Eating Fat Make You Gain Weight

We are aware that not all fats are the same. Polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats, on the other hand, are better for your heart than saturated and trans fats. However, how does this relate to the age-old query: Is consuming fat unhealthy? Even though all fats have the same number of calories per gram, a first-of-its-kind study found that certain kinds of fat are more likely to encourage weight gain.

Chan School of Public Health and his team looked at data from over 120,000 men and women over more than 20 years to specifically examine how changes in the kinds of fat people ate affected their weight. They discovered that people were more likely to gain weight when their diets included more saturated and trans fats, whereas increasing their intake of unsaturated fats had no such effect it was linked to weight loss.

Different kinds of fat have different effects on the body’s metabolism. Saturated and trans fats appear to cause insulin resistance, which prevents your cells from absorbing glucose as intended. Your body produces more insulin, a hormone that encourages fat storage, as a result.

The interesting part comes when it comes to unsaturated fats. Weight generally increased slightly when more monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) were added. However, when the researchers compared MUFAs derived from nuts and olive oil to those derived from animals (such as red meat and dairy), only the latter increased weight. While the former helped maintain a constant weight. This is probably because animal foods typically contain both saturated and monounsaturated fats, so you get both good and bad fats.

The intriguing part comes about unsaturated fats. When more monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) were added, weight generally rose slightly. However, when the researchers compared the MUFAs found in olive oil and nuts to those found in animal products like red meat and dairy. Only the latter caused an increase in weight while the former helped maintain a constant weight. This is probably because animal products typically contain both saturated and monounsaturated fats, giving you both beneficial and harmful fats.

Conclusion

The study found that eating more trans and saturated fats led to an annual weight gain of about 3/4 pounds on average. Although this scale creep doesn’t seem like much, it’s enough to make diabetes, heart disease, and cancer more likely. Hu suggests substituting MUFAs and PUFAs for 5 percent of your saturated fat intake. If you eat 22 grams of saturated fat per day on a 2,000-calorie diet. You would only need to cut that by about 1 gram. That would be comparable to substituting sliced almonds for crumbled bacon on a salad.

Also, don’t mistake moving fat for slicing fat. Diets frequently substitute refined carbohydrates and added sugar for total fat, which may be harmful to health.. There is no need to be afraid of fat as long as you concentrate on quality.