Even though most Europeans still eat more fat than is recommended, it is time for a more balanced approach to managing our intake of this nutrient. If you know your fats you are in a good position to both enjoy your food and get a healthy balance of fats at the same time.

Fat itself is not intrinsically ‘bad for us’ and, in fact, is an important nutrient with a host of important functions within the body. For example, fat stores protect our internal organs and certain essential fats are vital for the formation of hormones. What is bad for our health is eating too much of certain types of fats and not enough of others. Once we know about the different types of fats, which to reduce and which to increase, we can make informed food choices to help us achieve a healthy fat intake.

Let’s get technical

It used to be simple – we should reduce saturated fats because they raise blood cholesterol and eat more polyunsaturated ones instead. This overall advice still holds true but it is a little more complex. We now know that the contribution of monounsaturated fats, and the types of the polyunsaturated fats, must also be considered.

Monounsaturated fats, found in abundance in olive oil and peanut oil, appear to protect against heart disease, although this effect may simply be because they replace saturated fats in the diet.

Polyunsaturated fats can be further divided into the omega–6 and the omega–3 families. Most Europeans already get plenty of omega-6 fats as many vegetable oils naturally contain them. We are now being advised to eat more omega-3s, which are thought to have a positive impact on heart health and an important role in brain and eye function. Oily fish such as salmon, herring and mackerel are a good source of omega-3s, but they are also found in walnuts and some oils like soybean and rapeseed (see table).

Unsaturated fats can also come in different chemical structures: a bent “cis” form or a straight “trans” form. Most unsaturated fats come in the cis form but in the meat and milk of ruminants (e.g. bovines, sheep, deer) for example, and in products containing industrially partially hardened oils, some of the unsaturated fats will exist in the trans form. These are called trans fatty acids. Like saturated fats, they increase blood cholesterol.

Achieving those recommendations

Most European guidelines now suggest that overall fat intake should be no more than 30%-35¨% of total calories, with no more than 10% of calories coming from saturated fats. This means that the remaining 20-25% of calories should come from mono and polyunsaturated sources. It is also important to make a positive effort to include more omega-3 polyunsaturated fats in the diet and keep trans fats to a minimum. The table gives common food sources for each of the main types of fats. Once you know your fats, food labels can become a useful ally in the quest for a healthy fat intake. Labels can also help balance high-fat items with low fat choices enabling us to choose a pleasurable and healthy balanced diet.

FOOD SOURCES RICH IN THE VARIOUS TYPES OF FATTY ACIDS
Type of fat	Sources
Saturated	Butter, cheese, meat, meat products (sausages, hamburgers), full-fat milk and yoghurt, pies, pastries, lard, dripping, hard margarines and baking fats, coconut and palm oil.
Monounsaturated	Olives, rapeseed, nuts (pistachio, almonds, hazelnuts, macadamia, cashew, pecan), peanuts, avocados, and their oils.
Polyunsaturated	Omega-3 polyunsaturated: Salmon, mackerel, herring, trout (particularly rich in the long chain omega-3 fatty acids EPA or eicosapentaenoic acid and DHA or docosahexaenoic acid). Walnuts, rapeseed, soybean flax seed, and their oils (particularly rich in alpha linolenic acid). Omega-6 polyunsaturated: Sunflower seeds, wheat germ, sesame, walnuts, soybean, corn and their oils. Certain margarines (read the label).
Trans fatty acids	Some frying and baking fats (e.g. hydrogenated vegetable oils) used in biscuits, cakes and pastries, dairy products, fatty meat from beef and sheep.

FOOD TODAY 03/2004