Most fats are derived from animals or vegetable food sources. All of its share a common feature in that they are made of carbon and hydrogen with a molecule of oxygen. Normally dietary fats have a negative reputation since their link to heart disease and cancer.
In some cases their negative reputation is justified, although the role of dietary fat in health and disease is very complicated.
Certain fats have required for proper growth and maintenance of health, while their absence can cause specific deficiency disease.
Too much certain kind of fats can increase the risk of chronic and serious diseases. The person who chooses a diet too high in saturated fats or trans fat invites heart and artery disease, the number one killer of adults in United States and Canada.
Obesity carries serious risks to health, and the high energy density of fatty foods makes it easy for people to exceed their energy needs and so gain unneeded weight.
High-fat diets are indirectly related to type 2 diabetes mellitus and hypertension. Both disorders may stress the circulatory system; a high dietary fat intake may further limit the functioning of circulatory system through the potential development of atherosclerosis.
The most important lipids in the food supply are triglycerides and cholesterol, which are chemically unrelated substances except for the fact that they do not dissolve in water.
Triglycerides are the lipids commonly known as fat, oil, grease, shortening, lard, tallow, suet, ghee, and a variety of other names.
Many triglycerides eaten in foods are transported to the fat depots – muscles, breasts, the insulating fat layer under the skin and others – where they are stored by the body’s fat cell for later use.
When a person’s body starts to run out of available fuel from food it begins to retrieve this stored fat to use for energy.
Cholesterol is another dietary lipid but it is found only in animal products - cholesterol does not exists in the plant kingdom.
Cholesterol is made in the body in adequate amounts and is therefore not considered an essential nutrient. Liver manufacturers cholesterol, manages their release into the bloodstream and collects them back form the blood stream.
Unlike triglycerides, cholesterol provides no energy but it is critical structure component of every cell in the body.
Dietary cholesterol has been studied primarily with respect to intestinal cancer. Although the data inconsistent, most points to a possible relationship between dietary cholesterols and colon tumor development.
Fats in Human Diet
