The Good Fats vs The Bad Fats
Lemmon's Oil - The Perfect EFA Oil Blend
Good fats are the naturally-occurring, traditional fats that haven't been damaged by high heat, refining, processing or other man-made tampering such as 'partial hydrogenation'. The best of these kinds of fats are found in fish, nuts, avocados, seeds and, believe it or not, fresh creamery butter.
Animal fats have a bad reputation, but many professionals believe it is not animal fat, but the combination of animal foods, fats and low-fibre vegetables that is the problem. Also, because of horrible factory farming methods, antibiotics and steroid use, fats from non-organically raised, non-free-range animals should probably be used with prudence.
Among the worst of the 'bad' fats are margarine and the fats found in anything fried. If you see 'partially hydrogenated' on any food label, avoid it like the plague. Refined vegetable oils are also on the 'bad' fats list. These oils oxidise easily and have been processed with high heat, which removes all the healthy nutrients, like Vitamin E.
Extra virgin cold-pressed olive oil, however, is a 'good' fat. Certain essential fats such as omega-3s (found in oily fish) and the occasional omega-6 (found in evening primrose oil) have been used to treat everything from bipolar depression to skin problems. Some can even benefit us in weight-loss programs (Lemmon's Oil is a fine example).
The terms 'omega-3' and 'omega-6' are technical terms having to do with the last occurrence of a carbon double bond in the fatty acid chain ('omega' means 'last'). In general, when you see things like 'omega-3' on the label, it's a good sign. Fats are often described as being saturated, monounsaturated or polyunsaturated. Each has different properties.
In general, the monounsaturates (such as olive oil) are good for you, but again, processing and high heat can reverse their healthy benefits. You definitely need some saturated fats, but probably not more than 10 percent of your diet and, again, stay away from high heat if possible. Polyunsaturates (especially in the form of refined vegetable oils) can do a lot of mischief as a rule, yet the all-important omega-3s are technically a subgroup of the polys, so it can be confusing.
