Diets high in fat can add pounds and raise blood cholesterol levels, which are risk factors for heart disease. Unhealthy fats include saturated and trans fats. Dietary cholesterol from fatty foods also raises cholesterol. The body produces necessary amounts of cholesterol for certain functions, but high cholesterol levels come from the foods you eat. You need to monitor the fats in your diet to avoid the risk of heart disease.
Obesity
A diet high in fat can cause obesity because people eating these types of foods take in too many calories from saturated fats, trans fats and dietary cholesterol, the American Heart Association explains. Obesity, or even being overweight, and eating a high-fat diet can raise blood cholesterol levels to increase the risk of heart disease. Obesity also raises blood pressure levels to increase heart-disease risks.
Cholesterol
Unhealthy fats increase low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, also called LDL or "bad" cholesterol. Excess amounts of LDL cholesterol form plaque that builds up on the walls of the arteries to hinder blood flow, causing heart-disease conditions, such as angina or chest pain. The plaque can burst and block blood flow to cause a heart attack or stroke. High-density lipoprotein cholesterol, known as HDL or "good" cholesterol, gathers excess cholesterol and brings it to the liver, which removes it as waste. Some unhealthy fats also decrease HDL. Low levels of LDL and high levels of HDL protect against heart disease.
Unhealthy Fat Sources
Animal products contain saturated fats. These products include whole milk, whole-milk cheeses, butter, lard, cream, ice cream and meats. Plant sources of saturated fats include cocoa butter in chocolate and palm, palm kernel and coconut oils. Trans fats, made with partially hydrogenated vegetables oils, are found in many processed foods, such as cookies and cakes, or in cooked foods at restaurants, such as French fries and fried onion rings. Dietary cholesterol comes from animal fats, including meats, poultry, fish, dairy products and egg yolks.
Bad Fats
Saturated fats raise total blood cholesterol by raising LDL levels, but they also raise healthy HDL cholesterol, according to the Harvard School of Public Health. Trans fats cause even higher risks for heart disease because they raise LDL cholesterol and lower protective HDL cholesterol. A Harvard-backed study found that women eating 4 tsp. of stick margarine each day had a 50 percent higher risk of heart disease than women who rarely ate margarine. Stick margarine is an example of a food that contains large amounts of trans fats.
Good Fats
Monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats may lower LDL cholesterol while raising good HDL cholesterol, the Harvard School of Public Health reports. Almonds, hazelnuts, pecans, olive oil and canola oil contain monounsaturated fats. Polyunsaturated fats come from corn, sunflower, soybean oil, flaxseed oil, walnuts and fish with omega-3 fatty acids, including tuna, mackerel, herring and salmon.
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