If your goal is to lose weight and keep cholesterol low, fat-free foods are not always magical, and often they are not healthy. Today we will learn what they actually mean Fat-free terms Fat-free, low-fat, and light-fat mean:
- contain Fat-free foods Less than 0.5 grams of fat per serving.
- Contain Low-fat foods 3 grams of fat per serving
- Contain Light-fat foods 25% less fat than regular foods.
The problem with healthy fat-free foods:
When they take the fat out of foods, they lose the taste and the product is filled with salt, flour, or sugar, to make up for the thickness and taste, making it more appealing to buyers. So we advise against using them a lot in our daily diet.
The type of fat is way more important than how much you eat, so if you eat healthy fats and avoid saturated fats and trans fats, this helps lower the bad cholesterol in your blood and raise the good cholesterol. Healthy fats are:
- monounsaturated fats Like olive oil and coconut oil.
- Polyunsaturated fats Like fatty fish (salmon and tuna).
But always try to pick lean meats, and get rid of animal products that have fats like butter, but for dairy, try to have mostly full-fat products.
Tips when buying fat-free products:
These tips aren’t required for a healthy diet, but they help you avoid harm only:
First tip: Read the nutrition facts
Before eating fat-free food, check the nutrition facts on the back of the product, Know the sugar amount in the product and the calories, The additives it contains.
Second tip: Watch the quantity
Always try to reduce how much you eat, not just the grams of fat, because one day you eat three cups of fat-free ice cream and you get 9 grams of fat but 750 calories, but if you eat one full cup of full-fat ice cream you will getOnly 250 calories.
Third tip: Eat lots of vegetables, legumes, fruit, and whole grains
Eating those foods gives you a feeling of fullness for longer, and they usually have low calories, and lots of nutrients. They naturally have very little fat, so always try to fill your diet with vegetables like bell peppers, arugula, lettuce, legumes like beans and peas, and whole grains like whole wheat bread or oat pasta.
For example, oven-baked potato chips made at home are healthier than the store-bought ones. Always try to find recipes that have no preservatives or additives.
