Cholesterol
Cholesterol is found only in animal foods but the body can make it from other fatnutrients. We need some cholesterol for our bodies to grow and function properly.
There are two kinds of cholesterol in the blood.
• High levels of ‘good’ cholesterol (high-density lipoprotein) seem to reduce the risk of heart disease. Eating foods containing mainly unsaturated fatty acids tends to increase the level of good cholesterol.
• High levels of ‘bad’ cholesterol (low-density lipoprotein) seem to increase the risk of heart disease. Eating foods containing mainly saturated fats tends to increase the level of bad cholesterol.
Fat needs
Fat needs are expressed as ‘percent of total energy needs’ (see Appendix 2). The percent of total energy that should come from fat in a healthy balanced diet is:
• 30-40 percent for children on complementary feeding and up to the age of two years;
• 15-30 percent for older children and most adults; for active adults up to 35 percent is acceptable;
• At least 20 percent up to 30 percent for women of reproductive age (15-45 years).
This means the diet of a woman of reproductive age who needs approximately 2 400 kcal/day should contain about 480-720 kcal from fat or oil. This is equivalent to 53-80 g of pure oil (or about 11-16 level teaspoons). Part of the fat in a diet is not added in the kitchen at home but is ‘hidden’ in foods such as meat, milk, groundnuts and oilseeds as well as fried foods.