Tag Archives: high-fat diets

Why don’t fats make a person fat? A Dietitian explains how it might be the opposite

Professionals have some excellent news to fairly share: no, eating fats does not automatically make you fat. Overeating, macronutrient (fat, protein, or carbs) boosts the threat of weight gain, said registered dietitian Kristin Kirkpatrick at Cleveland Clinic Wellness, but “fat in and of itself just is not a thing that is likely to make you fat,” despite the somewhat misleadingly identical terminology.

You can understand where in actuality the misconception arises from, however. “Fat can be a fairly scary nutrient” for individuals who count calories, Kristin said, since it is more calorie-dense: one gram of fat contains nine calories, in comparison to four calories per gram of protein and four calories per gram of carbohydrate. “People also may associate fat with more ‘indulgent’ foods, such as butter and steak,” Kristin told POPSUGAR, adding to the misconception that every fat are unhealthy. Then there is the simple association that eating fats might create fat within the body, which is not just the situation; you are likely to gain weight if you eat processed or processed foods or overeat consistently, including fats, but fats do not inherently lead to weight gain.

Kristin said, nearly all her clients have now been able to lose weight on high-fat diets, often since they replace refined carbs and sugars with healthy fats (snacking on nuts as opposed to pretzels, for example). The popular ketogenic diet, which can be high-fat and low-carb, is the one which has helped many people drop some weight, even though it is still controversial among dietitians.

According to Kristin, fats will also be harder to digest than other nutrients, such as carbs. This means they take longer to move throughout your digestive system, that will help you stay full for longer and have fewer snacking cravings. Fats improve your metabolism for the same reason; the body needs more energy (aka burns more calories) to digest them.

Exactly how much fat should you eat, then? On average, seek to keep fats as 30 percent of one’s healthy daily diet, though Kristin noted that this would probably vary based on the body, activity level, and general health; consult a health care provider or dietitian for guidelines specific to the body. You ought to also adhere to healthy fats as much as possible, including avocados, nuts, whole soy, olive oil, and fatty fish like tuna and salmon.

So no, you most likely do not need to go nonfat to get rid of weight or remain healthy. Keeping those healthy fat sources as part of your regular diet, balanced with carbs and much protein, is the better way to go.

Reference
Does Eating Fat Make You Fat? | POPSUGAR Fitness. https://www.popsugar.com/fitness/Does-Eating-Fat-Make-You-Fat-46237336