FATS

The fats and oils in the foods you eat are made up of individual molecules called fatty acids. Your body needs some fats; in fact, they should comprise about 30 percent of the calories you take in daily. Fats are important for lubrication of body surfaces, formation of hormones, energy storage, and insulation from cold. Limited amounts of fat help protect internal organs, and fats also carry the fat-soluble vitamins that are necessary components of the membranes that surround all the cells in your body.

But not all fats are created equal. Some are very good for you, whereas others are bad for your health:

Saturated fats: These fats are found mostly in animal products like red fatty meats, eggs, and dairy products. They're solid at room temperature. Coconut and other tropical oils also contain large amounts of saturated fat. Eating saturated fats causes your level of cholesterol (a type of blood fat) to go up and promotes inflammation. Diets rich in saturated fats are associated with both an increased risk of heart disease and an increased risk of some cancers. Our superfoods are all low in saturated fats.
Keep your consumption of high-fat red meats to only two or three meals per week. Choose more fish, lean poultry, legumes, nuts, and seeds.
Trans-fats: Most trans-fats are created by forcing hydrogen into vegetable oils to make them more solid. Some stick margarines, for example, undergo this process. (Dairy products have a natural trans-fat, but it doesn’t seem to be as harmful as the artificial kind.) The process, called partial hydrogenation, alters the structure of the fatty acids to look more like saturated fats. Unfortunately, trans-fats are worse for your health than saturated fats, and you should avoid them whenever possible. Trans-fats are most commonly found in processed snack foods, oils that are used for deep frying, and pastries, as well as some brands of margarine. The superfoods don’t have any trans-fats.
Read the labels on packaged foods to be sure they don't contain any trans-fats.
Monounsaturated fats: These fatty acids are found in abundance in some plants. Olive oil is the best known example, but canola oil, peanuts, and avocados also contain some monounsaturated fatty acids. Monounsaturated fats are liquid at room temperature and are good for you. Eating monounsaturated fats in place of saturated fats has been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease. Monounsaturated fats lower your cholesterol, reduce inflammation, keep your blood vessels healthy, and may reduce your risk of some cancers. Many of the superfoods contain large amounts of monounsaturated fats.
Choose monounsaturated fats often — every day if possible. Use olive oil for cooking and as a salad dressing.
Polyunsaturated fats: These fats are liquid at room temperature and are abundant in plant oils and fish. There are two types of polyunsaturated fats: omega-3 fatty acids (found in fish, flax seeds, and chia seeds) and omega-6 fatty acids (found in most vegetable and seed oils). Both of these fatty acids are important for good health. They're called essential fatty acids because you have to get them from your diet — your body can't manufacture them from other fats.
There's one problem with polyunsaturated fats, though. Most people get plenty of the omega-6 fatty acids in their diet; in fact, most people get too many because vegetable oils are common in many foods. The opposite is true for the omega-3 fatty acids — most people are deficient. Eating too many of the omega-6s and too few of the omega-3s leads to an imbalance that promotes inflammation in the body. Eating the right amount, about a 4 to 1 ratio of omega-6s to omega-3s, helps to reduce inflammation and improve your health.
Many of our superfoods are rich in omega-3 fatty acids, especially our fish, flax and pumpkin seeds, and chia seeds.