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Nutrition: Choosing Healthy, Low-Fat Foods

Eating healthy foods doesn't mean losing flavor. You can choose and prepare low-fat foods that your family will enjoy by following the tips on this specific information about how much of your daily diet should come from each of the following food groups.

Whole-grain breads are low in fat; they're also high in fiber and complex carbohydrates. Choose these breads for sandwiches and as additions to meals.

Avoid rich bakery foods such as donuts, sweet rolls and muffins. These foods can contain more than 50% fat calories. Snacks such as angel food cake and gingersnap cookies can satisfy your sweet tooth without adding fat to your diet.

Hot and cold cereals are usually low in fat. But instant cereals with cream may contain high-fat oils or butterfat. Granola cereals may also contain high-fat oils and extra sugars.

Avoid fried snacks such as potato chips and tortilla chips. Try the low-fat or baked versions instead.

Fruits and vegetables are naturally low in fat. They add flavor and variety to your diet. They also contain fiber, vitamins and minerals.

Margarine, butter, mayonnaise and sour cream add fat to vegetables and fruits. Try using herbs and yogurt as seasonings instead.

Beef, Pork, Veal and Lamb
Baking, broiling and roasting are the healthiest ways to prepare meat. Lean cuts can be pan-broiled or stir-fried. Use either a nonstick pan or nonstick spray coating instead of oil.

Trim outside fat before cooking. Trim any inside, separable fat before eating. Select low-fat, lean cuts of meat. Lean beef and veal cuts have the word "loin" or "round" in their names. Lean pork cuts have the word "loin" or "leg" in their names.

Use herbs, spices, fresh vegetables and nonfat marinades to season meat. Avoid high-fat sauces and gravies.

Poultry
Baking, broiling and roasting are the healthiest ways to prepare poultry. Skinless poultry can be pan-broiled or stir-fried. Use either a nonstick pan or nonstick spray coating instead of oil.

Remove skin and visible fat before cooking. Chicken breasts are a good choice because they are low in fat. Use domestic goose and duck only once in a while because both are high in fat.

Fish
Poaching, steaming, baking and broiling are the healthiest ways to prepare fish. Fresh fish should have a clear color, a moist look, a clean smell and firm, springy flesh. If good-quality fresh fish isn't available, buy frozen fish.

Most seafood is low in saturated fat. Omega-3 fatty acids are found in some fatty fish, such as salmon and cold water trout. They may help lower the risk of heart disease in some people.

Cross-over Foods
Dry beans, peas and lentils offer protein and fiber without the cholesterol and fat that meats have. Once in a while, try substituting beans for meat in a favorite recipe, such as lasagna or chili.

TVP, or textured vegetable protein, is widely available in many foods. Vegetarian "hot dogs," "hamburger" and "chicken nuggets" are low-fat, cholesterol-free alternatives to meat.

Milk, Yogurt and Cheese

Choose skim milk or low-fat buttermilk. Substitute evaporated skim milk for cream in recipes for soups and sauces.

Try low-fat cheeses. Skim ricotta can replace cream cheese on a bagel or in a vegetable dip. Use part-skim cheeses in recipes. Use 1% cottage cheese for salads and cooking. Eat string cheese as a low-fat, high-calcium snack.

Plain nonfat yogurt can replace sour cream in many recipes. (To maintain texture, stir 1 tablespoon of cornstarch into each cup of yogurt that you use in cooking.) Try frozen nonfat or low-fat yogurt for dessert.

Skim sherbet is an alternative to ice cream. Soft-serve and regular ice creams are also lower in fat than premium styles.

Source

American Academy of Family Physicians.

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