Too much fat?

lesliemk · December 2010

I'll preface this by saying I eat real foods. We drink raw milk from a nearby farmer, eat eggs from happy farm chickens, only use real organic butter, enjoy good cheese, make yogurt from our raw milk, buy a 1/2 a cow and chickens from our organic farmer and then obviously lots of fresh fruits & veggies and whole grains too. I'd say we eat pretty clean. So with that being said I'm having a hard time factoring in the fat grams during a typical day for me. My goals are set up 40/30/30 (carb/fat/protein). I get about 1900 cals per day, since I am still nursing our 6m old full-time.

I usually have an egg for breakfast with whole grain toast and butter, plus a latte. A snack might be some yogurt w/ granola and fruit. Lunch could be salad w/ homemade dressing (oil based) & soup. An afternoon snack might be some cheese, nuts and an apple. Dinner is usually chicken or beef or pork, veggies sauteed/roasted in olive oil, quinoa and homemade bread with butter. For a last snack I'll have a small piece of dark organic chocolate with a glass of raw milk.

So it's all good food and I'm typically at or under my calories for the day, but I always seem to be over my fat allowance for the day by 5-15grams. Switching over to raw milk and real butter 100% of the time has definitely caused this bump for me. What do you guys think? I won't be giving up the milk or it's benefits and I love eggs, so I guess butter would have to go???

TateFTW · December 2010

Tbh, I don't know that it's an issue. I'm curious, do you know how/if nursing makes it preferable to change macronutrient distribution? It seems to me that a little extra fat would be good for a developing baby, but that's just a guess.

If your consistently going over that much, then yes, dropping the butter would be a good idea, since 30% is already on the larger side for your allowance of fat.

Rjperron · December 2010

If you're really concerned, butter (at least some of it, I won't eliminate butter either haha) would be the best thing to give up, but given that you're eating an extremely balanced diet and nursing, I don't think you need to worry about going over. Sounds like you're mostly getting the fat from heart-healthy sources like olive oil anyway.

cmriverside · December 2010

It would help reduce the fat if you would separate the egg yolks out of your egg consumption, or just leave a tiny amount of yolk in for the yellow color.

keybelle · December 2010

For me, I had to cut the fat down slowly, make sure I measure and weigh food accurately as well. You might try cutting your butter in half to start, or perhaps just dipping the bread in olive oil. Some of the spray non-stick products are good for cooking without the fat. Surprisingly enough to me, I found that the taste of bread can really be enjoyed without butter, but of course I don't have homemade! I am sure that is a struggle.

You might try the same with the milk, if you have access to quality reduced fat milk. And perhaps, add an extra egg white to your breakfast which makes you fuller than just the one egg alone. Once you cut the fat down, then your body seems to adjust and too much fat content seems "heavy".

Good luck!

mlb929 · December 2010

So many years we've had it pumped into us that fat is a bad thing. Fats are good. I'd probably not use the real butter, and I'd limit my dairy. But that's only because of nursing that I'd limit dairy. Diary is a big allerigan and could be passed through your milk and develop an over sensitivity. Just my opinion based on personal experience. I get my fat from Flax Seed Oil and the Omega 3's, 6's, and 9's vs cows milk. If you are still losing weight, I'd probably not be too overly concerned IMO.

SouthernBell86 · December 2010

I wouldn't worry too much about the fat, but if you wanted to cut out a little bit of the butter you'd be fine. Maybe you could cut the butter in half for breakfast and supper. Honestly the health benefits you get from all your clean sources of food way outweigh trying to cut back on fat. Just make sure you stick to your calorie limit and you should be good.

In particular, do not feel like you need to give up the egg yolks. They are the best part of the egg for you nutritionally (you probably already know this). Keep going strong on your real food! I try and get the healthiest cleanest sources I can for my budget too, I hope that one day I will be able to afford to eat like you do!

Ge0rgiana · December 2010

Wow. You're so lucky! I wish I could eat that clean. With that said, I'm also at 40-30-30, but I'm constantly over on fat and way under on carbs. Just the way I eat. I must say my body seems to like it. I've been steadily shrinking since I've been doing MFP. I'd say that, unless you're having serious problems moving the scale, you should keep doing what you're doing.

Grokette · December 2010

I'll preface this by saying I eat real foods. We drink raw milk from a nearby farmer, eat eggs from happy farm chickens, only use real organic butter, enjoy good cheese, make yogurt from our raw milk, buy a 1/2 a cow and chickens from our organic farmer and then obviously lots of fresh fruits & veggies and whole grains too. I'd say we eat pretty clean. So with that being said I'm having a hard time factoring in the fat grams during a typical day for me. My goals are set up 40/30/30 (carb/fat/protein). I get about 1900 cals per day, since I am still nursing our 6m old full-time.

I usually have an egg for breakfast with whole grain toast and butter, plus a latte. A snack might be some yogurt w/ granola and fruit. Lunch could be salad w/ homemade dressing (oil based) & soup. An afternoon snack might be some cheese, nuts and an apple. Dinner is usually chicken or beef or pork, veggies sauteed/roasted in olive oil, quinoa and homemade bread with butter. For a last snack I'll have a small piece of dark organic chocolate with a glass of raw milk.

So it's all good food and I'm typically at or under my calories for the day, but I always seem to be over my fat allowance for the day by 5-15grams. Switching over to raw milk and real butter 100% of the time has definitely caused this bump for me. What do you guys think? I won't be giving up the milk or it's benefits and I love eggs, so I guess butter would have to go???

You are eating very clean and the way all of us should eat.

Your baby needs the nutrients and the fats to grow and for proper brain development.

Don't change anything with what your doing.

