5 fatty foods you can eat without feeling guilty

When it’s cold, we often have want to eat more fat. And if this desire is not abnormal, we nevertheless physiologically do not need to eat more, and especially more fat in winter. However, they should not be completely neglected. “Fats have their place in a balanced, varied, healthy, but also gourmet diet.“, explains Dr. Laurence Plumey, nutritionist. “It is simply necessary to select them well to favor the most beneficial ones, and obviously not to abuse them under the pretext that they are essential, since they remain rich in calories..”

Ideally, to properly dose, you should consume 60 g (for a woman) and 80 g (for a man) of dietary fatwhose :

• 20-25% as saturated fatty acidsi.e. 12 to 15 g;
• 40% as monounsaturates (omega 9), i.e. 25 to 30 g;
• 25 to 30% as polyunsaturatesor 12 to 13 g of omega 6 and omega 3).

Omega 9 can be found, like omega 3 and 6 in certain oils and nuts, but they are mainly found in foods containing lipids, such as butter, fresh cream, meat, eggs or even cheese.

What are the fats to really avoid?

Conversely, certain fats must absolutely be avoided: these are “trans” fatty acids of synthesis. Obtained from natural unsaturated fatty acids (derived from meat, milk or vegetable oils), they undergo an industrial hydrogenation process which solidifies them, stabilizes them and prevents them from going rancid, which makes them practical for the agri-food industry, which has slipped them into a number of processed products : pastries, quiches, puff pastries, breaded foods, margarines, chocolate bars… Recognized as harmful, they increase the risk of cardiovascular disease and promote overweight.

Some countries (Denmark, Austria, Norway, Switzerland, etc.) have outright banned them, and European Union regulations have set their rate since 2021 at a maximum of 2 g per 100 g of fat, which has forced manufacturers to review their recipes. But there are still some, identifiable on the label by the mention “partially hydrogenated oils or fats”, but less often. Avoid them as much as possible!