The good fats are:
1.Unsaturated fats:
Monosaturated fat, helps lower bad cholesterol (LDL) while maintaining good cholesterol (HDL) and has been shown to protect against heart disease, stroke, and cancer.
Foods rich in monosaturated fat:
- olives
- olive oil
- canola oil
- peanut oil
- avocados
- cashews
- almonds
2.Polyunsaturated fats, omega-3 and omega-6, both are critical to the health of all of our cells, especially those of the skin and immune system.They also:
Omega-3 fat
- lovers bad cholesterol
- keeps good cholesterol stable
- helps reduce tissue inflammation which is closely related to heart disease, stroke and arthritis.
The best sources of omega-3 fat are:
- fish – salmon, sardines, tuna
- flax seeds and flaxseed oil
- walnuts
Omega-6 fat
Benefits are mixed, good and bad.
- it lowers both bad cholesterol and good cholesterol
- it increases the inflammation
Big omega-6 sources include:
- sunflower oil
- corn oil
- mayonnaise made with these oils
Many foods, like walnuts, tofu, wheat germ, soybean oil, are rich in both omega-3 and omega-6 fats.
Eating the mixture of these three types of unsaturated fats – mono, omega-3, and omega-6 is important.
The key to consuming more healthful fats is consuming more omega-3 and mono unsaturated fats.