Fats and Cholesterol
Cholesterol
Cholesterol is a fatty substance produced naturally by the body and found in our blood. It has many good uses, but can become a problem if there is too much of it.
There are two types of cholesterol - 'good' (HDL) cholesterol and 'bad' (LDL) cholesterol. HDL is the type of cholesterol that helps unclog blood vessels and LDL cholesterol is the type of cholesterol that clogs blood vessels.
If you have a high cholesterol level, you can reduce it by taking medicines as prescribed by your doctor and/or by making changes to your lifestyle (especially changing your eating habits). Talk to your doctor about what will be most effective for your situation.
Fats
Just like cholesterol, not all fat is bad. It is good for your health to have a certain amount of fat in the foods that you eat.
Fats in food are a mixture of polyunsaturated, monounsaturated, saturated and trans fats. These different types of fats have different effects on your cholesterol level.
- Polyunsaturated fats
Polyunsaturated fats can help to lower your cholesterol level if your meals are low in saturated fat. Some examples of foods that contain polyunsaturated fats are fish, plain nuts (i.e. walnuts, hazelnuts and brazil nuts) and polyunsaturated margarines and oils. - Monounsaturated fats
Monounsaturated fats can help to lower your cholesterol level if your meals are low in saturated fat. Foods that include monounsaturated fats include avocado, plain nuts (i.e. peanuts, cashews and almonds) and monounsaturated margarines and oils. - Saturated fats
Saturated fats raise your cholesterol level. Foods that are high in saturated fats include many take-away meals, potato chips, commercial cakes, biscuits, pastries, butter and dairy products (i.e. full fat milk, cream and cheese). - Trans fats
Trans fats raise your total and LDL (bad) cholesterol level and reduce your HDL (good) cholesterol level. Foods high in trans fats include foods that use hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated vegetable fats, such as baked products (i.e. pies, pastries, cakes, biscuits and buns).
