If you were frustrated by the results of a study published earlier this month in the Journal of the American Medical Association that told us a low-fat diet did not reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease for postmenopausal women, don't give up hope yet.
Not all fats are created equal.
The study didn't require the women to avoid saturated fat or make other lifestyle changes that may play a large role in reducing risk for heart disease, said Hana Feeney, a Canyon Ranch nutritionist and registered dietitian.
"If you reduce total fat, but you don't reduce the bad fat, you defeat the purpose because you end up reducing the good fats that protect your heart health," Feeney said.
I know "good fat" may seem like an oxymoron, but it's not. Deciphering the fats and oils may seem like a science class, but let's try to make this simple.
People are also reading…
The most important thing to know is the really bad fat: trans fat, which is the term that lumps together hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils. Avoid them. These fats are commonly found in margarine, shortening and processed foods like cookies, crackers, chips and fried fast-food.
Trans fat (now listed on all food labels) raises bad cholesterol (LDL) levels in the body and actually reduces the good cholesterol (HDL) in your body.
"So it's kind of a double whammy," Feeney said.
We want to increase HDL cholesterol in our body and decrease LDL cholesterol to avoid cardiovascular disease and maintain overall health.
So we also should limit saturated fat, which raises bad cholesterol in the blood. It's found in animal products such as cheese, ice cream and meat, as well as in some vegetable oils (coconut, palm, palm kernel and cocoa butter). The U.S. Department of Agriculture recommends that we consume less than 10 percent of our total fat from saturated fats.
The good fats — the kind you should add to your diet — are polyunsaturated and monounsaturated. They don't raise the bad cholesterol in our body. The USDA also recommends that most of our fat intake come from polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats.
Polyunsaturated fats are found in nuts, corn and soybean oil, and safflower, sunflower and sesame seeds.
Monounsaturated fats are found in olive and canola oil, avocados and peanut oil.
The very best fat — the king of the fats — is the omega-3 fatty acid (a type of polyunsaturated fat) because it reduces inflammation in the body and counteracts the omega-6 fatty acids (another polyunsaturated fat) that are pretty common in our diets.
The best way to slip those into your diet is to eat omega-3-enriched eggs, salmon or walnuts and to sprinkle ground flaxseeds onto cereal or yogurt.
So if we cook with olive oil, substitute avocado for cheese, and eat more omega-3s, we'll be well on our way to good health.
Whether you're on a low-fat diet or not, ditch the bad fats and embrace the good fats.
Your heart will thank you.
Look at the whole picture when it comes to reducing your risk for disease.
"If you're just looking at one thing (like reducing total fat intake), you miss the synergy of everything else. It's the whole lifestyle that makes the difference: eating healthy fats, fruits vegetables, fiber and whole grains," Feeney said. "All of that is synergistic."
Need more proof?
After the study about low-fat diets was published Feb. 8 in JAMA, the American Heart Association released a statement saying: "This study underscores the importance of combining strategies to reduce risk, such as weight control, and a healthy diet low in sodium and rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat dairy products, lean meat, poultry and fish at least twice a week."
The release went on to say that the American Heart Association recommends those lifestyle choices plus 30-60 minutes of physical activity most days of the week to reduce risk of cardiovascular disease.