With a current trend for healthy lifestyle and eating habits, many people think that eliminating fats from their diets is essential for reducing their chances of becoming ill and over-weight. But the truth is too little fat in a diet can be as dangerous as too much fat. So let us break free from all these "low-fat and skimmed means good" myths by learning some important facts about this nutrient.

Fats are our health they are important components of every cell membrane in our bodies. Every new cell that is created in us needs some fat to survive and function properly. Also, without fats we would never be able to use vitamins A, D, E and K in our organism, because they can only be consumed by our digestive system when they are dissolved in fat. For that reason there is almost no point eating raw carrots your body will not get any vitamin A from them. But if you cook carrots with a little bit of oil instead, the health benefits will be much greater.

Fats are our protection they save our bodies from freezing in low temperatures. They also defend our organs from physical injuries, working as a "cushion" and softening the blows.

And finally, fats are our beauty! They keep our skin soft and radiant, and they nourish our scalp and hair. So many women enjoy the way their face feels after applying moisturizing cream, or after treating themselves to a nourishing mask. And many women know the benefits of using oils for skincare. What some of them don't realize is that fats we eat are doing the same work from the inside and that sometimes the problem of dry skin is a problem of low level of fats in the body.

So the answer to the question "are there healthy fats?" is a definite "yes"! You see, the key of every healthy diet is balance, not lack of fats or any other nutrient. What is more important though is where these nutrients come from! That makes a difference to our health. If you receive your fats mostly from olive oil, nuts, fish, or any other natural product you are fine.

The dangerous fats are all hidden in highly-processed foods, like soup cups, margarine, butter and shortenings, as well as foods that were made using them, like donuts for example. These bad fats are called trans fats, or trans fatty acids and they can be responsible for coronary heart disease, infertility, obesity and diabetes.

So what you have to do is not avoid fats altogether, but rather avoid these highly-processed foods. Remember what all nutritionists say - fats have to make up to, but no more than, 30% of your total daily menu. Just be wise when choosing the source.

Learn more about this author, Pola Kay.
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