How Can I Eat Less Fat

Think about your top five high-fat foods and the plan you made to “trim the fat.”

Were you able to come up with ideas to make changes?

Three easy ways to help start trimming the fat include:

1. Eat high-fat foods less often.

2. Eat smaller amounts of high-fat foods.

3. Eat foods that are lower in fat.

When adding fat into your diet, remember, a little goes a long way!

Just a teaspoon of butter or oil has 45 calories!

Think about how many calories you can save by reducing fat intake.

Here are some tips for cutting fat while keeping the flavors we all love!

1. Ask for all your toppings to be on the side when you go out to eat!

2. At restaurants, ask for lower-fat options as alternatives.

For example, choose salsa, mustard, or ketchup instead of butter or oil.

When choosing a salad ask for the dressing to be served on the side and only use a portion of it.

You also might consider trying fat free or reduced fat dressing, flavored vinegar, or lemon juice to dress your salad.

3. At home, dress your own salad.

Commercial salad dressings are often high in saturated fat or made with trans fat oils.

Create your own healthy dressings with high-quality olive oil, flaxseed oil, or sesame oil.

4. Choose lean meat, poultry, and seafood and trim any excess fat!

5. When cooking, choose non-stick cooking spray instead of butter, margarine, or oil.

Sauté food in a small amount of chicken broth or healthier fat options such as olive or canola oil.

6. Bake, roast, grill, steam, poach or pan sauté instead of frying and then try to use canola or vegetable oils instead of lard or shortening for baking.

7. When baking in the oven, use a rack to raise food up off the bottom of the pan to allow the fat to drip away.

8. Use lean ham or broth to season vegetables instead of a ham hock or fatback.

9. Eat more avocados. Try them in sandwiches or salads or make guacamole.

Along with being loaded with heart- and brain-healthy fats, they make for a filling and satisfying meal.

10. Reach for the nuts. You can also add nuts to vegetable dishes or use them instead of breadcrumbs on chicken or fish.

11. Snack on olives. Olives are high in healthy monounsaturated fats.

But unlike most other high-fat foods, they make for a low-calorie snack when eaten on their own. Try them plain or make a tapenade for dipping.

12. Taste your food before adding butter or margarine.

If needed, choose fruit butter or low-sugar spreadable fruit.