Tuesday, February 23, 2010

50 Strategies to Decrease Fat Intake and Lose Weight.







A healthy body needs dietary fat, the key is to ensure that an individual eats the right amount. Too much dietary fat leads to increased risk of obesity, heart disease, diabetes and several forms of cancer.  Individuals not consuming enough dietary fat may be unable to absorb and use fat-soluble vitamins. A diet deficient in fat deprives the body of an essential component of hormones and other bio-chemicals, such as vitamin D and bile.  A fat-deficient diet can unhelpfully affect a child's growth.  Dietary fat is a fundamental component that sheaves nerve cells.  To little fat can affect the ability of these cells to fire off electrical messages.  An insufficient amount of fat in the diet can depose the body of a major source of energy. Restricting the amount of fat consumed reduces the feeling of satiety after eating. 


1. Avoid ordering items in restaurants that are fried, crispy, buttery, scalloped or cooked in their own gravies. READ MORE





2. Cut the amount of shortening and sugar used in recipes reducing in fat, without substantially affecting quality or taste.

3. Lower the amount of fat in your cooking by using unsaturated fats, rather than saturated fats.  Although saturated and unsaturated fats have the same number of calories, unsaturated fats reduce cholesterol levels in some people.

4. Avoid cream sauces, butter and cheese when eating pasta.


5. Buy leaner cuts of meat. The leanest cuts: of beef are round and sirloin; of pork, tenderloin and loin; of lamb, fore-shank and shank half

6. When ordering a taco salad, request a soft tortilla bowl rather than a fried one. If you make taco salads at home, buy fat-free tortillas.

7. Try sourdough, French bread, a bagel, whole wheat English muffins and pita bread to cut the amount of fat in your bread choices.

8. Decrease the fat content in packaged rice and pasta mixes by eliminating the oil, margarine or butter called for in the cooking instructions.

9. Purchase crackers and cookies in a reduced-fat or fat-free version. Saving 2 to 3 grams of fat per serving.

10. Eat dried fruit such as raisins, prunes, apricots and dates as a healthy, fat-free snack. Just keep the serving small (one-half cup).

11. When buying chicken and turkey, opt for white meat. Save another 5 grams of fat per 5-ounce serving by removing the skin.

12. Choose white meat fish, like cod, and flounder. Dark meat fish has more fat.

13. When buying hot dogs, limit your purchases to lower-fat or fat-free options. lower-fat franks = 4 grams of fat  regular hot dogs =11 to 13 grams.

14. Look for reduced-fat versions of peanut butter. The calorie content per teaspoon of peanut butter should be checked.

15. Choose low-fat or fat-free milk. Fat-free milk contains the least amount of fat.

16. Buy nonfat or low-fat yogurt. The fat content in nonfat and low-fat yogurt ranges from 0 to 4 grams of fat per serving.

17. Hard cheeses such as Parmesan and Romano in grated form are low in fat. They can be used as a substitute for shredded, full-fat cheeses

18. Use fruit butters such as apple, peach or pumpkin as spreads. Fruit butters are usually fat-free.

19. Use margarine made from unsaturated fats instead of butter. Choose a soft tub margarine with no trans-fatty acids.

20. Use stronger flavored oils such as extra virgin olive, hot chili and sesame to make salad dressings. Total amount of dietary fat may be reduced.

21. Reduce the amount of mayonnaise used for sandwiches and salads by adding low-fat spreads such as ketchup, mustard, salsas and pickle relish.

22. Save fat per cup in tuna salad. Instead of using oil-packed tuna and regular mayonnaise, use water-packed tuna and low-fat or fat-free mayonnaise.

23. When making a salad, dry the salad greens completely with a salad spinner or paper towels after washing them.

24. Leave the skin on poultry while cooking to keep the meat moist. Also reduce calories by substituting a low-fat or fat-free gravy for gravy.

25. Use jam, jelly or fresh fruit rather than butter and syrup on pancakes, waffles and French toast.

26. To prepare a meatloaf that is lower in fat, substitute ground turkey meat for ground beef, egg whites for whole eggs, add barbecue sauce or ketchup.

27. Reduce the amount of fat on a baked potato by using nonfat yogurt, nonfat sour cream or nonfat cottage cheese instead of regular sour cream or butter.

28. Reduce the amount of fat in a pizza by ordering a thin-crust pizza topped with fresh vegetables and reduced-fat cheese.

29. At fast food restaurants, order simple burgers, rather than anything that is designated as double, jumbo or super.

30. The best fats are canola, sunflower, safflower, corn, soy, olive and fish oils. Acceptable fats are peanut oil and fat from poultry and nuts.

31. Choose processed foods with no more than 3 grams of fat for every 100 calories.

32. Select fat-free and low-fat candies. While substantially lower in fat, these candies are not calorie-free. Try eating 10 to 12 chocolate-covered raisins or mints.

33. Try freshly baked breads and rolls. These items have more flavor and generally do not require butter or margarine to taste good.

34. Substitute low-fat foods for food that you usually eat. For breakfast, try oatmeal instead of a doughnut.

35. If you usually drink your coffee with half-and-half or cream, use evaporated or powdered skim milk.

36. When eating pie, save several grams of fat by eating fruit pie, such as apple or berry, rather than a cream pie.

37. Order lean meats on a sub sandwich with no cheese and extra lettuce, tomato, onion and green peppers.

38. Instead of a mayonnaise-based salad such as potato or coleslaw, make pasta salad with fresh vegetables and a fat-free dressing.

39. If you like to drink chocolate milk, make a lower-fat version by either combining skim milk and instant chocolate powder mix.

40. Cut the fat in, and add nutritional value to, frozen vegetables with cheese-flavored sauce by adding a cup of fresh vegetables to the package

41. When dining out, select the salad bar as a healthy option. Avoid high-fat mayonnaise-based salads such as potato, macaroni, tuna, egg and chicken.

42. When ordering Chinese food, avoid deep fried noodles, fried rice, dumplings, egg rolls and won tons.

43. Substitute evaporated skim milk in dessert recipes that in general use cream.

44. Instead of eating ice cream, eat fat-free/low-fat yogurt or ice cream.

45. Consider low-fat/nonfat dessert options like: flavored gelatin, rice pudding, tapioca, gingersnaps, vanilla wafers or frozen fruit bars.

46. If you drink an after-dinner liqueur, be sure it is not cream based.

47. Consider reduced-fat or nonfat snacks such as low-fat potato chips, pretzels, and rice cakes (no fat).

48. Eat raw vegetables for a low-fat nutritious snack. Use a low-fat/nonfat ranch salad dressing as a dip.

49. Eat air-popped popcorn and saving approx. 8 grams of fat pr 3-cup serving.

50. Order coffee with skim milk instead of whole milk.

Low-fat versions of foods are used by 67 percent, while non-fat alternatives are used by 41 percent of people surveyed. The challenging part of eating less fat lies in the steps to take to keep fat intake below the recommended 30 percent of the total calories consumed. 


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