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The Health of It All...
The health of it all – Which Fats are Which?
The fats we eat are made of fatty acids. These are simply long chain of carbon atoms with each carbon atom on the chain having two hydrogen atoms hanging off of either side.
Three fatty acid chains are attached to a fourth molecule called glycerol (this sort of looks like a flag pole with three pennants streaming off of it).
Fats are considered to be saturated when every carbon atom has two hydrogen atoms hanging off of it.
Some fats have fewer hydrogen atoms and are, as a result, less saturated than others. When there are a single pair of hydrogen atoms missing the fat is called monounsaturated and when more than one pair is missing it is known as polyunsaturated.
When the polyunsaturated fat is kinked in a particular way it is known as a trans-fatty acid. Polyunsaturated fats that are high in trans-fatty acids have been shown to be as bad for you as saturated fats.
When the hydrogen atoms are missing at the third place from the end of the chain the fatty acid is known as an Omega-3 fatty acid. These types of fats are found in high concentrations in many fish and have been shown to actually prevent heart disease.
