This article is from the WebMD Feature Archive
Low-Fat Diet: Why Fat-Free Isn't Trouble Free
Supermarket shelves are full of "fat-free" products these days -- everything from cookies to bread, from juices (which didn't have fat in the first place) to half-and-half for your coffee. But if your aim is to create a low-fat diet to keep cholesterol levels down, "fat free" isn't a magic bullet.
In fact, health experts warn that "fat-free" foods may cause more problems than they purport to solve.
What's In A "Fat Free" Label?
The problem is not one of definition. Foods labeled "fat-free" really do have to be fat free. According to the Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), foods advertised as "fat free" must have less than 0.5 grams of fat per serving.
"Low-fat" foods, meanwhile, must have 3 grams of fat or less per serving. "Reduced-fat" foods have to have at least 25% less fat than their traditional counterparts. And "light" foods must have either 1/3 fewer calories or 50% less fat.
The problem is that sometimes "fat free" is also, well, taste free. And to make up for that lack of taste, food manufacturers tend to pour other ingredients -- especially sugar, flour, thickeners and salt -- into the products. That may boost the calorie content.
Further, despite manufacturers' efforts, "lots of them just aren't that appealing," says Christine Gerbstadt, MD, RD, a physician and registered dietician who lives and practices in Pennsylvania. "And that can lead to what we call 'volume eating' to make up for the lack of satisfaction."
Not Low Fat, But Good Fat
So if "fat free" isn't the ticket to a low-fat diet, what is? Recent studies have shown that the main health culprit may not be the amount of total fat in your diet.
In fact, the eight-year Women's Health Initiative Dietary Modification Trial, published in 2006, found that women who ate low-fat diets and those who didn't had nearly identical rates of heart attacks, strokes, and other forms of cardiovascular disease. Other studies have found no link between high-fat diets and other diseases, including cancer, and weight gain.
Instead, it's the type of fats you eat that seems to matter most.
"These days we talk about 'good fat' and 'bad fat,'" Gerbstadt says. "Keeping the amount of fat in your diet down to about 30% is still important, but what's most important is that you're eating the right kind of heart-healthy fats."
"Good" fats include both monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. Monounsaturated fats (like canola and olive oils) are those that have been found to lower the "bad cholesterol" (low-density lipoproteins or LDL) in the bloodstream and raise the amount of "good cholesterol" (high-density lipoproteins or HDL). LDL cholesterol has been linked to atherosclerosis and heart disease. HDL appears to actually clear the "bad" types of cholesterol from the blood. Polyunsaturated fats (as in fatty fish such as tuna and salmon) simply help lower LDL cholesterol.
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