Wholefood Fat That I Used in Green Smoothies - Part IV

We need some fat to stay healthy. Some of the functions of the fat include:

• Important for many body processes


• Protects our organs


• Keeps us warm


• Helps our body absorb and move nutrients around


• Helps hormone production
  

However, some fats are better than others and having too much of any type is not a good idea.

Types of fat:

• Saturated fat: Raise blood cholesterol levels, contribute to the risk of heart disease


• Mono-unsaturated & Polyunsaturated: tend to lower blood cholesterol


• Trans Fats: Raise LDL level & lower HDL cholesterol

Common fat-containing foods:

• Saturated fat: Fatty cuts of meat, full fat milk, cheese, butter, cream, baked products, e.g. biscuits and pastries, deep-fried fast foods, palm oil.


• Mono-unsaturated fat: canola oil, olive oil, peanut oil, avocado, nuts, e.g. peanuts, hazelnuts, cashews & almonds.


• Polyunsaturated fats: fish, seafood, safflower, sunflower, corn or soy oils, nuts such as walnuts & brazil nuts, and seeds.

Polyunsaturated fats can be divided into:

• Omega-3: marine foods, salmon, mackerel, southern blue fin tuna and sardines, flaxseed, leafy green vegetables


• Omega-6: in nuts, seeds and plant oils, e.g. corn, soy and safflower, animal flesh, dariy products, etc.


• both omega-6 and omega-3 are Essential Fatty Acid.

Benefits of omega-3 fats

• the benefits of omega-3 fats in the diet seem to include that they:


• Lower triglyceride levels, which are important risk factors in coronary heart disease


• Improve blood vessel elasticity


• Keep the heart rhythm beating normally


• Thin the blood, which makes it less sticky and less likely to clot


• Reduce inflammation and support the immune system


• Reduce blood pressure


• May play a role in preventing and treating depression


• Contribute to the normal development of the foetal brain.

Flaxseed is preferred over marine foods as omega-3 source due to:

• animal based omega-3 come together with cholesterol


• most of the sea already being polluted with heavy metal
  

The balance of omega-6 and omega-3:

It is important to maintain the right ratio between omega-6 and omega-3 which is recommended to be within 4:1 to 1:2. The right ratio between omega-6 and omega-3 enable the body to reduce inflammation, lower blood pressure, prevent irregular heart beat, promote healthy bllod flow.

However, due to our modern diet, most people consume an overbundance of omega-6 fats. The modern diet supplies 20 or more times omega-6 than omega-3.

It is easy to bring back the omega-6 and omega-3 ratio to the recommended ratio when our diet is made up of predominantly fresh fruits and vegetables, especially when it contains an abundance of leafy greens and small addition of flaxseed.

Hence, I normally soak flaxseed overnight and add it into my green smoothies. Occasionally, I also use add avocado into my green smoothies since it is a wholefood fat that will help to make the smoothies have the creamy texture.