Healthy fats

For a long time, "fat makes you fat" was widely propagated, and this theory is still occasionally heard today. However, there is no real truth to it, because as everyone should know by now, it is not fat or carbohydrates that cause weight gain, but an excess of calories. Put simply, you don't eat the wrong things, but simply too much of them.

Fats are an essential part of our diet and should not be removed from our eating habits under any circumstances. Despite their bad reputation, fats are not harmful, quite the opposite: fats are essential for the human body. We could theoretically do without carbohydrates permanently, but not without fats. If you don't consume fats for too long, you will die.

What are healthy fats?

First, let's look at which sources of fat are particularly healthy. These fats include vegetable oils from rapeseed, olives, linseed, algae, fish oil and echium. Why? Quite simply, all of these oils contain an extremely high percentage of omega-3 fatty acids and some are also rich in oleic acid.

This contrasts with animal fats and two outliers among plant fats: In sunflower and corn oil, on the other hand, omega-6 fatty acids predominate. With the help of these long-chain omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids, our body can produce hormone-like substances known as eicosanoids. The eicosanoids from omega-3 fatty acids have an enormously positive effect on the body's cardiovascular system and thus prevent diseases such as heart attacks or strokes.

(Un)saturated fatty acids

Fatty acids consist of complex chains of up to 26 carbon atoms. These contain either single or double bonds. If they contain one or more double bonds, they are referred to as monounsaturated or polyunsaturated fatty acids, otherwise as saturated fatty acids. The unsaturated ones are the good fats, of which our bodies should absorb more if we look at our current diet in a modern industrialized country like Germany or Austria. The central problem here is the blatant imbalance between omega 3 and omega 6 in favor of the latter. However, an excess of the latter can lead to many inflammations. Avoid trans fats

In addition to the saturated fatty acids mentioned above, which are mainly found in highly processed foods, it is also important to avoid so-called trans fats. These are produced when vegetable oil is heated to over 200°. This happens, for example, when food is deep-fried. This is why they can be found in schnitzel, chips and similar foods. They can also be found in potato chips, baked goods, pizza, nougat cream and all kinds of ready meals. Trans fats can lead to serious problems in the cardiovascular system and massively increase the risk of diseases in this area. This is why such foods should be consumed in small quantities. If that's not enough, you can also avoid trans fats by using coconut oil instead of conventional oil when heating food in a pan. In general, it is good advice to cook as much as possible yourself.

Why are trans fats so unhealthy? Quite simply, our bodies cannot process them properly because they are unnatural. As a result, they can cause damage to the body, for example by affecting cholesterol levels.

Nuts

Delicious. Easily available. Incredibly healthy. At around 600kcal/100g, nuts are real calorie bombs, but they are a good investment because nuts contain an incredible amount of important fats that promote your health. They also contain a lot of protein, fiber and vitamin E.

Omega 3 and 6

These fatty acids are mainly found in oily fish such as salmon. However, the vast majority of people in Germany suffer from a serious deficiency of the omega 3 fatty acids EPA and DHA. Excessive fish consumption is expensive and not everyone likes it, which is where fish oil capsules come in.

Omega 3 is a real all-rounder in the field of health and disease prevention. Among other things, it regulates blood lipid levels, improves the flow properties of the blood and has a strong anti-inflammatory effect. Its counterpart omega 6 forms hormone-like substances, which in turn promote inflammation. This may sound negative at first glance, but it is extremely important for the immune system. Nevertheless, omega 6 should be consumed in moderation. A simple rule of thumb applies here: the ratio of omega 6 to omega 3 should be no more than 5 to 1, ideally even lower.