30 Examples of Fats - encyclopedia

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Content

Function of fats
What are essential fatty acids?
What is saturation?
What is a trans fat?
Dangers of saturated fats
Examples of unsaturated fats
Examples of saturated fat
Examples of trans fats
More information?

The fats they are organic substances, that is to say that their molecules are composed mainly of carbon, oxygen and hydrogen atoms. They are the classes of lipids that contain fatty acids.

Here we refer to all lipids containing fatty acids. However, lipids that are found at room temperature are usually referred to as "fat". solid state and are of animal origin, while "oil" is called the lipids found in liquid state at room temperature, and that are mostly of plant origin.

It is a very heterogeneous group, but all fats have characteristics in common:

Insoluble in water: That is why water and substances such as oil do not mix.
Soluble in organic solvents: Fats can be dissolved in benzene, ether, chloroform, alcohol and other organic substances. Therefore, when cleaning kitchens, alcohol is used to remove grease from surfaces.
They are lower in density than water: Small oil bubbles float in liquids such as soups and broths.
Slippery and shiny: Much of the lipids are slippery to the touch and shiny on their surface.

Function of fats

One of the main functions of fat is to store energy. While a gram of carbohydrates or from protein has 4 kilocalories, a gram of fat has 9 kilocalories. Therefore, fat is the ideal material to store energy.

However, fats fulfill other functions, such as creating tissues that insulate from the cold, protect organs, participate in the absorption of vitamins and the synthesis of hormones, form cell membranes and surround nervous tissue.

What are essential fatty acids?

It is called "essential”To substances that the human body needs for its proper functioning and cannot produce itself. This is why you need to get them from food.

In the case of fats, there are essential fatty acids that are essential for the human body, such as linoleic, arachidonic and lonoleic. These fatty acids are obtained from vegetable oils.

What is saturation?

The fats They are usually made up of a glycerin molecule and one, two or three fatty acids. When a compound is saturated, all of its atoms they are united by a single bond and there is no possibility of any other atom joining. This is what saturation refers to: the maximum number of atoms attached to the molecule has been reached. Due to their molecular structure, Saturated fats they are solid at room temperature.

In contrast, if a compound is unsaturated, the atoms are linked by more than one bond. In these cases, double or triple bonds are observed. Due to their molecular structure, unsaturated fats they are liquid at room temperature.

What is a trans fat?

When a fatty acid is unsaturated, its double or triple bonds can be broken through hydrogen atoms. Let's imagine links as joined hands. If two carbon atoms are joined together by a double bond (the two hands of both are joined together) a hydrogen atom can be added to each: each can “shake hands” with the new hydrogen atom, and then still remain attached to the other carbon atom by the remaining bond.

This process is called hydrogenation and it is the process by which unsaturated fats become saturated. This process occurs naturally only in the milk and body fat of cows and other ruminants.

However, it is widely used in industry, since it allows the oils to solidify, giving a special texture to the food, in addition to being less vulnerable to rancidity.

Dangers of saturated fats

Although fats are essential for the functioning of the body, not all of them are beneficial.

The Saturated fats They favor the accumulation of cholesterol (low-density cholesterol or LDL) in the walls of the arteries. This accumulation hinders blood circulation, affecting all organs and tissues, including the brain.

The Trans fat present all the risks of saturated fats, but also reduce the so-called "good cholesterol": high cholesterol. density (HDL). HDL cholesterol helps maintain the internal walls of the veins, preventing arteriosclerosis, heart attacks and strokes. Consuming trans fat reduces this protection.

In addition, an excessive consumption of any type of fat favors the excessive accumulation of adipose tissue (fats) in the body. Although we all need the reserve of energy that adipose tissue represents, the excess of it causes diseases such as obesity. Obesity is not only an aesthetic problem, but is associated with circulatory, metabolic, joint, respiratory, digestive diseases and can even cause psychiatric disorders.

Infrequent consumption of saturated fat does not necessarily cause problems, unless there is a natural predisposition of the body for cardiovascular problems. Additionally, some of the harmful effects of measured saturated fat intake can be counteracted by lifestyle, for example exercise.