Saturated and unsaturated fatty acids

These designations refer to the chemical structure of the fats. In saturated fats, all carbons are coupled to hydrogens (saturated), whereas in unsaturated fats some hydrogen atoms are missing. Animal fats from lard, butter, meat, sausage, eggs and milk and dairy products are mostly composed of saturated fatty acids.

Vegetable fats and oils such as sunflower or corn germ oil, olive oil or fats from seeds and nuts are mainly composed of unsaturated fatty acids. Too much saturated fats in the diet can lead to increased blood lipid values in the long run and the risk of arteriosclerosis, heart attack or stroke increases. In addition, a diet rich in saturated fats increases the risk of cancer.

Hardened fat

Hardened fat is produced and used by the food industry. During fat hardening, fats are chemically modified to make them spreadable, hard and long-lasting. The majority of industrially produced baked goods, margarines, deep-frying fats and ready meals contain chemically hardened fats in large quantities.

These fats are suspected to cause arteriosclerosis and cancer. On the list of ingredients of food, chemically hardened fats are declared as vegetable oils and fats, some of them hardened.The supply of these fats should be avoided or strongly limited. These simple and polyunsaturated fatty acids from vegetable food are essential for our health.

They are needed to maintain healthy cell walls and important cell regulators. These fats also contain the so-called essential fatty acids linoleic acid and linolenic acid. The body cannot form them itself and to prevent deficiency symptoms they must be supplied with food. Especially rich in mono- and polyunsaturated fatty acids are:

Safflower oil
Sunflower oil
Soybean oil
Olive oil
Corn oil and
Wheat germ oil.

Omega-3 fatty acids, EPS (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHS (docosahexaenoic acid)

These fats are also essential for life and are found in large quantities in fish (salmon, sardine, cod and herring) from cold northern waters. Game meat as well as soy and walnut oil contain medium amounts. Omega-3 fatty acids reduce the tendency of the blood to clot and thus lower the risk of stroke and heart attack.

They lower blood pressure and have an anti-inflammatory effect. It is recommended to eat fish or game regularly (2 x a week). The monounsaturated fatty acids from olive oil or peanut oil or rapeseed oil are said to have the same effect.

Here you will find information about fats and sporting stressCholesterol is also the body’s own substance, a component of every cell, is produced in the liver and is essential for life. It is needed to build up the cell structure, to balance sex hormones, vitamin D and skin lipids. An increased cholesterol level in the blood leads to arteriosclerosis.

Cholesterol is a fat-accompanying substance and only occurs in animal fats. Foods rich in cholesterol include offal, eggs, butter, fatty cheese, sausage, etc. Vegetable foods are cholesterol-free.

LDL and HDL cholesterol cholesterol is a fat-accompanying substance and is not soluble in water. In order to be transported, cholesterol binds itself to transport proteins. These are low density proteins (LDL or low-density lipoproteins) or high density proteins (HDL or high-density lipoproteins).

LDLs contain excess cholesterol which often ends up as a deposit in the blood vessels. HDL free the bloodstream from excess cholesterol. Therefore the HDL level should be as high as possible (> 40mg%) and the LDL level as low as possible (> 200 mg%).

This can be achieved with a low-fat diet (especially limited animal fats) and sufficient exercise. In summary, the fat supply must be controlled and optimized. Every German takes on average 120 grams of fat daily.

According to the DGE (German Society for Nutrition) the daily intake should be about 60 g total fat. This amount consists of cooking fat, spreadable fat and hidden fat in food. The intake of animal, saturated fats from meat, sausage, milk and dairy products should be reduced.

These fats usually occur in hidden form. The same applies to chemically hardened fats. The daily supply of high-quality vegetable fats and oils such as sunflower, corn germ and olive oil and omega-3 fatty acids should be optimized.

These fats must be supplied daily and in sufficient quantity. The carbohydrates are the most important energy suppliers. They are simple compounds of carbon dioxide, hydrogen and oxygen.

A distinction is made: The complex carbohydrates from whole grain products and vegetables etc. are only slowly digested and released into the blood. The saturation is higher and longer lasting, no blood sugar peaks occur and the counter regulation is slower.

In addition, unlike refined carbohydrates, these foods contain other important ingredients such as vitamins, minerals, trace elements and fiber. Carbohydrates are also used in sports as food supplements. Here the idea of an increase in performance during physical exertion is pursued by an ideal supply of carbohydrates.

Simple sugars or monosaccharides (dextrose, fructose)
Disaccharides or disaccharides (sucrose consisting of one molecule of glucose and one molecule of fructose).
Polysaccharides or complex carbohydrates (starch, consisting of long chains of simple sugars). Contained in whole grain products, vegetables, potatoes.
Sugar and highly refined carbohydrates such as white flour or white noodles are quickly processed and released into the blood as sugar.The blood sugar level rises quickly and then drops again quickly due to counter regulation (production of insulin by our body). The feeling of hunger is quickly restored.