Did I ever mention that my sister is a Registered Dietitian? Well, my sister is a Registered Dietitian. That’s lucky for me because whenever I have questions about my diet (which is constantly), I can go to her and she answers everything for me (Thanks, Alicia!). I generally ask her specific questions like: I have been slacking and don’t think I’ve been getting as much iron as I need- what should I do/eat to increase my iron intake? Or, How to I bulk up the calorie content in my veggie meals to be satisfying for Kevin?
Because it’s Hug a Fat Month on one of my favorite blogs, Chocolate Covered Katie, I decided to pose this question to her: Why are fats necessary in our diet and what is the importance of making sure you are eating the right amount of healthy fats?
Alicia’s response:
Bad fats, such as trans fats and saturated fats, are guilty of the unhealthy things all fats have been blamed for—weight gain, clogged arteries, heart disease and more. Most of these fats are in foods that are highly processed, baked goods, and fried food items. But good fats such as the monounsaturated fats, polyunsaturated fats, and omega-3s have the opposite effect. In fact, healthy fats play a huge beneficial role in helping you manage your moods, stay on top of your mental game, fight fatigue, and even control your weight. They also have direct health benefits like protecting against heart disease, suppressing osteoarthritis symptoms, and lowering cholesterol levels. Even though healthy fats have health benefits its always good to watch how much fat-even healthy fat you consume daily.Some healthy fats to incorporate into your diet:
Seeds Avocados Olive oil Peanut butter/Almond butter Walnuts Soymilk TofuFatty fish like salmon
In the spirit of Hug a Fat Month, here is me with my favorite healthy fat: Coconut Oil! But I will say that choosing one was very hard—total toss up between coconut oil, peanut butter, and avocados. Please disregard the iPhone quality! If you’d like to learn more about Hug a Fat Month, or if you would like to participate, follow this link to Katie’s post.
P.S. Here is my absolute favorite recipe that utilizes coconut oil as a healthy fat: Vegan Cookie Dough Bars!
