Fat-Free is Not Always the Way to Be

What do you look for on the nutrition label? Many people focus on total fat content to help determine whether something is a healthy choice. It’s easy to assume that foods labeled as “fat-free” or “low-fat” are good choices, but a savvy consumer should see these labels as a reason to take a closer look.

For decades, one of the most well-accepted dietary recommendations for heart health was to follow a low-fat diet. The food industry capitalized on this by adjusting products to have less fat and marketing them as such to increase sales. What they did not advertise is that in many products, the fat had been replaced with refined sugars or starches. A prime example would be the emergence of fat-free snack cookies. For instance, Snackwell’s products (note the deceiving name) are famously low in fat and calories, making them seem like a guilt-free treat, and making it all too easy to overindulge.

Research has shown that if dietary fat is reduced and is replaced by refined sugars or starches, this will cause HDL (the good cholesterol) to go down and triglycerides to go up, increasing the risk of heart disease even if total calories remains the same. Americans who thought they were making healthier choices by choosing low-fat products may actually have increased their risk for developing heart disease. Instead, research is showing that if we keep total calories the same and replace saturated fat with unsaturated fat from healthy oils, good cholesterol will go up and bad cholesterol will go down and this decreases the risk of heart disease.

Many new studies are even showing that diets low in fat do not reduce the risk of heart disease, diabetes, cancer, or even excess body fat. Instead of the quantity of fat in our diet, we need to learn to choose foods that are sources of healthy unsaturated fats, limit foods with saturated fats and avoid foods with trans fats from partially hydrogenated oils (see table below for food sources).  Most experts still agree that saturated fat should be limited to less than 10% of total calories (this would be about 22 g or less per day for a 2000 calorie diet) and that trans fat should be avoided completely due to harmful effects on cholesterol levels. 

It may be beneficial to choose the full fat versions of foods that are natural sources of unsaturated fats, such as oil-based salad dressings. However, some foods labeled as low-fat and fat-free are certainly better choices than the full fat versions. Milk, for instance, is not a natural source of unsaturated fats; therefore, skim or low-fat milk are better choices than whole milk because they have less saturated fat, less calories and no additional sugar. Lowfat choices such as these are helpful for individuals looking to lose weight or prevent weight gain since calories are the main determinant of body weight and all else equal, less fat means less calories.

It may seem that nutrition advice is constantly changing and it’s hard to keep up, but to be safe, the less processed a food is, the better. The key to healthy eating is to learn how to incorporate a variety of fruits, vegetables, nuts, fish, lowfat dairy, and vegetable oils in your diet, replace refined carbohydrates with whole grains and avoid sugar-sweetened beverages, processed meats, and foods that contain partially hydrogenated oils without exceeding your caloric needs. If a food label is making some kind of health claim, be suspicious of the claim rather than susceptible to a marketing scheme.

Saturated

Solid fats (butter, high fat cheeses, high fat meats, ice cream), whole milk and cream, palm oil, coconut oil

Main sources: animal products, baked goods, fried foods

Trans

Sources
Zelman, Kathleen. "The Great Fat Debate : A Closer Look at the Controversy--Questioning the Validity of Age-Old Dietary Guidance." Journal of the American Dietetic Association. May 2011. Volume 11 Number 5. pages 655-658.

Willet, Walter C. "The Great Fat Debate: Total Fat and Health. " Journal of the American Dietetic Association. May 2011. Volume 11 Number 5. pages 660-662.

Kuller, Lewis H. "The Great Fat Debate: Reducing Cholesterol. " Journal of the American Dietetic Association. May 2011. Volume 11 Number 5. pages 663-664.

Mozaffarian, Dariush. "The Great Fat Debate: Taking the Focus Off Saturated Fat." Journal of the American Dietetic Association. May 2011. Volume 11 Number 5. pages 665-666.

Lichtenstein, Alice. "The Great Fat Debate: The Importance of Message Translation. " Journal of the American Dietetic Association. May 2011. Volume 11 Number 5. pages 667-670.