Fat Free, Reduce Fat or Full Fat...

Terilyn623
Terilyn623 Posts: 16
in Food and Nutrition
I'm confused about the whole fat free thing. As far as things like salad dressing, mayonnaise, sour cream, cottage cheese and the like what version should I choose? First the information says go FF then it says no, don't go FF.

Any thoughts would be helpful.

Thanks :smile:

Replies

  • Loulady
    Loulady Posts: 511 Member
    Always full fat here.
  • tonynguyen75
    tonynguyen75 Posts: 418 Member
    it depends on what your goals are and where you're sitting at the time. If you need fats to reach your fat goal (everyone should be eating at least some fats, I think it's 0.4g per lbs of body weight?), then go ahead and eat your fats. If you've already reached your fat goal for the day and can't fit in the extra calories, then go with fat free. However, I tend to find a lot of "Fat free" stuff is just loaded with sugar anyways so it's very often not any less calories. There are exceptions, of course.
  • Amitysk
    Amitysk Posts: 705 Member
    I go full fat on everything except milk (prefer 2%) and cottage cheese. I have always loved the Knudsen low fat one (in the pink tub). Can't stand the others!
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
    What you choose should be based on what you need to fill your macros and sustain things long term.
  • adiostrasero
    adiostrasero Posts: 127 Member
    Fat is not in and of itself bad for you. Most "fat free" or even "reduced fat" versions of foods are fake - they tend to add a lot of other questionable ingredients to make up for the lack of fat. Most fat-free dressings, for example, are loaded with sugar.

    I'm not going to pretend the complicated nutrition of fat, but in general, you need to pay more attention to saturated fat than fat as a whole. Saturated fat should be limited.

    Try to get most of your fat from healthy sources such as avocados, nuts, healthy oils, etc.
  • Terilyn623
    Terilyn623 Posts: 16
    Thanks for all the feedback, it was very helpful. :smile:
  • cadaverousbones
    cadaverousbones Posts: 421 Member
    With things like mayo and milk I usually go low fat or light. I like the light mayo made with olive oil. Our brains need fat to function properly so its definitely not good to cut out fat all together. I get "earth balance" vegan *butter which is made of mostly olive oil and other oils that are good for you. Most non fat stuff usually has a lot of weird unnatural ingredients in it. Also I try to avoid sugar free things because its got a bunch of gross artificial sweeteners that are bad.
  • laserturkey
    laserturkey Posts: 1,680 Member
    For some items I will go fat-free, but only to save calories so I can have full-fat versions of other things.
  • Showcase_Brodown
    Showcase_Brodown Posts: 919 Member
    Look at the calorie numbers between the different versions - they may be the same or very close. As mentioned, the fat free versions usually will have more sugar to make up for taste. So... it probably doesn't matter much, just be in line with your calorie and macro goals.

    Or you could go with which one tastes better. :)
  • Akimajuktuq
    Akimajuktuq Posts: 3,037 Member
    Generally speaking, the less fat the more sugar and possibly other flavour enhancers. I always go full fat (healthy dietary fats are not the culprit in today's obesity epidemic), but I also no longer eat processed foods. Canola oil and soy oil are now in almost all condiments and salad dressings. Imo, these are not healthy fats and they are highly refined and very new additions to the human diet. So for me, I do not limit fat at all-quite the opposite, but I choose to consume the healthiest fats possible. I make almost everything from scratch, including condiments and salad dressings. No it's not "hard" to do at all.

