Fat Still Needed For Your Diet

Fat is a necessary part of your diet because the body relies on it for many different functions, including your brain health, immune system function, and digestion. However, not all fats are created equally, so it is important to pay attention to the healthy fats to eat so you start to learn how to add healthy fat to your diet. Good fats to eat are monounsaturated fats, such as those found in olive and canola oil, avocados, nuts, and fish.

1. Look for foods you enjoy that are high in healthy fats. If a food is high in saturated fat, this is an unhealthy fat. If the nutrition label includes it, look for grams of unsaturated fat, including mono and polyunsaturated fats. There are many different foods that are high in healthy fat, but the key lies in finding it in sources you enjoy eating. For instance, fish is high in omega-3 fats that are good for you. But if you don't like fish, then you may find it difficult to eat it to get more healthy fat in your diet.
2. Find various ways to prepare healthy fat foods you enjoy. Eating the same thing over and over the same way will get boring quickly, and when you get bored with your food, you are less likely to keep eating it. For example, you can eat avocados sliced on sandwiches one day, and make them into a fresh guacamole the next. You could bake a tuna steak one day, and grill a salmon fillet another.
3. Eat a handful or two of your favorite nuts or seeds when you need a quick snack. Enjoy them to hold you over until meal time or when you are on the go and too busy to sit down. Good nut options include cashews, almonds, walnuts, sunflower seeds, or pumpkin seeds.
4. Eat more vegetables, such as avocados and olives. Vegetable fats are healthy fats, unless you are dealing with the coconut, which is high in saturated fat. Eat your favorite fatty vegetables in various ways, including raw, to get more healthy fat in your diet.
5. Consider taking nutritional supplements. If you are unable to include healthy fats in your diet for any particular reason, including taste preference, expense, time constraints, or preparation, you can take any number of supplements to get essential fatty acids. Fish oil and flaxseed oil are 2 relatively inexpensive supplements you can get from a variety of online or brick-and-mortar retailers. A 500 mg omega-3 capsule taken daily is generally enough, unless you have been instructed by a doctor to take more.