Low-fat Diet: What Foods Do You and Don’t You Eat?

Fat is a macronutrient that gives your body energy, provides insulation, and protects your organs. Low-fat foods include fruits, vegetables, and beans, but avoid low-fat processed foods, which are loaded with sodium, sugar, or starches.

A low-fat diet sounds simple enough, but it's not as simple as grabbing low-fat ice cream for dessert. 

The connection between saturated fat, cholesterol, and heart disease has become increasingly apparent over the last several decades. This connection has led to a rise in low-fat diets designed to reduce the risk of heart disease.

The math of a low-fat diet

The exact details of a low-fat diet will vary. Generally, a low-fat diet means that less than 30% of your daily calories should come from fat.

For example, the average person eats around 2,000 calories each day. According to a low-fat diet, then, you should eat less than 67 grams of fat each day. 

Does it work?

A low-fat diet makes sense on the surface. For 40 years, people have overeaten fat, and doctors have prescribed low-fat diets. However, nothing has changed. People kept gaining weight and getting heart disease despite eating low-fat foods.

For many people, low-fat diets didn't work because the low-fat foods they ate weren't healthy. The food industry released low-fat versions of their products, but the manufacturers replaced the fats with starch, sugar, and sodium.

Additionally, since people were cutting out fats entirely, they weren't eating healthy, unsaturated fats. This lack of good fats combined with the excessive consumption of refined carbs only worsened the original problem.

A low-fat diet can work, but it's not as easy as just saying "no" to fats. 

Fat is a macronutrient that gives your body energy, provides insulation, and protects your organs. It's vital to your overall health, so cutting out fats isn't ideal in a diet. 

The key is to eat the right types of fat in moderation. To do that, you need to be aware of the four types of fat commonly found in food.

Monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats

Some plant-based foods like nuts are high in unsaturated fats and other nutrients. These two types of unsaturated fats are "good" for a few reasons:

• Omega-3 fats are polyunsaturated fats that your body needs but can't make. 
• Unsaturated fats lower bad cholesterol and increase good cholesterol.

Saturated and trans fats

These are the "bad" fats. You can usually find them in junk foods, full-fat dairy products, red meat, pastries, and fried foods. 

Some evidence shows that these fats may not be all bad, though, and the imbalance between unsaturated and saturated fats may put people at risk for health problems.

Calories and fat

You get your energy from fat, protein, and carbs, also known as macronutrients. Carbs and protein each have 4 calories per gram, whereas fat has a whopping 9 calories per gram.

A significant benefit of a low-fat diet, or any eating pattern, is that it makes you think about the food you eat. It encourages you to look at the nutrition facts label and see what's in your food.

Avoiding fats naturally leads you away from foods with saturated fats, like junk food and fried foods. Avoiding saturated fats may also lead you away from excess carbs and sodium.

If you cut down your total dietary fat without watching the type of fat you eat, you may still have the same problems that you would while overeating fat. For example, eating the right amount of fat but a greater proportion of saturated fats or substitutes like sugar and sodium can still increase your heart disease risk. 

Fats are calorie-dense. High-fat diets quickly lead you to eat too many calories, leading you to store excess calories as body fat and gain weight. 

Almost everyone can benefit from eating less saturated and trans fats. Fat intake is linked to some of the leading and most deadly health conditions in the United States.

Cardiovascular disease

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the United States. If you're at risk for cardiovascular disease, have high low-density lipoprotein, hypertension, or have a history of stroke, you could benefit from a low-fat diet.

Cancer

High fat intake is linked to several types of cancer, most notably breast and colorectal cancer. Those are among the most common forms of cancer in the United States.

If you have a higher risk for cancer because of your medical or family history, a low-fat diet can help lower your risk. 

Obesity

Obesity affects a large percentage of the U.S. population. Fat intake increases the risk of obesity, which in turn increases the risk of many other diseases.

The link between fat and obesity comes down to calories. Fat is calorie-dense compared to protein and carbs, so a high-fat diet produces excess calories.

People at risk for obesity or related illnesses can benefit from a low-fat diet. 

What you eat while on a low-fat diet depends on your health goals. Generally speaking, most people will benefit from eating foods high in unsaturated and low in saturated fats.

Foods with unsaturated fats

Some recommended foods for a low-saturated fat diet include:

• Vegetable oils like olive, peanut, or canola oil
• Avocados
• Nuts like almonds, walnuts, pecans, and hazelnuts
• Seeds like pumpkin, sesame, and flax
• Fish

Low-fat foods

If you're trying to reduce your fat and calorie intake, make sure that the fats you eat are unsaturated. To trim the fat from your diet, opt for:

1. Low-fat or fat-free dairy products
2. Poultry like chicken or turkey
3. Egg whites
4. Beans and lentils
5. Whole grains
6. Fruits
7. Vegetables

Avoid processed food marketed as "low-fat"

If you see low-fat chips or cookies at the grocery store, avoiding them is prudent. Processed foods labeled as "low-fat" often have sodium, sugar, or starches added to preserve flavor and consistency.

You may cut out fat by getting these "low-fat" products, but you'll eat far more sugar and sodium than you might expect. 

Fats have a bad reputation when it comes to diets. Still, even though they can easily lead to eating too many calories, fats are vital to your overall well-being.

Instead of cutting out all fats, try prioritizing unsaturated fats. See how your diet naturally shifts toward healthier foods and enjoy the accompanying benefits.