    PS. Is that your baby in the pic? Are you nursing? If so, please, eat healthy fats; all humans need fat (including natural saturated fats) and babies/children even more so. It might be useful to start researching dietary fat and human nutritional requirements (not just on Gov't sponsored sites) if you have reservations about consuming fat. We have been badly deceived about dietary fat and which are healthy and which are not.
  • Majda1234
    Majda1234 Posts: 64
    I go fo full fat because it helps me A LOT in reducing cravings. I used to be all fat free and started binge eating on 6000 calories which continued for a month on butter and margarine ONLY and it literally happened every day. I was like an auto pilot during the binges, literaly. I then realised my diet obviously wasn't working and ever since i started eating more fa, including butter, mrgarine and full fat yogurts and cheeses i haven't had a single binge. I actually stopped cravng sweets and any kind of unhealthy fatty foods. I may am goig over the limit now with fats- not calories. But it i because i am frightened of the bingeing auto pilot to come back.
  • rduhlir
    rduhlir Posts: 3,550 Member
    Well...it depends really. On the heavier salad dressings (Ranch, Thousand Island, etc...) I usually get reduced fat, but I go full fat on the oil based dressings. As far as cheese, I always get reduced fat because it is a lot of saturated fat if you don't. For milk, I typically use almond milk, but will use 1% on occasion.

    When it comes to condements though, like ketchup, mayo, etc... Full fat. Have you ever tried fat free or reduced fat mayo? Yuk!
  • kiwidrop
    kiwidrop Posts: 222 Member
    I look more at the calories and sodium then pick which every fat option that has the lowest. It's different with every brand, so their labels don't really matter.
  • BeachIron
    BeachIron Posts: 6,490 Member
    Reduced to full fat, depending on what it is.

    The only way FF works if if you consciously add back the fats in your diet.

    We all need dietary fats.
  • JenniTheVeggie
    JenniTheVeggie Posts: 2,474 Member
    Always full fat for me (sour cream, cheese, cottage cheese, etc. etc.). The only food I prefer fat free is plain greek yogurt.
  • lisalsd1
    lisalsd1 Posts: 1,519 Member
    I generally pick 2% for most items. I really can't stand whole milk...it's too thick for me. I always check the lower fat versions though to make sure there isn't added sugar or crap. If there is...I'll opt for the full fat cheeses, yogurt, etc. Oh, I also usually check saturated vs. unsaturated fat. If the amounts are roughly equal, I'll go full fat. If there is a lot more saturated in the full, I'll go lower fat.
  • sarah_lou22
    sarah_lou22 Posts: 79
    depends on your goals -- and its different for every body :)

    personally, I like to get reduced fat because fat is one of the things that I pay attention too

    rule of thumb, though? if something is taken away (low/no fat, low/no sugar) -- something else is always added.
  • kr1stadee
    kr1stadee Posts: 1,774 Member
    Sugar-free/fat-free = chemical sh*tstorm
  • BeachIron
    BeachIron Posts: 6,490 Member
    Sugar-free/fat-free = chemical sh*tstorm

    It's just like drinking agent orange
  • iechick
    iechick Posts: 352 Member
    I always chose the full fat version.
  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,267 Member
    It depends

    I prefer 1% milk, but use butter
    I prefer nonfat cottage cheese and yogurt but use olive oil
    I prefer reduced fat mayo but prefer full fat ranch (fat free one is disgusting)

    So as you can see it's all about taste.
  • FitCanuckChick
    FitCanuckChick Posts: 240 Member
    For the most part - full fat (except for milk - whole milk = blaaaa to me. 1% or skim only). Everytuhing else is full fat except salad dressings - cesar and ranch we do full fact for "treats", but we pretty much only use the kraft fruit and veggie dressing otherwise. They are fantastic and everyone in my household loves them (5 to 38 years old).
  • FrauHaas2013
    FrauHaas2013 Posts: 615 Member
    Which one do you like? Watch your portions -- make sure you're only using a TBSP or so instead of a heaping spoonful.

    I use extra virgin olive oil, regular cheese, mayo with olive oil, and I make my own balsamic vinaigrette. It's ok to have "bad" things, just make sure you don't go overboard! I don't use more than 1 TBSP of any fat in any one meal.
  • evileen99
    evileen99 Posts: 1,564 Member
    I always do full fat. More satiating and not full of weird things. THey usually taste better, too.
  • brynnsmom
    brynnsmom Posts: 945 Member
    Fat free anything doesn't work for me - no matter what it tastes weird. Some things I'll go reduced fat, like cottage cheese and milk.

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