Making sense of Fats on Nutrition labels

A good guide for the astute label reader is this – the Calories from Fat should be less than 1/3 the total number of Calories per serving.  That means that if an item has 100 Calories per serving, there should be 30 or fewer Calories from Fat per serving.

Now, beneath the Total Fat line, the label will further detail the number of grams of Saturated Fats, Unsaturated Fats, and Trans Fats. 

Saturated Fats come from high fat animal products, such as cheese, whole milk, butter, fatty meats, lard etc.  Avoid Saturated Fats as these can lead to high blood cholesterol and heart disease.

Unsaturated (mono- and poly-) Fats are found in vegetable oils, olives, most nuts, avocados, and fatty fish.  These fats are good for your body in moderation as they are necessary for gland health, brain cell function and digestion.

Trans Fats are found in Hydrogenated Oils, and you know how I feel about those – see entry dated 04/03/09.