Why you need monounsaturated fatty acids

While you want to stay away from bad fat, monounsaturated fats are actually something your body needs! Read on to find out what the health benefits are and how to make sure you're getting enough.

The less fat you eat, the better, right? Not necessarily. Your body can't make some types of fatty acids — the building blocks of fat — that are essential to good health. That's why your diet should contain good fats, like monounsaturated fatty acids, found mainly in plant foods like olives, nuts, seeds, and avocados. While you can live without eating monounsaturated fats, mounting research suggests that you may not live as long or as well as people who do enjoy plenty of these good fats. Olive and canola oils are excellent sources. Olive oil, in particular, is a monounsaturated fatty acid superstar, as are many nuts, including peanuts.

• Alzheimer's disease
• Certain forms of cancer
• Diabetes
• Gallstones
• Heart disease and heart attack

The Lyon Diet Heart Study found that those study subjects who ate plenty of olive oil and fish (a source of omega-3 fatty acids) cut their risk of cancer by 61 per cent. Although many questions remain about the link between diet and cancer, intriguing evidence suggests that healthy fats may protect against some forms of the disease. More recently, researchers at Northwestern University in Chicago discovered that oleic acid, the main form of monounsaturated fat in olive oil, reduces activity of a gene that causes an aggressive form of breast cancer by 46 per cent.

• Macadamia nuts
• Hazelnuts
• Pecans
• Olive oil
• Almonds
• Canola oil
• Dry-roasted cashew nuts
• Oil-roasted peanuts, salted
• Dry-roasted peanuts, salted
• Peanut oil
• Pine nuts, dried
• Creamy peanut butter
• Hass avocado
• Florida avocado

• Keep cooking oil from going rancid by keeping it in a dark, dry cupboard or a cabinet that isn't next to the stove. Use it within one year of opening for the best taste and the most nutrients.
• Add slices of avocado to your sandwich instead of cheese to decrease saturated fat and boost monounsaturated fat.
• Nuts are high in calories, so stick to eating a small handful at a time. Eat even fewer macadamia nuts, which are incredibly caloric.