What Are the Differences Between Saturated & Unsaturated Fats?

The word fat has gained a negative reputation in our culture today. While too much fat in anyone's diet is a bad thing, we all need some fat to remain healthy. There are two kinds of fat, saturated and unsaturated. The problem for many people is knowing which fat is good for you, knowing where to find it, and how to avoid the bad fat.

Definition

• Saturated and unsaturated fats are differentiated by their state at room temperature. Saturated fats are solid, while unsaturated fats are liquid. An example of this is butter (saturated) and olive oil (unsaturated).

Composition

• There are also differences in the chemical composition of saturated and unsaturated fat. For fat to be saturated, only single bonds between the fat's carbon atoms must exist, then hydrogen atoms cling to the carbon atoms. For a fat to be considered unsaturated, there must be two bonds between the carbon atoms and the entire molecule takes in hydrogen atoms. If there is one double bond in a unsaturated fat, it is known as mono-unsaturated fat. If there is more than one, it is considered poly-unsaturated fat.

Food Sources

• Saturated fats come from animals products such as meat, cheese and butter. Unsaturated fats come mainly from plant sources such as avocados, olive oil and soybeans. Some foods, such as chicken, contain both types of fats.

Health Consequences

• A healthy diet contains everything in moderation. However, saturated fats are known to raise levels of cholesterol and are linked to coronary heart disease. Therefore, the American Heart Association recommends that a healthy diet should contain no more than seven percent of calories from saturated fats. Unsaturated fats are considered much healthier and are known to lower levels of High Density Lipoproteins, which lower cholesterol levels. Although unsaturated fats are healthier, a diet should not include more than 30 percent of daily calories from this type of fat.