choose healthy fats

In my opinion, fat is what makes a lot of foods worth eating. A little olive oil can take a pile of greens from drab to delicious in a snap.

From a nutritional standpoint, focus should be placed on unsaturated fat sources, such as olive oil, nuts and seeds, avocados, and fish. While saturated fats from foods like butter, cheese, milk, and meat, can still part of a healthy eating pattern, they should be consumed more sparingly.

Positive benefits of unsaturated fats:

• Satiety. They help you feel full and satisfied after meals

• Cholesterol-lowering. Unsaturated fats help  reduce levels of LDL cholesterol in the blood (the type of cholesterol associated with increased risk for heart disease and diabetes)

• Feeling happy and calm: Eating fats trigger the release of cholecystokinin, a hormone that assists in digestion, but also acts on the brain to maintain levels of dopamine and serotonin, hormones that improve mood and feelings of happiness.

• Add energy. Fats have more than 2x the calories/gram than protein or carbohydrate so they are great for adding extra calories without having to increase the volume of food eaten - ideal for those trying to keep on weight.

• Brain fuel. The human brain thrives on fat, and nourishing it with healthy, unsaturated fats, especially omega-3 fatty acids, found in olive oil, salmon, walnuts, flax seed, can improve and maintain proper brain function.

Another important point: Fats help us absorb important nutrients from our food. For example, fat soluble vitamins like Vitamin A, D, E, K that are in vegetables, beans, etc. require the presence of fat to be absorbed- so that salad dressing is serving a nutritional purpose too!

Focus on incorporating unsaturated fat sources like vegetable oils, nuts, seeds, fish, and avocados into your meals.