Grokette · December 2010

So many years we've had it pumped into us that fat is a bad thing. Fats are good. I'd probably not use the real butter, and I'd limit my dairy. But that's only because of nursing that I'd limit dairy. Diary is a big allerigan and could be passed through your milk and develop an over sensitivity. Just my opinion based on personal experience. I get my fat from Flax Seed Oil and the Omega 3's, 6's, and 9's vs cows milk. If you are still losing weight, I'd probably not be too overly concerned IMO.

She wouldn't have the concern as much in regards to allergies because she is consuming raw milk, which is not processed like it is when it goes to be homogenized and pasteurized (which ruins the benefits)............

TateFTW · December 2010

So many years we've had it pumped into us that fat is a bad thing. Fats are good. I'd probably not use the real butter, and I'd limit my dairy. But that's only because of nursing that I'd limit dairy. Diary is a big allerigan and could be passed through your milk and develop an over sensitivity. Just my opinion based on personal experience. I get my fat from Flax Seed Oil and the Omega 3's, 6's, and 9's vs cows milk. If you are still losing weight, I'd probably not be too overly concerned IMO.

Too much fat, and the wrong kinds of it, ARE bad. I agree with you that people worry too much about fat consumption, but just because most people worry too much about it doesn't mean you can have as much as you want.

As far as eggs, the yolk contains most of the nutrients, so if you have to choose between saturated fat in butter and nutrient rich fat in egg yolks, ditch the butter.

TateFTW · December 2010

I'll preface this by saying I eat real foods. We drink raw milk from a nearby farmer, eat eggs from happy farm chickens, only use real organic butter, enjoy good cheese, make yogurt from our raw milk, buy a 1/2 a cow and chickens from our organic farmer and then obviously lots of fresh fruits & veggies and whole grains too. I'd say we eat pretty clean. So with that being said I'm having a hard time factoring in the fat grams during a typical day for me. My goals are set up 40/30/30 (carb/fat/protein). I get about 1900 cals per day, since I am still nursing our 6m old full-time.

I usually have an egg for breakfast with whole grain toast and butter, plus a latte. A snack might be some yogurt w/ granola and fruit. Lunch could be salad w/ homemade dressing (oil based) & soup. An afternoon snack might be some cheese, nuts and an apple. Dinner is usually chicken or beef or pork, veggies sauteed/roasted in olive oil, quinoa and homemade bread with butter. For a last snack I'll have a small piece of dark organic chocolate with a glass of raw milk.

So it's all good food and I'm typically at or under my calories for the day, but I always seem to be over my fat allowance for the day by 5-15grams. Switching over to raw milk and real butter 100% of the time has definitely caused this bump for me. What do you guys think? I won't be giving up the milk or it's benefits and I love eggs, so I guess butter would have to go???

You are eating very clean and the way all of us should eat.

Your baby needs the nutrients and the fats to grow and for proper brain development.

Don't change anything with what your doing.

That's what I was thinking earlier. Fats are important for brain function in adults, so I just imagined it would be really important for infants who's brains are developing every day.

Grokette · December 2010

So many years we've had it pumped into us that fat is a bad thing. Fats are good. I'd probably not use the real butter, and I'd limit my dairy. But that's only because of nursing that I'd limit dairy. Diary is a big allerigan and could be passed through your milk and develop an over sensitivity. Just my opinion based on personal experience. I get my fat from Flax Seed Oil and the Omega 3's, 6's, and 9's vs cows milk. If you are still losing weight, I'd probably not be too overly concerned IMO.

Too much fat, and the wrong kinds of it, ARE bad. I agree with you that people worry too much about fat consumption, but just because most people worry too much about it doesn't mean you can have as much as you want.

As far as eggs, the yolk contains most of the nutrients, so if you have to choose between saturated fat in butter and nutrient rich fat in egg yolks, ditch the butter.

Not necessarily true. Did you know that breast milk is made up of mostly cholesterol and saturated fat?

Cholesterol and saturated fats are not bad for us. It is no coincidence that breast milk is primarily made up of saturated fat and cholesterol.

These 2 nutrients are what gives babies the ability to start building a strong immune system and assist with brain development.

I know I am repeating myself............

Human breast milk contains high levels of saturated fats – and cholesterol!

If these two substances are harmful, babies would start to develop heart disease and other degenerative diseases from a young age. They don't. On the contrary, both saturated fat and cholesterol are essential for growth in babies, especially for healthy brain development.

Saturated fats have been used by human societies as the MAIN form of cooking oil for thousands of years – lard in China, butter in Europe, ghee in India, coconut oil in the tropics – without causing any harm.

In modern times, the rates of heart disease, obesity, diabetes and other degenerative diseases began to shoot up AFTER people started to eat less saturated fats and switch to polyunsatured vegetable oils, as well as artificial fats like margarine, which contain harmful trans fats.

lesliemk · December 2010

Thanks for everyone's thoughtful replies!

Yes, raw milk was such an important decision for my family. I read the Untold Story of Milk by Ron Schmid and was forever changed. I feel so blessed that we have such great offerings from our farmer--he has become a very big part of our lives, which will be a gift to our children for year's to come.

As far as the eggs go... I'll be eating the whole thing. Those rich yellow yolks are the best part! I may cut back on the butter here and there and go for more of a smear rather than applying it to every inch of my homemade bread. I do also bake w/ coconut oil though and occasionally use bacon dripping to coat a pan for eggs/pancakes--it's a weekend treat. I guess I'll just see how things go with my weight loss in the months to come.

And with all that said... Finley, our 6m old, is the most important part of this whole thing! I wouldn't do anything calorie-wise or diet-wise to jeopardize her growth or give her what she needs.

You're right, fat is such an important part of brain development in babies and young children!

Too much fat?

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