Tomorrow I’m having my annual physical exam and blood tests, and while it’s probably a bit late to be worrying about my cholesterol, I do have a few remaining hours that could skew my numbers up or down. Last time I was tested I’d eaten something quite indulgent (and not in my usual diet) that blew up my score, and I definitely don’t want to do that again.
I’ve long wondered why saturated fat and cholesterol are listed separately on labels, cause doesn’t saturated fat cause cholesterol? Still, “straight” cholesterol (sounds like I’m mainlining it) seems infinitely worse. Turns out that’s not so.
According to the Heart Foundation, “Cholesterol in food (dietary cholesterol) has only a small effect on your blood cholesterol (our bodies produce quite a bit without any prompting), especially when compared with the much greater increase caused by saturated and trans fat in food. Choosing less unhealthy fat (saturated and trans fat) and more healthier fats is more important to your blood cholesterol.”
Both the hummus and the red hot blue chips I presently crave have zero cholesterol, so I’m safe on that score.
However, the American Heart Association notes that, “Eating saturated fat and trans fat raises your blood cholesterol level.” So with .5 grams saturated fat in two tablespoons of the hummus (and I suspect I’ve eaten that much before even checking the label), and 11 chips delivering another .5 grams, I’m already close to 6% of my daily allowance.
For adults who would benefit from lowering their LDL cholesterol (that’s me; I get plenty of exercise so my HDL, or happy cholesterol, is super happy), the American Heart Association recommends reducing saturated fat to no more than 5 to 6 percent of total calories. For someone eating 2,000 calories a day (more than I need to sustain me) that’s about 11 to 13 grams of saturated fat.
Here are their strongly recommended fat guidelines for healthy Americans over age 2:
- Get between 25 and 35 percent of your total daily calories as fats from foods like fish, nuts, and vegetable oils.
- Limit the amount of saturated fats you eat to less than 7 percent of your total daily calories. That means if you need about 2,000 calories a day, less than 140 calories (or 16 grams) should come from saturated fats.
- Limit the amount of trans fats to less than 1 percent of your total daily calories. That means if you need about 2,000 calories a day, less than 20 calories (or 2 grams) should come from trans fats. (I try to skip these altogether.)
- The majority of fats you eat should be monounsaturated or polyunsaturated.
I won’t have my test results for a few days, so fingers crossed. And I’ll put away the rest of the chips and hummus for another day when nobody’s watching. And when I can have ice cream for dessert.
