Adding Monounsaturates
 

My 'diet' is very low in fat. Most days I only get about 15-25% of my total calories from fat. I'm low in saturated fat, which is good, but some days I don't believe I get enough of the good fats, which are essential for many things. Although my cholesterol has come down since I've begun my lifestyle change, I need to 'up' my HDL and it's been shown that mono fats do exactly that.

I get poly fats because I eat fish and take fish oil every day, but I've noticed lately my mono fats are really low. I love peanuts and eat them quite often (they have to be the in-shell kind, lol) but I don't think it's enough. And I was wondering if adding a daily teaspoon of the Smart Balance Omega Plus spread would be a good idea. I know olive oil would be good too, but I don't really eat stuff every day that I can add the olive oil to. Except maybe when I have my salads. But I avoid oils most of the time and olive oil is much higher in calories than the Smart Balance. I need lowcal ways to increase my mono's.

Any comments?

I use a very little bit of olive oil. Having said that, I see no problem with 25% fats. Have a look at what the ladies who lift eat .... and the body for life site.

Originally Posted by SusanB:
I use a very little bit of olive oil. Having said that, I see no problem with 25% fats. Have a look at what the ladies who lift eat .... and the body for life site.

Well, it varies. Some days I get a total fat ratio of 25%, some days I barely hit 10%. And that's total.

I just think I need to up my mono's a little bit :)

Like avocados? If memory serves, they're a good source too.

Originally Posted by GreatBigMonsterMomma:
Like avocados? If memory serves, they're a good source too.

I absolutely adore avocado. But since they're extremely perishable (meaning you bust into one of those babies and it turns brown in a matter of minutes) I don't buy them that often because I don't want to eat a whole avocado in one sitting and saving the rest of it for future use is nearly impossible.

However, great suggestion because I do try and eat them when I can. Just not on a regular basis and I need to start adding good fats every day. Today for lunch I had some whole wheat pasta with a couple teaspoons of the Smart Balance spread and tomorrow I'm going to have some mashed cauliflower with my lunch and add another couple of teaspoons :)

with citrus juice (the sourer the better) & tight wrapping -- avocado will keep for about a day.

Tree nuts are also a good source of monounsaturated fats (walnuts are famous for having omega 3s too), as are some of the spreads like benecol. (just make sure you're not getting trans-fat laden margarines)

<b>Edit</b>: Was noshing on them for a snack when I noticed that Kettle Chips, too, are also pretty high monounsaturated fats (7 out of the 9g total fat per serving) - of course, that doesn't make it a health food by any stretch, but if you must satisfy that chip craving, might as well opt for one with healthier fats.

Originally Posted by AquaWarlock:
with citrus juice (the sourer the better) & tight wrapping -- avocado will keep for about a day.

Another way to keep an avocado from turning is to leave the pit in the half you're saving. It really does work. However, again, they don't keep quite long enough, so usually the only time I buy an avocado is when I'm using the whole thing for a recipe or something. Or sometimes I'll just sit and munch them. But I definitely can't eat the whole thing in one sitting, too many calories.

Originally Posted by AquaWarlock:
Tree nuts are also a good source of monounsaturated fats (walnuts are famous for having omega 3s too), as are some of the spreads like benecol. (just make sure you're not getting trans-fat laden margarines)

The only actual 'spread' I'll use is the Smart Balance. For butter flavor on everything else (toast, mashed potatoes, vegetables) I use the fat-free butter spray.

Originally Posted by AquaWarlock:
Was noshing on them for a snack when I noticed that Kettle Chips, too, are also pretty high monounsaturated fats (7 out of the 9g total fat per serving) - of course, that doesn't make it a health food by any stretch, but if you must satisfy that chip craving, might as well opt for one with healthier fats.

Yeah, I think that's because they're fried in peanut oil. Good old peanuts. Great for folate, vitamin E, fiber and monounsaturated fats. It's too damn bad they're so high in calories, I could eat peanuts every day :)

Thanks for the info!

I think Kettle Chips uses sunflower and safflower oils that are expeller-pressed to get more monos and less saturated fats -- I do know of some kettle-style chips that fry in olive or canola though (the 2 healthiest kinds, in terms of fat profiles at least)

And yea---I need to start buying Kettle Chips in 2 oz. bags (so at max I eat 300 calories worth)---way too easy to go out of control with the 5 oz.

If an avacado turns brown, that doesn't mean that it has gone 'bad'. It just means that it has oxidized. So add some citrus, leave in the pit, wrap tightly in plastic... and then when you make your next slice, pu the bwon side down on your crackers/toast/whatever and it should taste the same for a few days at least.
(Apples turn brown, too, but they don't 'go bad' after just one day!!)

If you have a foodsaver or seal a meal system, you can vacuum seal the unused portion of the avacado and it will stay fresh for a week or more.