oil facts

A diet that is high in fat can lead to obesity as these diets are also high in calories. High consumption of total fats, both saturated and unsaturated fat is related to increased risk of colorectal, uterine, breast, lung and prostate cancer and higher risk of diabetes, high blood pressure, heart diseases and stroke. 15-20% of the total calories should come from fat in a healthy individual’s diet, which means a person eating around 2000 calories per day can consume 33 to 67% grams of fat.

Vegetable oils that are made stable and solid with the help of hydrogenation process should be minimized as these oils have significant amounts of trans fatty acids. Trans fatty acid is linked to development of many diseases, especially linked to the development of heart diseases. Thus it is wise to decrease the consumption of foods that are high in trans fats such as cookies, crackers, cakes, chips, doughnuts, french fries, margarine and shortening.

Avoid overindulgence in any fat, cutting down fat completely is not necessary, but it is important to choose the correct type of fat and consume in moderate amounts.