All Fats are Bad: Myth or Fact?

A customer visited one of our retail spaces recently with a curiosity and a question that sparked a desire for them to learn and us to educate.

“Some of your meals are high in fat,” they said. “How in the world is a high amount of fat like that healthy?”

This curiosity created the idea to take this question and turn it into an opportunity to debunk the myth of fats: all fats are bad.

Typically when someone hears fat and food in the same sentence, they run for the hills, especially in the world of diets, health, and wellness. However, fat is a key component to hormone balance, brainpower, staying full, and an overall healthy diet. 

Good fats do exist, examples being monounsaturated fats like nuts, avocados, and flax seeds (which also help increase the "good cholesterol" HDL). Unfortunately, bad fats exist as well, examples being saturated fats found in meat and dairy products (choosing organic, or local meat options is best). Trans fats are the final category of fats and are considered “killer fats,” found primarily in processed foods as well as some meat and dairy products. However, whenever we approach our recipes, new and old, we keep these good versus bad fats in mind. By keeping saturated fats as low as we can and trans fat close to nonexistent, we ensure the healthiest meal we can provide without sneaking in any products that will hurt your progress or harm your body. Also, it's important to point out that our brains are made mostly of water and fat, thus depriving your body of healthy fats can be detrimental to your brain health. 

Let's take some of our meals for example! One of our most popular meals, Zesty Chicken, contains 20 grams of fat. However, only 3.5 grams are saturated fat and there are 0 grams of Trans Fat. Taking all of that into consideration, 16.5 grams of fat are left that are not saturated or trans. Therefore, these leftover grams of fats are full of all the healthy fats that are good for you! 

Here are a few other examples: 

Our performance version of our Korean Steak Fry has a total of 23 grams of fat with 6 grams of saturated fat and 0.5 grams of trans fat. With what we have learned about fats, we can understand that the quantity of fat in trans and saturated fat are conducive to the high quality and quantity of our steak, considering that trans and saturated fats can be found in meat. 

Our Cilantro Lime Salmon everyday meal contains 18 grams of fat with 3.5 grams of saturated fat and 0 grams of trans fat. That leaves a total of 14.5 grams left that are good fats ensuring a healthy, filling, and powerful meal. 

Fat is not always a bad part of a meal! Here is a list of healthy fats we add into our meals and how they are a key component to a healthy diet. 

• Fish
• Fatty fish such as salmon, are loaded with Omega-3 fatty acids, high in protein, and plenty of Vitamin D
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Olive Oil contains essential vitamins such as E and K and is loaded with antioxidants. 
• Full-Fat Yogurt
• Full-fat yogurt, like the yogurt we make ourselves, is rich in probiotics which ensure a healthy and happy gut. 
• Cheese
• Cheese is incredibly nutritious with a strong source of calcium, vitamin B12, and a rich source of protein.

Taking all of this into account, it is clear that not all fats are bad. Actually, fats are a key component to fully functioning and enjoying a healthy lifestyle! Next time you come into our space and see a high count of fat, take a look at the nutrition facts and ingredient labels on all of our meals with your new found knowledge. You will come to see how our meals are rich in good, healing fats and real food, clean ingredients.