Posted by kathryn in Fat

As I blogged about yesterday, no matter what you eat the majority of your food is made up of protein, fats, carbohydrates, water and fibre. These are the bulk of our diets. Over the last couple of weeks I’ve listed fifteen foods and asked which of them contain these five components. To finish off this series, I thought I’d list them again and give all the results together. h3. Bread * White bread is 9% protein, 2.5 % fat, 47 …

Read more 30 April, 2008

Posted by kathryn in Fat

Over the last couple of weeks I’ve posted a series of questions on Limes & Lycopene. Given a list of foods – do you know which contain fat, fibre, protein, carbohydrates and water? How did you go in the quiz? I posted the questions, because I find it’s common for foods to be discussed in terms of single nutrients. Rice is referred to as a carbohydrate, meat is a protein, butter is a fat. Each food is put in its …

Read more 29 April, 2008

Posted by kathryn in Fat

Today I want to know if any of these foods contain fat? Don’t worry there is a point to all this – I’m not just trying to torture you with questions! # bread # milk # pumpkin # lamb # tofu # broccoli # apples # olive oil # butter # salmon # bananas # rice # hazelnuts # chickpeas # sultanas Leave your thoughts in the comments below and I’ll post the answers tomorrow. “Photograph by Maproom System …

Read more 23 April, 2008

Posted by kathryn in Fat

Food manufacturers use trans fats because they’re cheap and easy. Fats used to be an expensive ingredient. However through hydrogenation, cheap poly-unsaturated vegetable oils can be converted into a semi-solid form. This product is much more useful to food manufacturers. Hydrogenation changes the physical properties of the fat: * hydrogenated fats have a longer shelf-life * they can be re-used without spoiling * they’re cheaper to transport * hydrogenated fats mix well with flour, to make better biscuits and …

Read more 31 October, 2007

Posted by kathryn in Fat

There are some foods which seem surrounded in confusion, myths and half-truths. Soy is one of these and I’ve seen it labelled as toxic, birth control for babies and likely to turn you gay. I’ve already written some posts about the confusion over soy. Another food surrounded by dodgy claims is canola and Melanie of Dietriffic has written a myth-busting post: is canola oil healthy? One of the most persistent charges against canola states it was first produced by genetic …

Read more 02 October, 2007

Posted by kathryn in Fat

Next question is from Lucy – how to get Omega 3s in a completely vegetarian diet? The Omega 3 essential fatty acids are very important to our health. While some fish are high in Omega 3s there are a number of other foods that contain these lovely nutrients. If you want to avoid fish, then the main other sources of Omega 3s are: * flaxseeds * nuts, especially walnuts, hazelnuts and brazil nuts * soybeans * green vegies There’s some …

Read more 19 July, 2007

Posted by kathryn in Fat

I stuffed up during this week’s Q&A Thursday. I was asked what would happen if you lived on pasta – no sauce, no cheese, just pasta alone. In my answer I stated, this diet would leave you malnourished and would ultimately lead to death. I also said that, along with vitamin and mineral deficiencies, the individual would suffer from a protein deficiency . It’s this bit I’m wrong on. As one reader pointed out, pasta does contain some protein, enough …

Read more 30 June, 2007

Posted by kathryn in Fat

A reader asks: bq. Are you able to tell me what margarines are trans fat free? I have an intolerance to dairy products, so are there any without milk products in them, or at least only a very small amount. The one I use (Nuttelex) says it is virtually TFA free, whatever that means. I’ve blogged about trans fats quite a lot before and some basic posts are: what’s the problem, what foods contain trans fats and a reality check. ...

Read more 21 June, 2007

Posted by kathryn in Fat

Before getting on to this week’s questions, I have to clear up one issue from last week. Nick asked about coconut oil: bq. Something I’ve been somewhat confused about is the health effects of saturated fat in coconut oil. Coconut oil is very high in saturated fat, but I’ve read things that suggest there are mitigating factors that somehow prevent this particular saturated fat from significantly raising one’s LDL cholesterol, like butter would for example. Is this really the case? ...

Read more 21 June, 2007

Posted by kathryn in Fat

Paul has asked about nuts: bq. I do like snacking on nuts and I probably like them all. From a nutritional viewpoint, (assuming non salted and non toasted/dressed are best) which varieties are particularly beneficial? Is a selection better than one single type? Nuts are a wonderful, wonderful food. They’re high in protein (15 – 25%) and also contain useful amounts of fibre, potassium, magnesium, zinc, vitamin E, along with some B vitamins and antioxidants. Nuts are also high …

Read more 14 June, 2007

Posted by kathryn in Fat

The latest issue of Wellbeing magazine is out, complete with my article on trans fatty acids. There’s such a long lead time with Wellbeing, I was writing this article back in December. If you want to know more about trans fats, then take a look at the posts listed below and for the full story grab a copy of the latest Wellbeing magazine. * Trans fats: what’s the problem * Trans fats: what foods contain them * “Trans fats: a …

