Health Benefits of Sweets & Fats
Because oils contain these essential fatty acids, there is an allowance for oils in the MyPyramid food guide.
Oils are the major source of fatty acids that are necessary for health—called “essential fatty acids.”
While consuming some oil is needed for health, oils still contain calories. In fact, oils and solid fats both contain about 120 calories per tablespoon. Therefore, the amount of oil consumed needs to be limited to balance total calorie intake.
In addition to vegetable oils, such as olive, canola and soybean oils, a number of foods are naturally high in oils, like:
- nuts
- olives
- oily fish
- avocados
Good News About Sweets
Chocolate is a favorite sweet treat that also has health benefits. It contains flavonoids, which act as antioxidants. Antioxidants protect the body from aging caused by free radicals, which can cause damage that leads to heart disease.
While chocolate contains ingredients beneficial to health, it does not mean
you should overeat chocolate. Chocolate bars and candies are often high in
fat, sugar and calories. Moderation is always the key and dark chocolate conveys
more benefits than milk chocolate!
Sweet and fats are a functional food because they can contribute to optimum health due to the health promoting phytochemicals they may contain – many of which are still being identified.