Low-fat foods are essential to the diets advocated by Dr. Dean Ornish, the China Study and the McDougall Program. While their research has shown low-fat vegetarian diets to be effective in treating heart disease, diabetes, blood pressure and certain obesity-related conditions, studies published in the "Journal of the American Medical Association" found an omnivorous low-fat diet did not protect women against heart attacks, breast cancer, colon cancer or strokes.
So is it better to cut back on fat or not? It's definitely wise to eliminate or drastically reduce trans fats in your diet. Take a tour of your pantry and toss all those items which list hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oil as an ingredient. General fat intake should range from 20 to 35 percent of total daily calories. You want most of the fats in your diet to come from monounsaturated and/or polyunsaturated sources such as olive oil, fish, avocados and nuts. Less than 10 percent of your fat intake should come from saturated like the ones found in most meat and dairy products.
What to Look for
Of course, fruits and vegetables are excellent low-fat foods. Fish such as cod, grouper, and yellowfin tuna have less than one percent total fat content per serving. The majority of calories in red meat, milk and hard cheeses come from saturated fats. An alternative would be to choose the white meat from chicken or turkey, tofu, egg whites, tempeh, seitan or beans as a source of low-fat protein. Otherwise, stick to lean cuts of beef, pork and lamb, non-fat milk and yogurt, and use olive oil or vegetable broth instead of butter when possible. And finally there is some good news for pasta lovers. Pasta is virtually fat free, before you add the sauce, and has a low glycemic index to boot when eaten in moderation.
Shopping for ready made low-fat cuisine can be a dizzying process. The labels read everything from "Reduced Fat" to "Lite" to "Extra Lean" to "Low Saturated Fat." Read the labels to see what you're really eating. A low-fat food should contain 3 grams or less of fat per serving. Fat free will have less than a half percent of fat per serving. The Lite version should have 50 percent less fat grams or general calories when compared to the regular product.
Common Pitfalls
Reducing fat in the diet too drastically can also lead to a nutrient deficiency, overeating and eventual weight gain in some individuals. Brian Wansink, Ph.D., author of "Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think," found that people eat more of processed foods when under belief they are the low-fat versions. In addition, when fat is removed from a product, sugar is usually added instead. You end up eating consuming more calories of the low-fat version, because it takes a greater amount to satiate your hunger without adequate levels of fat present.
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