Monounsaturated fats

Fat is a major source of energy and helps human body absorb vitamins. It is also important for proper growth, and for keeping body healthy.

Monounsaturated fats – found mainly in certain vegetable and nut oil, including olive, peanut, and canola- have been shown to reduce total blood cholesterol without lowering levels of the good cholesterol, HDL. Indeed , some monounsaturated fats have been shown to raise HDL levels.

Most experts agree that it is best to limit fat consumption and to choose mostly monounsaturated fats, which increase need for saturated fat.

Like all dietary fats, monounsaturated fats provide calories and help the body absorb certain vitamins, cushion and insulate the body, and support many body processes. Monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) are chemically classified as fatty acids containing a single double bond (in contrast to polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) containing two or more double bonds and saturated fatty acids (SFA) without double bonds).
Monounsaturated fats

Polyunsaturated fats

Fat is a major source of energy and helps your body absorb vitamins. It is also important for proper growth, and for keeping you healthy. The main types of “healthy” fats are monounsaturated and polyunsaturated.

Chemically, polyunsaturated fats belong to the class of simple lipids, as they are fatty acids with two or more double bonds in cis configuration.

Linoleic acid (n-6) (LA) and alpha-linolenic acid (n-3) (LNA) are two of the main representative compounds, known as dietary essential fatty acids (EFA) because they prevent deficiency symptoms and cannot be synthesized by humans.

Essential fats play a role in many body processes, including immune and nervous system function, blood clotting, and blood pressure regulation.

Polyunsaturated fats – found mainly in vegetable oils like corn, sunflower, safflower and soybean. They also can be found in fish (such as herring, mackerel, salmon, trout, and tuna), mayonnaise and oil-based salad dressings
Polyunsaturated fats