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Lifestyle Coach Facilitation Guide: Post-Core
Fats - Saturated, Unsaturated, and Trans Fat
Content Overview
This session answers the question “what is fat?” It explores the different types of fat, and shows which fats are healthy (monounsaturated and polyunsaturated) and which fats are unhealthy (saturated and trans fat). Participants learn tips for choosing foods with healthy fats and avoiding foods with unhealthy fats. More information on cholesterol appears in Post-Core Session: Heart Health.
Lifestyle Coach Preparation Checklist
Post-core handouts:
What is Fat? Healthy Fats: Omega-3, Monounsaturated and Polyunsaturated Fats to Avoid: Saturated and Trans Fat Identifying Healthier Alternatives Tips for Choosing the Best Types of Fat
“Food and Activity Trackers”
“Lifestyle Coach’s Log”
Balance scale
Materials
Key messages to reinforce
A completely fat-free diet would not be healthy, yet it is important that fat be consumed in moderation.
The main types of “healthy” fats are monounsaturated and polyunsaturated. The main types of “unhealthy” fats are saturated and trans fat.
Saturated fats are primarily found in foods that come from animals, such as meat and dairy. Try to switch to lower-fat versions of these foods.
In order to avoid trans fat, look on nutrition labels for ingredients such as “partially hydrogenated” oils or shortening. In addition, look for trans fat in the nutritional information in products like commercially baked cookies, crackers, and pies, and fried foods.
After the session
At the completion of this session, do the following:
Use the “Notes and Homework Page” for notes and follow-up tasks.
Distribute 4 “Food and Activity Trackers” for the following month.
Healthy Fats: Omega-3, Monounsaturated,
and Polyunsaturated
Omega-3 fatty acids are an especially heart healthy fat and can help with lowering high triglyceride values in your blood. Omega-3 fats can be found in:
Fish: salmon, mackerel, herring, sardines, albacore tuna, and rainbow trout
Tofu and other soybean products
Walnuts
Flaxseed and flaxseed oil
Canola oil
Monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fat are considered “heart healthy” and can help with improving cholesterol when used in place of unhealthy fats. Some sources of these fats include:
Avocado
Nuts and seeds : almonds, cashews, pecans, peanuts, pine nuts, pumpkin, sesame seeds, or sunflower seeds
Olive oil and olives
Oils: vegetable oils (such as sunflower, safflower, corn, soybean, and cottonseed)
Peanut butter
Source: American Diabetes Association
Fats to Avoid: Saturated and Trans Fat
Saturated Fats are mainly found in foods that come from animals (such as meat and dairy), but they can also be found in most fried foods and some prepackaged foods. Saturated fats are unhealthy because they increase LDL (“bad” cholesterol) levels in your body and increase your risk for heart disease. Many saturated fats are “solid” fats that you can see, such as the fat in meat. Other sources of saturated fats include:
High-fat cheeses
High-fat cuts of meat
Whole-fat milk and cream
Butter
Ice cream and ice cream products
Palm and coconut oils
Trans fat is simply liquid oils turned into solid fats during food processing. There is also a small amount of trans fat that occurs naturally in some meat and dairy products, but those found in processed foods tend to be the most harmful to your health.
Trans fats serve up a double whammy to your cholesterol, by increasing LDL (“bad” cholesterol) and decreasing HDL (“healthy” cholesterol).
In order to avoid trans fat, look on nutrition labels for ingredients such as “partially hydrogenated” oils or shortening. In addition, look for trans fat in the nutritional information in products, such as commercially baked cookies, crackers, and pies, and fried foods.
Additional Tips for Choosing the Best Types
of Fat
Limit the amount of fat you eat, but don’t try to cut it out completely. Focus on reducing foods high in saturated fat, trans fat.
Present: While taking into consideration the health implications of the different types of fat, the key to weight loss is to stay within your fat gram and calorie goals, regardless of which type of fat you eat.
Here are a few more tips for choosing the best types of fat.
Choose leaner cuts of meat that do not have much visible fat. Leaner cuts include round cuts and sirloin cuts. Trim visible fat off meats before eating.
Sauté with olive oil or canola oil instead of butter.
Use olive oil in salad dressings and marinades.
Use canola oil when baking.
When re-heating soups or stews, skim the solid fats from the top before heating.
Sprinkle slivered nuts or sunflower seeds on salads instead of bacon bits.
Snack on a small handful of nuts rather than potato chips or processed crackers.
Try peanut butter or other nut-butter spreads (which do not contain trans fat) on celery, bananas, or low-fat crackers.
Add slices of avocado rather than cheese to your sandwich.
Once or twice a week prepare fish, such as salmon or mackerel, instead of meat.
Follow Up
Notes and Homework Page
While it is fresh in your mind, use this page to write down notes about the session. Consider what worked, what you need to do differently for the next session, whom you need to follow up with, information or ideas needing further research, and general concerns or issues that need to be addressed.
