What gives the most energy per gram: fat, protein, or carbs? Distinguish between heart-healthy lipids and dangerous trans fats, and learn how medium-chain triglycerides and coconut oil impact your body.
Oils that contain higher amounts of monounsaturated fats, such as canola and peanut oil, tend to be among the healthier options since they help lower your low-density lipoprotein, or bad cholesterol, while increasing your high-density lipoprotein, or good cholesterol.
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Your body needs some dietary fats, especially the healthy unsaturated fats that you can't make yourself, including omega-3 fatty acids. But dangers are associated with eating too much total fat, saturated fat and trans fats.
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Fish is the richest dietary source of essential omega-3 fatty acids. Eicosapentaenoic acid, or EPA, and docosahexaenoic acid, or DHA, are the major omega-3 fatty acids found in fish. Plants can provide only alpha-linolenic acid, or ALA, an omega-3 fatty acid that appears to have fewer health benefits.
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Originally cultivated by ancient North Americans, sunflower seeds have been used as everything from a snakebite cure to a snack for baseball players giving up tobacco. The kernels are high in B vitamins and minerals like copper and magnesium.
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Dietary fat plays an essential role in vitamin absorption and healthy development, but too much fat in your diet leads to weight gain, as well as other health concerns.
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Your gallbladder works together with your pancreas and other organs that aid in the digestion process. Certain types of foods can cause your gallbladder to become inflamed and irritated and cause gallstones to form. Gallbladder inflammation can cause intense pain.
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Vegetable shortening is a common ingredient used in cakes, pies, breads, doughnuts and other baked goods. It is also typically used in fast food restaurants to prepare fried foods such as onion rings, breaded fish and chicken, and breakfast sausage.
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Tropical oils, such as palm and coconut oils, come from plants but have a very different nutritional profile from other plant-based fats. Palm oil is pressed from the flesh and kernel of the palm oil tree fruit and is produced at a rate of 47 million tons per year.
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The average American diet, heavy on fatty foods, is a major contributor to chronic or life-threatening illness, including diabetes and coronary heart disease, according to the American Heart Association.
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A diet high in fat is very unhealthy, leading to an expanding waistline and increased risk for serious medical conditions, including high cholesterol and heart disease, the leading cause of death in the United States. A diet high in saturated fat and cholesterol is the primary reason for high blood cholesterol levels.
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A fruit in the berry family, avocados vary significantly from other fruits in their nutrient content, with the majority of their calories coming from fat. Originating in Central and South America, 90 percent of the avocados eaten in the U.S. today are raised in California; 9 percent are grown in Florida.
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The doner kebab, a Turkish dish made with lamb meat and served in pita bread, is a popular late-night snack for pub-goers in the United Kingdom. These salty treats pack a high-calorie punch. A 2006 council survey, coordinated by the local council body, LACORS, tested 490 kebabs from around the U.K.
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At first glance, coconut oil and canola oil may appear fairly similar, as they are both fats derived from plant sources and contain a similar number of calories per serving. Aside from that, however, they have plenty of differences.
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When you hear about good and bad cholesterol, it is referring to cholesterol in your blood, not in the foods you eat. High-density lipoprotein, or HDL, carries cholesterol away from your arteries to be excreted.
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Jolly Ranchers are a type of hard candy made by the Hershey's company. The fruit flavor that comes from a Jolly Rancher is powerful.
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Lipids are a group of natural molecules that includes fats. While an excess of some lipids may contribute to an increased risk of certain health problems, lipids also carry vital nutrients and support the body's basic functions.
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Olive oil is prized for its nutty, earthy flavor and its high concentration of monounsaturated fatty acids, which can reduce bad cholesterol levels and help lower the risk for heart disease and stroke. Some people even claim it can treat acid reflux, but there isn't any evidence to support this.
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While you may think that the best way to lose weight is to limit fat as much as possible, this isn't necessarily the case. You need some fat in your diet to stay healthy, and it can make your food more satisfying and your diet easier to stick with.
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Coconut oil is made by extracting oil from mature coconut meat. The oil can then be refined or left as is, in which case it is known as virgin coconut oil. While coconut oil is high in fat, it is also rich in healthy fatty acids, which may have health benefits.
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Fat is one of the six nutrients vital to optimum health. In addition to fat, you need carbohydrates, protein, vitamins, minerals and water in your daily diet. Protein and carbohydrates each have about four calories per gram, while a gram of fat has about nine calories per gram.
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