Limit Your Saturated Fat Intake
Don't mistake saturated fats for trans fats! Saturated fats are an essential part of our diet and often unavoidable. However, there are measures which will help you limit your consumption of them in order to have a better balanced diet.
Steps
- Reduce consumption of meat, particularly red meats. Giving up meat just one day a week can help cut saturated fat intake by 15%. This change can not only help combat obesity, but it can also lower your risk of heart disease, diabetes, and cancer.
- Switch to nonfat milk. Compare the labels of nonfat with a kind of unhealthy milk - even just 1%! Notice how Nonfat milk has no Saturated fat, less calories, and still protein, phosphorus and calcium - all the things you need to grow.
- Try to eliminate junk food, particularly foods with processed sugars and trans-fat. Generally speaking when a food product contains trans-fat of any kind it also includes saturated fats. Look for alternatives for some of your favorite snacks and don't take the front labels at face value. #*Some alternatives to consider are nonfat brownies, made from nonfat yogurt or sometimes applesauce in place of vegetable oil with a dry mix. You can eliminate even more of the oil by using a non-stick pan without any cooking sprays or oils. Also, if you're craving something sweet take a moment and think if maybe a piece of fruit will satisfy your craving. Or before snacking drink a full cup of water to determine if dehydration is the real culprit.
- Eat lean meats. Turkey, chicken and fish are the lowest in fat. Beef, pork, and lamb are high in saturated fat. Make sure to take the skin off the chicken and use dry spices and rubs in place of marinades or sauces that can be high in sodium. There are also some meats, like certain hams, that that have all the fat removed. Trim any visible fats from lean meats either prior to cooking or before consuming. It may be a small variable, but it will help limit some saturate fat.
- Find out the nutritional info for everything you eat. Read the labels if it is packaged. As the community begins to get more health conscience, more and more restaurants are releasing their nutritional info. Check on their website to see if they have it.
- Keep count of the saturated fat you have each day. The daily maximum for someone on a 2,000 calorie diet is 20 grams. Aim to never consume, on special occasions, more than 15 grams. On a daily basis, less than 10 grams would not be a hard goal.
- Be a conscious eater! Everybody slips from time to time, and in all honesty most things can be eaten with little repercussions if eaten in moderation. Even still, it's best to ask yourself if it does anything good for your body. Remember, the best tasting snack is knowing you are healthy.
- It's easy to let a little bit here and there add up, and it can do so very quickly. So be aware of what you're choosing to put in your body.
Tips
- Exercise helps flush out any things clogging your arteries. But, it is much better not to get them in the first place.
- Having better circulation and a better heart may improve your performance in exercising and endurance, too.
Warnings
- Good fats, such as plain and unsaturated fats, are good for you, and at least 30% of your calories should come from them. Eating fat free foods to avoid saturated fat may deprive you of the good fats.
- A diet high in saturated or/and trans fats may cause chest pains and heartache when vigorously exercising.
- Refined sugar is not a healthy alternative to saturated fat either - speeds up the cell replication process, making you age faster.
