they’re a lot tougher to avoid. You can skip out on some of them by opting for low or fat free dairy choices. You can also chose leaner cuts of meat.

These are the great fats that you should be looking to add to your diet if you want to stay healthy:

Monounsaturated Fats – These fats rich in HDL (good cholesterol) are commonly found in canola, olive, and peanut oil as well as nuts and seeds. You can also find them in the ever tasty avocado. Canola and olive oils are fantastic healthy choices for cooking oils that add flavor without hurting your diet.

Polyunsaturated Fats – These guys are found in nuts, seeds, and vegetable oils and do a great job of lowering your total cholesterol levels. They also cover omega-3/6 fatty acids found in fish.

Omega-3 Fatty Acids – Omega-3 fatty acids are often referred to as essential fatty acids because our bodies don’t produce them on our own which is why you see them so commonly in supplements. They help to lower your blood pressure and reduce clotting while also fighting against inflammation. You won’t find them in just fish either, you can also find them in some vegetable oil  and even walnuts!

I encourage all my clients to add in good fats to their diets. Good fats are good for your joints, skin (less wrinkles =)) and hair. Many of you probably just add in Olive oil and eat nuts and nut butters. I encourage you to give other oils a try. The best choices for you any oil other than olive, canola, vegetable or soy. Hang out in your oil aisle and find some goodies.

Keeping a close watch on your fats and maintaining a healthy balance of good fats while eliminating and reducing the bad ones will really help you reach your weight loss goals.

I’d love to hear your favorite oils, please leave me a comment below.

#Healthy fats are essential to a healthy diet and real weight loss.
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The post Fat Makes Me Fat Right’ appeared first on Kim Barnes Jefferson.

I wanted to share with you that eating fat-free foods is unhealthy and can potentially dangerous’ Say what now” Seriously fat makes you fat right”  To  become fit, I should eat less fat, right’ Not necessarily.

Good fats provide many health benefits. Good fats are pretty much any oil, that’s not soy, vegetable or corn oil.  Nuts and nut butters are good fats, but oils are more easily absorbed by your body. Yes, there are “bad fats” contained in fast and processed foods, and they should be avoided. But there are many reasons why fat-free foods and a low-fat diet can lead to poor health.

Understanding the danger of eating too many fat-free foods is important if you want to lose weight, get in shape and feel great.

Annemarie Colbin, PhD, is a noted author and expert in the fields of natural health and physical wellness. She has noted that most Americans and others around the world are “out of touch” with proper nutrition practices. She admits that excess fat can stress your liver and cause multiple health problems.

But she and other health and nutrition experts point out that fat is actually 1 of the 3 essential macro nutrients your body needs to function properly. And as we mentioned earlier, some fats promote health. Omega 6, Omega 3, linoleic and linolenic acids and other essential fatty acids help keep you warm in the winter by actually breaking down fat. Think about a bear hibernating. It lives off of its body fat.

Good fats also keep your cell walls strong and deliver proper hormone functioning, especially for women. So now that you know a fat-free diet is unhealthy, let’s look at the negative side of most popular fat-free foods.

Regular mayonnaise, for example, is basically about 85% to 95% fat. For it to be fat-free, what replaces the fat’ The answer is, usually gum, sugar, starch and other artificial ingredients that is hard on your body to process. Fat-free sour cream uses the same replacements, as do most other fat-free food products, which is what makes them so dangerous.

The inclusion of tons of sugar in fat-free foods is what makes you gain weight. So the next time you reach for a fat-free food item when you are shopping, compare its nutrition label with its non-fat-free counterpart. Find out what is actually used to replace the fat, and you will probably discover you are eating a sugar-packed, starchy and unhealthy food item.

And don’t forget, fat gives you a feeling of fullness.

A half teaspoon of regular mayonnaise is a much better health alternative than the 2 tablespoons…
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you will need to eat to get the same “full” feeling.

The danger of fat-free foods is that they make you eat too much, they encourage your body to crave…
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, and they don’t satisfy your feelings of hunger. 

Essential fatty acids and other quality fats are beneficial for your nails, skin and hair, they…
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The post The Danger of “Fat Free” Foods appeared first on Kim Barnes Jefferson.

• Omega 3 — we get them mainly from cold water fishes — salmon, blue fish, sardines, herring. You get the picture. Yes supplementation can help, but you really need to get it from the source.  When consuming these fish be sure that you are eating the wild version of these fishes vs. farm raised.  Farm raised tend to have less Omega 3 and less protein.  Go figure. For my vegetarian friends you can find good sources in flax and walnuts.  Sadly the average American isn’t getting nearly enough of this good fat. Why do we need omega 3s’ They help reduce inflammation in the body, assist with mental health as well as heart health.  Omega 3s are also used to produce hormones in the body. For a complete listing of food that contains Omega 3.
• Omega 6 — can be found very easily in the typical American diet.  The average American consumes 10x the recommended amount of this essential fatty acid. You can find omega 6s in soybean oil, nuts and seeds. These types of oils are found in 20% of all processed foods. Omega 6s are used to make hormones as well, but these types of fats tend to cause inflammation if not taken in the correct balance with omega 3. To help balance out your omega 6s & omega 3s aim to reduce your dependence on processed foods including margarine, bottled salad dressings and mayonnaise. Sorry ladies this DOES include olive oil.  For a complete listing of foods that contain Omega 6.
• Omega 9 — plays a smaller role than 3 and 6 and small quantities of this acid can be produced by the body. Because our bodies can produce this, when we are deficient in either omega 3 or omega 6 our body will produce extra Omega 9 to compensate.  Omega 9 does have it place, but its not as powerful as omega 3 or omega 6.  Omega 9 does play a role in reducing cholesterol in the body as well as improve our immune systems.  For those of you with small children, you’ll do what ever you can do improve your immune system.  For a list of food that contain Omega 9.

I hope you found this helpful. I’d love to hear what you think. Please leave me some comments below.

The post 3, 6, 9 FAT! appeared first on Kim Barnes Jefferson.