Rather than avoiding all fats, pay attention to their quality. The Mediterranean diet, which is widely recommended by experts, is in essence a diet with a high proportion of fats – as much as 45% of energy intake. Despite the high fat content, it has a beneficial impact on our health.
There are 3 basic rules everyone should know:
Give preference to good fats, usually unrefined cold-pressed (virgin) vegetable fats:
- Monounsaturated (Ω9) – for example olive oil
- Polyunsaturated (Ω3, Ω6) – we also call them essential fats because the body is unable to manufacture them itself and we must get them from food, for instance in hemp, rapeseed, linseed or walnut oil.
Restrict your intake of saturated fats, which come mainly from animal products, as well as from palm oil and coconut oil.
Avoid trans fats (TFA). Thanks to increased awareness their presence in food products has decreased, however they may still be found in very cheap or industrially processed foods.