Are Low-Fat Diets Really Good for You?

By Carol Trehearn

Low-fat diets are confusing for many people. We think that fats are bad for the body and, therefore, a low-fat eating plan would be better. However, it’s not as clear-cut as that for several reasons. There’s certainly a good amount of research that suggests a low-fat eating regime is not what an adult body needs and that it’s far from good when seeking optimal health.

Let’s delve a little deeper to understand more.

Low Fat Products

The trouble with products marketed as “low fat” is that food companies often replace the fat that provided much of the taste with extra sugars, trans-fat (which has been shown to cause certain types of cancer), sucrose, and other extras thrown in. As a result, a low-fat yogurt might technically have zero or minimal saturated fats, but might be loaded up with sugar and be surprisingly high in calories.

Never Feeling Full

The human body requires a certain amount of fat in a meal to feel sated. Because of this need, when consuming low-fat products, we often overeat with extra calories to compensate for not feeling full. That way, we’ve eaten a low fat, high-calorie food product with enough extra calories to feel like we no longer need to eat. The net result is less fat than the body wants and more calories than is desirable.

When trying out a low-fat meal plan with the goal of losing weight, dieters quickly discover that it isn’t working for them and wonder why. Now you know! Readers over at utahpeoplespost.com are certainly familiar with this reality and understand already that a balanced diet is best whether trying to lose weight or not.

Processed Carbohydrates

We commonly see white bread made from processed flour that’s had much of the goodness extracted (brown bread still has the vitamins and minerals). The same is true for baked goods, which are mostly produced using white floor. White floor is a simple carbohydrate, which is used quickly by the body (it’s mostly turned into sugar and provides fast fuel) leaving you hungry again and out of energy within a handful of hours. Look for foods that are non-processed and fit into the complex carbohydrate category because they digest much slower, providing a stream of steady energy for longer.

Good Fats vs. Bad Fats

The lack of sufficient fats in the body can be a problem because vital organs still use fat to function. There are healthier oils to cook with; olive oil is a good replacement in some cases. The bad thing with fats is consuming excessive saturated fat, but when this is reduced and balanced out with some good fats too, then it’s reasonably healthy.

Fats and oils add much flavor to a meal, which is why they’re difficult to replace when cooking. Other than using different types of oil, try mixing oil with water and cooking in the pan with faster movement will reduce the total fat and calories. Healthier cuts of meat that are leaner and avoiding deep-fried snacks lean more toward good fats without the need to seek a totally low-fat option.

The main rules with eating and fitness remain the same through time: eat less and more healthfully, and move around more regularly. It’s not necessary to try a fat-free diet or something less extreme; we all know what an unhealthy food and a healthy one looks like. Simply shift your diet gradually over to the healthier side and put some miles on your trainers and you’ll be fine.