Fats are mainly flavour carriers and contain twice as many calories than proteins and carbohydrates. So be careful with the amount of fat you take up. On the other hand: your body needs a little amount of essential fats to work properly. Fat also helps exploiting vitamins.
The history of evolution has shown that the human body saves surplus fat and saves it for “bad times”. The thing is: We do not have “bad times” nowadays. That means, that the extra fat is stored in your body and that makes you gain weight. But if you are aware of your fat intake and what kind of fats you choose, fat can be helpful to exploit vitamins and help with infections.
It needs to be differentiated between saturated, unsaturated and trans fatty acids. They have different effects on the body. You will find saturated fatty acids mostly in animal food like meat and dairies. It is important to take care of the amount you take up of saturated fatty acids, because they contain a lot of calories. Better: use unsaturated fatty acids that exist in food like fishes like mackerel, salmon and herring and other vegetable oils. These fats are needed on a daily base by your body. They contain quite some calories too so beware of your intake as well. But what are the “bad” fats? These are the trans fatty acids which belongs to the processed foods. The fats are especially hiding in crisps, puff pastry and other deep-fried foods. They are very unhealthy.
If you prepare meals that are quite fatty anyway, you should try to go without any further oils or butter. You can add some fat if the food itself is low on fat. It is ideal if you then use unsaturated fatty acids like vegetable oils. That way, your body can take up the vitamins of a meal if you add some of the “good” fat. Summed up, that means that fat is good for you and your health if it is consumed in moderation and you quit on the deepfried foods.
