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A. When you're constantly warned about the dangers of eating too much fat, you'd be inclined to think that all fats are bad - they aren't. In fact, you need to have fat in your diet.
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Q. Why
A. Well, you need it to carry the fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, betacarotene, E and K) around your body. And some essential fats are vital for good health. Unfortunately, the typical UK diet contains far too much of the wrong kind of fat.
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Q. Which are good and bad fats
A. There are three kinds of fat: saturated, which comes mainly from meat and dairy products; and monounsaturated and polyunsaturated which come mainly from fish, nuts, seeds and vegetables.
You don't need saturated or monounsaturated fats for health - although your body can use them as energy, but we couldn't survive without the essential fatty acids called omega-6 and omega-3, which are found in polyunsaturated fat.
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Q. What do these essential fats do
A. Omega-6 and omega-3 are used to make cell membranes, brain tissue and prostaglandins - hormone-like substances that regulate blood pressure, cholesterol levels, sex hormones, fertility, allergies, immune function and more.
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You can only get these essential fats from food, but they are easily damaged by processing and frying, so they can be hard to find in a modern diet.
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Q. How can you make sure you're getting enough
A. Nutritionists believe that getting the right balance of these fats is important. We need about four times as much omega-6 fat as omega-3 fat, but a typical Western diet contains about 20 times as much. So most people need to up their omega-3 intake.
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Q. How can I do that
A. Eat two portions of oily fish a week - or take an omega-3 or fish oil supplement. You can also swap sunflower oil for rapeseed and soya oils, which have a good balance of omega-6 and omega-3 fats.
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Q. Are there any fat 'baddies'
A. Yes, saturated fat and trans fat.
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By Sheena Miller