The truth about fat

Fat, carbohydrates and protein are the 3 main nutrients that make up most of our diet. Everyone needs some fat in their diet. Fat is not the enemy of eating well.

The benefits of fat:

It makes you feel full longer.
It helps your body absorb certain vitamins.
It adds taste and texture to food.

An assortment of grains, nuts, veggies, fruit and salmon

Fat and cancer

So far, research hasn’t given us a clear answer to whether certain types of fat increase cancer risk. But eating a diet high in fat may contribute to excess weight, which increases your risk of cancer, so it’s important to limit how much fat we eat.

Focus on healthy fats

Choosing foods that have mostly healthy fats, such as unsaturated fats, is more important for your health than just watching how much fat you eat. Healthy fats mostly come from nuts, seeds, fish and vegetable oils.

Unsaturated fats

Unsaturated fats are found in:

avocados
nuts and seeds
non-hydrogenated soft margarines
fatty fish like salmon or mackerel
olive oil, corn oil, canola oil and sunflower oil

Saturated fats

Saturated fats are found in animal sources of food such as meat, poultry, butter and cheese. They’re also found in coconut, palm and palm kernel oils. Foods like chocolate bars, ice cream and processed meats also contain saturated fat.

Trans fats

Trans fats occur naturally in small amounts in some animal products, such as meat, butter and cheese. Try to limit how much trans fat you take in and choose healthier fats more often instead. Trans fats used to be found in high amounts in foods such as crackers, potato chips and commercial baked goods that were made with or cooked in partially hydrogenated oils. These oils have been banned in Canada, but it’s still best to make these foods a once-in-a-while part of your diet.

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