Five simple steps to lower the fat in your cooking

The question that many people struggle with is whether fat should be avoided all together in a diet? The answer is NO! The human body needs fat for a number of reasons. It helps to maintain healthy skin and hair; it transports the crucial fat-soluble vitamins A, D and K; it helps a person feel satisfied after a meal because it slows down the emptying of food from the stomach and it supplies some of the essential fatty acids – the structural components of fat that the body needs, especially for manufacturing of certain hormones.

The question then is how much dietary fat does the body need? In lay-person’s terms; the body needs only about 1 tablespoon of dietary fat a day. But unfortunately, it is not that easy. Most people are taking in way too much dietary fat. The reason is that much of it is hidden in processed meats, pastries, other commercial baked goods and prepared foods such as French-fried potatoes, ready-made dinners, fast-foods, etc.

Taking into consideration that dietary fat is a necessity, the only objective then is to simply manage and control the intake of dietary fat by lowering the fat in your cooking. 

Here are 5 simple steps to lower the fat in your cooking:

1. Polyunsaturated or monounsaturated oils can help to reduce the cholesterol levels in the blood and therefore even health specialists recommend the use of these type of oils as the best choice for salads and for cooking. It is a proven fact that Safflower oil (family of the sunflower) is the most polyunsaturated of the many types of cooking oil. Others in descending order are sunflower, soybean, maize and sesame oil.  Commercially produced salad dressings may be loaded with saturated oils and therefore home-made salad dressing can be made by mixing 4 parts polyunsaturated vegetable oil  with 1 part yoghurt and 1 part lemon juice; adding seasoning to taste.

2. The yolk of an egg already contains a day’s quota of cholesterol. Therefore, limit egg yolks to three or four a week. Contrary to yolks, egg whites can be eaten as much as a person wants. They are a low-kilo joule source of protein. In preparing recipes containing eggs, discard every second yolk – this means for instance, make an omelette with two whites and one yolk. The same with pancake recipes, French toast, etc. You won’t notice the difference.

3. Instead of frying food, use low-fat cooking methods such as poaching, roasting and grilling.

4. Switch to leaner meats and other sources of protein. Instead of mince, sausages or fatty steaks; choose fillet, or rump or veal. Include more fish and poultry without skin in menus.

5. Select condiments with care. Try to avoid tartare sauce and mayonnaise, which is high in fat. Replace mayonnaise with mustard or plain low-fat yoghurt with crushed garlic added.

Healthy Eating for You: Examples of healthy fats

Fat is an essential part of a person’s diet, necessary to the health of people and a principal source of energy for the body. 

Dietary fats supply the fatty acids necessary for many of the body’s chemical activities, including growth in children, and provide the membrane linings of cells. Fats carry the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K. Fats lend flavour, texture and aroma to food, and they satisfy hunger.

Fat is not bad for the body. Moderate amounts of body fat, 18-24 per cent for women and 15-18 per cent for men is consistent with good health. Stored fats regulate body temperature, provide a protective cushion for organs and assist with hormone production and regulation.

The fat people consume come from many sources, both visible and invisible. Visible fats are ingredients such as sunflower oil or olive oil. Invisible fats are an integral part of foods, including the fat found in meat, nuts, fish or cheese. 

All fats consist of two types of fatty acids, which are distinguished by their chemical structure and the relative amount of hydrogen they contain. Saturated fats are loaded with all the hydrogen they can take whereas unsaturated fats contain less than the maximum amount of hydrogen. Unsaturated fats can further be divided into two categories, namely monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats.

 Fats naturally found in in foods are made of mixtures of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids. Fats containing mainly saturated fatty acids are found in animal foods such as beef or lamb, butter and other dairy products. These are not healthy fats.

Healthy fats are fats containing polyunsaturated fatty acids and include sunflower, cottonseed and maize oils. Exceptions here are poultry and fish oils, which come from animal sources but are high in unsaturated fat whilst coconut oil, is high in saturated fatty acids. Coconut oil is about 90% saturated fat, which is a higher percentage than butter (about 64% saturated fat), beef fat (40%), or even lard (also 40%). Too much saturated fat in the diet is unhealthy because it raises "bad" LDL cholesterol levels, which increases the risk of heart disease. So it would seem that coconut oil would be bad news for our hearts. But what's interesting about coconut oil is that it also gives "good" HDL cholesterol a boost. Fat in the diet, whether it's saturated or unsaturated, tends to nudge HDL levels up, but coconut oil seems to be especially potent at doing so. Nuts, olives and avocados are the major sources of monounsaturated fatty acids, and are also healthy.

The dietary role of fats is not simple. Although a moderate amount of fat is needed for everyone’s diet, many people go overboard. Eating too much fat, and unhealthy fat for this matter, is normally linked to two big health problems; obesity and cardiovascular disease. 

Essential fatty acids as needed by the body are polyunsaturated fatty acids, mainly linoleic acids but it is these fats that are mostly neglected.

Studies have indicated that diets high in polyunsaturated fat lower the blood cholesterol level compared to diets containing large amounts of saturated fats.

The body’s fat intake can be regulated by cutting down on visible fats, shunning fried foods and choosing lean forms of meat and fat-free or low-fat dairy products.