Read more 11 May, 2007

Posted by kathryn in Fat

I’ve blogged about trans fats before – why they’re bad for us , what foods contain them and how much of a problem they are in Australia . Most Australians don’t eat anywhere near as many trans fats as the US and Canada, however, one of our big sources is fast food. This week the Assistant Health Minister, Chris Pyne, has met with the fast food industry to discuss the fat content of their foods. Hungry Jack’s, Krispy Kreme, KFC …

Read more 14 March, 2007

Posted by kathryn in Fat

As if to illustrate my point exactly, slap bang in the middle of the back page of today’s Herald , is this headline “Fair Dunkin’! Guilt-Free Doughnuts” : bq. Is this the future of indulgence? Our picture shows a box of doughnuts from the Doughnut Plant, on New York’s Lower East Side. They look evil, but are trans-fat-free and all natural. They may well be trans fat free, but THEY’RE STILL DOUGHNUTS . Which means they’re still packed full of …

Read more 17 January, 2007

Posted by kathryn in Fat

Before Christmas I was blogging about trans fatty acids – why they’re bad for us and what foods contain them. However, in all this concern about trans fats, it’s important we don’t lose sight of the overall picture. Yes, trans fats are bad for us, but so are saturated fats. Trans fats are worse, but we still have to watch and limit our intake of saturates. h3. How much trans fats do we eat? Why am I saying this? The …

Read more 17 January, 2007

Posted by kathryn in Fat

Omega 3 essential fatty acids are very important during pregnancy for the healthy development of the bub’s central nervous system. Omega 3s can be found in fish, nuts (walnuts are especially high), linseeds, Omega 3 eggs, canola oil, soy and some margarines. In recent years, concern that some fish may contain mercury levels harmful to the baby, has led to much confusion. While Omega 3s help the development of the central nervous system, mercury actually impairs this development and functioning, ...

Read more 15 January, 2007

Posted by kathryn in Fat

Trans fats are definitely bad for us, but what foods contain them? They’re mainly found in processed foods that contain partially hydrogenated vegetable fats: * deep fried fast foods * manufactured biscuits, pastries and cakes * mass produced sausage rolls, meat pies * croissants * some margarines. Trans fat rich foods are found in the supermarket, fast food outlets, pub and some bakeries. In 2005 Choice magazine tested more than 50 processed foodstuffs and found about a third contained trans …

Read more 13 December, 2006

Posted by kathryn in Fat

In the last week, news has come through that trans fats have been banned from restaurants and food outlets in New York. While, Denmark has had a total ban on high levels of trans fats, for quite some time. In the spectrum of good fats through to bad fats, trans fats are being categorised as the REALLY bad fat. h3. What are trans fats? While trans fats do occur naturally in some foods, the vast majority are in processed foods. ...

Read more 11 December, 2006

Posted by kathryn in Fat

A few days of light posting, as I’m starting at my new clinic and have much to do. Will mostly be directing you towards news stories. I’m writing an article on trans fats, so there will be more about them over the next week, but in the meantime, New York has become the first city to ban trans fats in its restaurants and food outlets. More info in today’s Herald . For a beginner’s guide to trans fats, take a …

Read more 07 December, 2006

Posted by kathryn in Fat

Through a variety of circumstances and shopping errors I’ve ended up with over three dozen eggs in the house. They’re all lovely fresh and organic, but Richard is away and I’m thinking that’s a LOT of eggs to get though by myself. I HATE wasting food, so expect a few egg recipe posts over the next couple of weeks! Fortunately I’m a great admirer of the egg, they’re such a perfect little nutrition pack, easy to use and highly adaptable. ...

Read more 08 September, 2006

Posted by kathryn in Fat

While trying to negotiate the issue of not eating fish caught in an unsustainable way, you can add in the question of which fish contain the most Omega 3 essential fatty acids. Choice have a list in their article on frozen fish. There are also easy cooking tips here . Oh yes and the frozen fish article concludes that most brands use el-cheapo fish and are seriously over-priced, so don’t waste your money.

Read more 19 August, 2006

Posted by kathryn in Fat

I read this week that one Krispy Kreme doughnut contains 20% of the recommended daily intake of kilojoules. Let me say that again, one little doughnut from Krispy Kreme, is the equivalent of 20%, ie one-fifth, of all of the energy you need to eat in one day. One original glazed Krispy Kreme contains 12g of fat and 835kJ, which is a lot, but not quite as extreme as the chocolate iced cream filled doughnut, which has 21g of fat …

Read more 04 August, 2006

Posted by kathryn in Fat

We eat food for many reasons: to keep us alive; for energy; for comfort and reassurance; as part of interacting with friends and family; because we enjoy it. However we also eat food because it provides us with nutrients. The old adage ‘we are what we eat’ is true, food supplies us with the building blocks that make up our bodies, as well as the fuel to run it and the ability to make the enzymes that catalyse the biochemical …

Read more 17 June, 2006