Of all the nutrients, fat may get the most attention. While many people try to avoid fat, it is a necessary nutrient. In fact, it is recommended by the USDA dietary guidelines that 25-30 percent of your total calories come from fat. However, keep in mind not all fats are equal. There are two kinds of fat, saturated and unsaturated.

Oils are a mixture of saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, though they are usually called by the name of the fat that is most prolific.

Saturated fats are typically solid at room temperature. Examples include butter and other dairy products, animal fat and palm and coconut oils. Saturated fat has the reputation of being a damaging fat. It’s been shown to clog your arteries and raise the “bad,” Low Density Lipoprotein (LDL), cholesterol levels.

Unsaturated fats are usually liquid at room temperature and are sourced from plants. There are two types of unsaturated fats, poly- and monounsaturated. Polyunsaturated fats include safflower, corn, soy and sunflower oils. Monounsaturated fats include nut, olive and canola oils. Unsaturated fats have been linked to many health benefits, including the ability to lower LDL cholesterol levels.

Unsaturated fats can be made into “bad” fats when they are hydrogenated. A trans fat is a hydrogenated fat. The reason for hydrogenating a fat (adding hydrogen to the chemical bond) is to make it solid at room temperature (i.e. vegetable oil turned into margarine).

If you’re confused about which are the best fats to use in your products On The Menu can advise.

This entry was posted on Thursday, December 6th, 2007 at 2:41 pm and is filed under Recipe formulation. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.