Danie

How cholesterol affects heart health

 

The primary source of dietary cholesterol is foods of animal origin, with eggs, red meats, dairy products and prawns very high in cholesterol. 

The main concern is that regardless of the dietary intake of cholesterol, the human body continues to produce cholesterol every day. The body is in a position to try to balance the cholesterol it manufactures with what it takes in by means of food, tending to produce less and to eliminate more in response to a high cholesterol diet.

In most cases, healthy people are able to maintain a fairly constant level of cholesterol in the bloodstream, although this level may go up as a person advances in age.  A diet high in polyunsaturated fats is normally associated with lower levels of blood cholesterol, whereas a diet high in saturated fats tends to increase the amount of blood cholesterol.

Saturated fats are the main culprit – they are far more potent in raising the blood cholesterol level than a diet rich in cholesterol itself, for instance, eggs. A diet high in saturated fats also causes the body to retain cholesterol taken in the diet. On a diet low in saturated fats, dietary cholesterol has little effect.

Cholesterol appears in the fat deposits that form in the linings of the arteries, causing these arteries to become less elastic. This process is known as atherosclerosis and takes place gradually in any artery of the body. When these fatty deposits become heavy and irregular it is known as plaques. These plaques can restrict or even stop the flow of blood through the arteries or can cause rough spots that may break loose and form a site for blood clots. When this occurs in one of the major arteries of the heart, it causes a coronary. 

It must, however, be stressed that diet is not alone in creating a high risk of heart disease. A person’s heredity, physical activity, smoking habits, body weight, blood pressure and even a person’s personality may all play a part. 

There are two types of cholesterol-carrying lipoproteins who may either protect the body against or promote heart disease. Both of these lipoproteins contain cholesterol but the ‘protective’ higher density ones (HDL) are found in greater amounts in people who are lean, who exercise, drink moderately and who do not smoke,  while the ‘promoting’ lower density ones (LDL) are more prevalent in obese people, sedentary people and people who eat too much fat. 

In high risk people the majority of them have blood cholesterol levels that put them at risk of heart attack. A change towards a lower-fat, lower-cholesterol diet is a must. Those with additional risk factors such as a family history of heart disease, overweight, high blood pressure, smoking or diabetes should cut down on fats and cholesterol even further. 

It is a proven fact that lowering blood cholesterol will lower the risk of coronary heart disease.

Danie

Beauty Tips For Summer

 

Summer is a great time for relaxation, recreation and renewal. If you're like most of us, you probably take advantage of the longer days and warm weather to enjoy extra time with family and friends. While enjoying the hot, lazy days of summer, keep in mind that different beauty rules apply. Here are a few tips to keep you looking as good as you feel:

Hair Care

If you spend lots of time outdoors and want to spice up your look naturally, try combing a little lemon juice through your hair. The sun will lighten those strands faster than your locks sans lemon, giving you an attractive sun-streaked look. It's also easier on your budget than salon highlights.

Be sure to deep condition your hair at least once a week, especially if you swim a lot. Hair tends to become dry, dull and brittle if it is soaked and dried too often.

If you like to swim lengths, try spritzing on some leave-in conditioner under your swim cap to help ward off damage from chlorine and salt water.

Skincare Tips

It may be hip to be tanned, and it does tend to camouflage a multitude of imperfections, but don't deep-fry your skin for the sake of fashion. Your best bet is a high quality bronzer in a bottle. The Body Shop has a great all-natural formula. Just remember to use a facial scrub prior to application to slough off any dead skin cells. You may also want to use a pair of gloves, lest your palms turn orange!

If you spend lots of time outside, be sure to use sunscreen with minimum SPF 15. The cancer-preventing benefits are obvious, but protection is also a must for those of us who don't want to look old before our time.

Make sure that you are adequately hydrated - at least 8 glasses of water a day and even more when you are outside.

If you do burn, apply Aloe Vera or lotions containing it. This will cool and soothe your skin and help you to heal faster. A personal trick is to apply cream containing zinc to my face at night. This is an effective way of healing my burn by the morning.

Nothing is more revolting than skin full of little red mosquito or bug bites, not to mention the new threat of West Nile Virus, so don't forget the bug spray. You may want to try one of the new two-in-one sunscreen and insect repellents.

For a quick skin boost in the sun, fill a misting bottle with a little bit of toner and water, and spritz your face and body for a quick cool off. Just remember to close your eyes so you don't risk burning them.

Make-up Tips

Take on summer with a fresh face forward - less is best! Accentuate your glowing skin by brushing on a light shimmering powder instead of a heavy foundation. You don't want to appear like you are melting under the hot sun.

Those of you who read my column know that I'm a big advocate of the powder bronzer. This is a great way to give yourself a pretty glow. I like to use a matte finish on my face and then a shimmer powder on my eyelids, above my cheekbones, and on my shoulders and collarbone.

Try a light shimmering eye shadow in beige just under your brow bone to draw attention to your eyes.

If you are wear mascara, try a waterproof. This way you will avoid "Raccoon Eyes" when you are perspiring or near water. Don't forget the must-have partner, eye make-up remover, or else you really will end up with the dreaded dark circles!

In short:  relax…and summer is the perfect time to do it. Take time to sit back, relax and enjoy time with your friends and family.

Juliana Day