Understanding Fats & Oils
Heart disease is still the number one cause of death in the United States. Unfortunately, more than 65% of people with diabetes die from heart disease or stroke. The good news: Making heart healthy food choices and having a healthy body weight can help prevent and treat heart disease. But how?
The first step is knowing your heart health numbers. This includes your blood lipid panel and your blood pressure.
The next step is understanding how the foods we eat – fats and cholesterol – play a part in our heart health. Too much of any kind of fat is not good for your health. To keep a healthy heart and body weight, you need to limit the amount of fats and oils you eat. A general rule of thumb is that calories from fat should not exceed 35 percent of your total calories each day.
Keep in mind: fats and oils have more than twice the calories as equal amounts of protein or carbohydrate. So in your zeal to control carbohydrates, don’t overeat fats - you may be decreasing carbohydrate at the expense of increasing calories! The numbers tell the story.
- Fat: 9 calories per gram
- Carbohydrate: 4 calories per gram
- Protein: 4 calories per gram
So, when it comes to your weight, all fats are equally high in calories.
But when it comes to your heart, some types of fats are healthier for your heart than others.
In this section, you will learn about:
- Your Blood Lipids: Learn what is tested in a blood lipid panel and what your blood lipid numbers mean.
- Good Fats, Bad Fats: Understanding the spectrum of dietary fats.
- Heart Health: Steps for keeping a healthy heart and blood pressure.