Smart Start - Lesson 6



	U.S. food packaging that claims "low fat" means less than 3 grams of fat per serving.

MODERATION'S THE TICKET WHEN IT COMES TO FAT

Let's start by shattering a myth: Fat is utterly bad for you, you need no fat. FALSE! You need some fat in your diet, just not in excess. Certain foods, or overeating certain foods, can land you in too much fat if you're not careful. Fast food scores high here (lots of calories, too!), so caveat emptor (FYI, that's Latin for "buyer beware").

Fat supports your teen growth and development. It provides essential fatty acids (not a bad thing, despite the name!) that your body can't make on its own. It helps you absorb certain vitamins (A, D, E, K). It improves the taste of food. It supplies needed oils to skin and hair. And when it's chilly out there, it acts as a great insulator. So yeah, fat can be phat, but just watch overdoing it, especially when hitting the fast/fat-food wagon.

Here's the scoop on different fats and what they do. Dig in!

Saturated

Found in animals
Solid at room temperature
Clogs arteries and veins
Definitely a type of fat that needs to be limited in your diet!

Unsaturated

Liquid at room temperature
Helps reduce risk of heart disease

Trans Fat

Clogs arteries
Found in margarine and other foods made with partially hydrogenated oils

When People Eat Fast Food

Lunch -- 44 percent
Morning snack -- 40 percent
Afternoon snack -- 31 percent
Dinner -- 19 percent
Evening snack -- 14 percent
Breakfast -- 12 percent

The average person over 12 eats fast food an average of 9.2 times monthly -- think about the potential danger of getting too much fat from all those meals and snacks!

This hands-on exercise will give you a clear picture of a few fast-food favorites and what kind of fat we're talking about. All you'll need is a tub of shortening (raid the pantry), a spatula and a measuring spoon, a calculator, paper towels (to keep from getting things messy) and three plastic bags. (If you don't have shortening or time to do this exercise, do the math part below to get an idea of how many teaspoons, or tablespoons, we're talking about when it come to fast food and fat content.)

With the three fast-food selections below, measure out shortening (to represent fat) and plop it into a plastic bag. Put them in a row so you know which is which.

Example: Let's say you've got an item with 12 grams of fat. To figure out how many teaspoons of shortening (fat) you'll need, divide the grams, 12 in this case, by 4 (the number of grams of fat to represent 1 teaspoon). The answer is 3 teaspoons, so plop that amount into the plastic bag. You can also divide the tablespoons answer number by 3 (the number of teaspoons in a tablespoon) to use your tablespoon to dole out the shortening more quickly. In this case, 3 divided by 3 is 1, so you just need 1 tablespoon for the bag. Go ahead and round up or down to make things easier.

DRIVE-THRU DECISIONS

Surprised by the numbers and/or bags you've filled from above? Can you believe that the Jr Hamburger seems to come from another fast-food planet than the salad or Whopper? When you consider you shouldn't (as a teen) eat more than 80 grams of fat per day, you can see that Whopper's already about got you maxed out, while the Jr gives you plenty of room to play. And salads can be deceptive, especially if you slather on the dressing or have extra "goodies" in there like crispy bacon or a crunchy taco shell.

So, yeah, fat can be phat, but easy does it. And if you haven't visited Health Trek's related Fast Food for Thought, do it now and get lots more fast-food info that can help you make smart decisions next time you're hungry and hit the drive-thru.

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