Facts about monounsaturated fats
Monounsaturated fat is a type of dietary fat. It is one of the healthy fats, along with polyunsaturated fat. Monounsaturated fats are liquid at room temperature but start to harden when chilled.
Dietary fat
Fats are an important part of your diet but some types are healthier than others. Choosing healthy fats from vegetable sources more often than less ...
Read Article Now Book Mark ArticlePolyunsaturated fat
Polyunsaturated fat is a type of dietary fat. It is one of the healthy fats, along with monounsaturated fat. Polyunsaturated fat is found in plant a...
Read Article Now Book Mark ArticleSaturated fats and trans fats are solid at room temperature. These unhealthy fats can increase your risk for heart disease and other health problems.
Saturated fats
Saturated fat can raise blood cholesterol and can put you at risk for heart disease and stroke. You should limit your intake of any foods that are h...
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Trans fat is a type of dietary fat. Of all the fats, trans fat is the worst for your health. Too much trans fat in your diet increases your risk fo...
Read Article Now Book Mark ArticleMonounsaturated fats are found in plant foods, such as nuts, avocados, and vegetable oils. Eating moderate amounts of monounsaturated (and polyunsaturated) fats in place of saturated and trans fats can benefit your health.
How Monounsaturated Fats Affect Your Health
Monounsaturated fats are good for your health in several ways:
- They can help lower your LDL (bad) cholesterol level. Cholesterol is a soft, waxy substance that can cause clogged, or blocked, arteries (blood vessels). Keeping your LDL level low reduces your risk for heart disease and stroke.
Cholesterol
Your body needs cholesterol to work well. But cholesterol levels that are too high can harm you. In the US, blood cholesterol is most often measured...
Read Article Now Book Mark Article - Monounsaturated fats help develop and maintain your cells.
How Much You Can Eat
Your body needs some fats for energy and other functions. Monounsaturated fats are a healthy choice.
How much should you get every day? Here are recommendations from the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans:
- Aim for getting no more than 10% of your total daily calories from saturated fat (found in red meat, butter, cheese, and whole-fat dairy products). For a 2,000 calorie diet, that is a total of 200 calories, or 22 grams a day.
- Keep total fat consumption to no more than 25% to 30% of your daily calories. This includes monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats.
Eating healthier fats is good for your health. But eating too much fat can lead to weight gain. All fats contain 9 calories per gram of fat. This is more than twice the amount found in carbohydrates and protein.
Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates are one of the main nutrients in our diet. They help provide energy for our body. There are three main types of carbohydrates found i...
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Proteins are the building blocks of life. Every cell in the human body contains protein. The basic structure of protein is a chain of amino acids. ...
Read Article Now Book Mark ArticleIt is not enough to add foods high in unsaturated fats to a diet filled with unhealthy foods and fats. Instead, replace saturated or trans fats with healthier, unsaturated fats.
Reading Nutrition Labels
All packaged foods have a nutrition label that includes fat content. Reading food labels can help you keep track of how much fat you eat.
Reading food labels
Food labels give you information about the calories, number of servings, and nutrient content of packaged foods. Reading the labels can help you mak...
Read Article Now Book Mark Article- Check the total fat in one serving. Be sure to add up the number of servings you will eat in one sitting.
- Look closely at the amount of saturated fat and trans fat in a serving. The rest is unsaturated fat. Some labels will list the monounsaturated fat content, some will not.
- Make sure most of your daily fats are from monounsaturated and polyunsaturated sources.
- Many fast-food restaurants also provide nutrition information on their menus. If you do not see it posted, ask your server. You also may be able to find it on the restaurant's website.
Making Healthy Food Choices
Most foods have a combination of all types of fats. Some have higher amounts of healthy fats than others. Foods and oils with higher amounts of monounsaturated fats include:
- Nuts
- Avocado
- Canola oil
- Olive oil
- Safflower oil (high oleic)
- Sunflower oil
- Peanut oil and butter
- Sesame oil
To get the health benefits, you need to replace unhealthy fats with healthy fats. Here are some ideas:
Replace unhealthy fats with healthy fat
A heart-healthy diet is low in saturated fat. Saturated fat can increase your bad cholesterol and clog your arteries. A heart-healthy diet also lim...
Read Article Now Book Mark Article- Eat nuts instead of cookies for a snack. Be sure to keep your portion small, as nuts are high in calories.
- Add avocado to salads and sandwiches instead of dressings and mayonnaise.
- Replace butter and solid fats with olive, avocado, or canola oil.
Reviewed By
Stefania Manetti, RDN, CDCES, RYT200, My Vita Sana LLC - Nourish and heal through food, San Jose, CA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David C. Dugdale, MD, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.
Grundy SM, Stone NJ, Bailey AL, et al. 2018 AHA/ACC/AACVPR/AAPA/ABC/ACPM/ADA/AGS/APhA/ASPC/NLA/PCNA Guideline on the management of blood cholesterol: a report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force on Clinical Practice Guidelines. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2019;73(24):e285-e350. PMID: 30423393 pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30423393/.
Hensrud DD. Diet and nutrition. In: Goldman L, Cooney KA, eds. Goldman-Cecil Medicine. 27th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2024:chap 13.
Mozaffarian D. Nutrition and cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. In: Libby P, Bonow RO, Mann DL, Tomaselli GF, Bhatt DL, Solomon SD, eds. Braunwald's Heart Disease: A Textbook of Cardiovascular Medicine. 12th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2022:chap 29.
US Department of Agriculture and US Department of Health and Human Services. Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025. 9th ed. www.dietaryguidelines.gov/sites/default/files/2020-12/Dietary_Guidelines_for_Americans_2020-2025.pdf. Updated December 2020. Accessed May 13, 2024.