Fat Sources Guidelines

• Focus on Reducing, Not Increasing Intake
  • Fat is already present in various side dishes (oil is used in cooking). Even if you try to reduce it, you'll still consume some amount, so there's no need to worry about not eating enough. Unless you're doing some extreme diet, you'll need to make an effort not to eat it to consume an appropriate amount.
  • Saturated fat: The less you eat, the better. Although it's a component of the body and you shouldn't completely avoid it, even dieters probably consume some. Since you'll definitely eat it on cheat days (see examples), there's no need to deliberately add it to your diet plan.
• Unsaturated Fats
  • Good fats. Recommended to fill most of your total fat calories with these.
  • Divided into polyunsaturated or monounsaturated fatty acids
    • Polyunsaturated fatty acids
      • Omega-3
        • Most important to consume. If not paying attention, you'll consume too little.
        • Best examples: Fish/seafood, 2-3 times per week
          • Caution: Large fish higher in the food chain (tuna, etc.) have high mercury concentration, so don't eat too much
        • Good examples: Flaxseed, chia seeds, walnuts, perilla oil
      • Omega-6
        • Mainly consumed through cooking oil. You probably eat enough in your regular diet.
        • Examples: Grape seed oil, soybean oil, corn oil, sunflower oil, flaxseed
      • There's discussion about the ideal ratio of omega-3 to omega-6, but since we're not eating healthily enough to worry about that yet, let's focus on that once we've established healthy eating habits...
    • Monounsaturated fatty acids
      • Examples
        • Omega-9: Olive oil, canola oil, sesame oil, avocado
        • Almonds, hazelnuts, pecans, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds
• Fats to Be Cautious About
  • Saturated fat
    • Examples: Meat (beef, pork, lamb, etc.), dairy products (butter, cheese, ice cream, full-fat milk/yogurt), some breads/cookies, mayonnaise, coconut
    • Choose reduced-fat dairy products.
    • Check fat and calorie content before buying products.
  • Trans fat
    • Completely harmful. It's best to avoid this entirely. Once it enters your body, it's hard to get rid of.
    • Limited to 2g per day, but the closer to zero, the better.
    • Trans fats are used in franchises and processed foods to improve taste/texture and allow long-term food storage
      • Fried foods: Chicken, french fries, donuts
      • Some frozen foods
      • Some whipped cream
    • Hydrogenated oils (margarine, shortening, etc.): Common in bread/cookies, so check labels
      • They say they remove a lot of trans fats during processing these days, but still check labels. And if a food contains these, it's probably not good anyway...
  • Cholesterol
    • They say it's unclear whether cholesterol intake raises cholesterol levels. In fact, high carbohydrate intake seems more likely to raise cholesterol/triglycerides. However, if your cholesterol is high, there's no harm in avoiding it.
    • Examples of foods high in cholesterol: Egg yolks (only 1 per day is OK), shrimp
• My Consumption Tips
  • Daily fat intake is 35g, and just 1 tablespoon of oil is already about 15g.
  • Distribution
    • Small fish (mackerel, anchovies, etc.) 2-3 times per week
    • Daily nuts, chia seeds (sprinkled on yogurt), or nut butter
    • Avoid oily foods and use little oil when cooking.
    • When possible, steam/boil instead of fry/grill.

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