What are the most important sources of healthy fats?
Healthy fats are among the most important and beneficial types of fats, so what are the most important sources of healthy fats? Here is the answer to this article.
Fat is one of the nutrients that it is usually preferred to avoid and limit its use because it results in many health conditions and diseases, and the most important diseases that cause them are: heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and some types of cancer, but this does not prevent The presence of some types of healthy fats that benefit human health.
In this article, the most important sources of healthy fats will be mentioned:
The most important sources of healthy fats
There are many sources of healthy fats, there are many foods that contain this type of beneficial fats, and the most prominent and most important sources of healthy fats are:
- Fatty fish, such as salmon and mackerel.
- Vegetable oils, which usually include: corn oil, sunflower oil, in addition to canola oil.
- Avocado and its oil also contain a good amount of healthy fats.
- Peanut butter and oil.
- Olives and olive oil are among the most important sources of healthy unsaturated fats.
- Soybean oil, flaxseed oil.
- walnut;
- Flaxseeds.
- Nuts, for example, almonds, hazelnuts, and walnuts.
- Seeds, such as sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds.
The benefits and properties of healthy fats
Healthy fats are known as unsaturated fats and are considered beneficial fats because they have a role in improving cholesterol levels in the blood, reducing inflammation, improving heart rhythm stability, and other benefits that contribute to maintaining good health of the body.
Healthy fats are usually in a liquid state at room temperature, and despite the benefits of healthy unsaturated fats, most people do not eat sufficient amounts of this type of beneficial fats, so the American Heart Association suggested that you should eat between 8% to 10 % of daily calories from healthy unsaturated fats.
It was found that increasing the ratio up to 15% of daily calories instead of eating unhealthy fats, ie saturated fats, is likely to reduce the risk of heart disease.
Types of healthy fats
After learning about the most important sources of healthy fats, let's get to know the most popular types of healthy fats in the following:
1. Monounsaturated fatty acids
This type of healthy fat is likely to be found in many foods and oils, and some studies have indicated that eating foods rich in monounsaturated fatty acids instead of saturated fats can improve blood cholesterol levels, which contributes significantly to reducing the risk of Heart disease and type 2 diabetes.
2. Polyunsaturated fatty acids
As for this type of healthy fat, it is often found in foods and vegetable oils, and many studies have indicated the importance of eating this type instead of saturated fats to reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes, and heart disease as well.
3. Omega-3 fatty acids
One of the healthy types of unsaturated fats consists of omega-3 fatty acids, which have an essential role in maintaining a healthy heart, and omega-3s are usually found in fatty fish, which help reduce the risk of coronary artery disease.
It should be noted that some plant sources contain omega-3 fatty acids, such as ground flaxseeds, chia seeds, nuts, and others.