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.
It turns out that all saturated fats are not equal. Each saturated fat has its own structure, and their individual differences influence the way they work in your body, reports an article in the January 2014 issue of the “Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
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Omega-6 fats, also known as linoleic acid, are available only in food. The human body can’t make them, so they're considered essential fats. They support brain function, bone health, reproductive health, hair growth and regulation of metabolism.
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Omega-3 fats are a type of polyunsaturated fatty acid. There are three types of omega-3 fatty acids: alpha-linoleic acid (ALA), eicosapentanoic acid (EPA) and docosahexanoic acid (DHA). ALA is termed an essential fat because it cannot be synthesized by the body and must be obtained from the diet.
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Incorporating the right type of fats into your diet is equally as important as the amount of fat you consume. Saturated fats and trans fats, or “bad” fats, increase your risk of heart disease, high cholesterol and other diseases.
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Tasty olive oil is produced primarily in Mediterranean countries -- such as Italy, Spain and Greece -- and is consumed by people around the world. The flavor of olive oil depends on many factors, including climate, soil and how the olives are harvested and then pressed to produce the oil.
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Fat is a healthy macronutrient that assists with vitamin absorption, satiation, meal enjoyment, organ health and healthy skin and hair. Eating too much fat can cause you to take in too many calories and gain weight, though. Between 25 and 35 percent of your daily calorie intake should come from fats.
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Lipids are fatlike substances that include fatty acids (fats), oils, waxes and steroids, such as cholesterol. These compounds are within and between cell membranes, and they help protect nerves. Different forms of fatty acids include unsaturated fats, saturated fats and trans fatty acids.
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You may know a little about triglycerides if you've had blood work done to check your cholesterol and lipid levels, but you may not know too much about phospholipids. Although these two lipids have similar structures, they both play very different roles in your body.
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Comparing corn oil to canola oil and soybean oil will give you an idea of how vegetable oil is different than corn oil. Although vegetable oil can mean any oil that comes from a plant, it usually refers to soybean oil, canola oil or a mix of oils. This type of oil can also include corn oil or oil from sunflower seeds.
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Fats and cholesterol are two distinct types of lipids, which are organic compounds that are insoluble in water. Although they are often found together in food and in the blood, they have very different structures and only a few functions in common. Fats provide energy -- in calories -- but cholesterol does not.
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Palm oil can be of two varieties: palm oil, made from palm fruit, or palm kernel oil, made from the seed inside the fruit. Both types are rich-tasting and common in tropical climates, such as in India and Malaysia.
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Avocados are the highest fat fruit in existence, with the exception of the coconut. Most of the fat in an avocado comes from a heart-healthy type of unsaturated fat, whereas most of the fat in a coconut is saturated. There are several varieties of avocados.
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Groundnuts, more commonly known as peanuts, are a legume that can be processed into an oil. Groundnut oil is made by pressing harvested groundnuts, which are rich in fat -- containing 40 to 50 percent fat. Like other plant-based oils, groundnut oil contains no cholesterol.
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Not all fats are bad for you. While you should limit saturated and trans fats, the unsaturated fats -- including the polyunsaturated omega-3 and omega-6 fats and the monounsaturated fats, or omega-9 fats -- are healthy in moderation.
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