Low fat/Full Fat? Which is really healthier?

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tanya_03
tanya_03 Posts: 14 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi all,

I am back on the healthy eating/weight loss journey, after putting a bit too much weight back on

Replies

  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,565 Member
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    When it comes to what? Most items I say full fat, but I grew up on 2% milk, so that's my only exception. Keep in mind that low fat options sometimes contain more sugar, if that's something you need to keep an eye on,
  • Bghere1
    Bghere1 Posts: 78 Member
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    yes, in terms of what? I think full fat in terms of milk, and butter types of things. Same with cheese, and meat of course <3 meat
  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
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    It doesn't really matter all that much. Eating healthy is getting enough of everything you need and not too much of anything. It's a lot about preference and habit. A diet consisting of a variety of foods from all food groups, food you like and foods you can eat to satiety without craving more (so you end up feeling deprived and/or overeating), is a healthy diet.
  • ticiaelizabeth
    ticiaelizabeth Posts: 139 Member
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    I say full fat when it comes to much of anything. When they remove the fat it removes a lot of the flavour so they must add crap to make it more palatable.
  • MelaniaTrump
    MelaniaTrump Posts: 2,694 Member
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    Never eat anything that is labeled low fat.
    Ex: Low fat cookies or low fat ice cream.
    Manufacturers just add sugars to add taste.
  • hokiemom14
    hokiemom14 Posts: 105 Member
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    I am in the camp of NOT liking low-fat items that are not "naturally" low fat. For instance, I would not buy fat-free sour cream instead of full fat (I don't eat much dairy anymore though). They remove the fat and replace it with other ingredients. It's also been proven that you tend to eat more when you eat no/low fat. You need more to make you feel full, but you are still eating the calories. If you eat the full fat versions, you are more satisfied and it won't take as much to fill you up. Take a look at the labels of full fat and then no/low fat products. There are a lot more ingredients in the no/low fat products. I go for as few ingredients as possible as a general rule of thumb.
  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
    edited June 2016
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    If you are picking the full fat versions watch your portions carefully.

    Full fat milk is very important for young children as it helps build that developing brain.

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3607807/#__sec1title
  • Hornsby
    Hornsby Posts: 10,322 Member
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    The exact answer is "It depends".
  • Zipp237
    Zipp237 Posts: 255 Member
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    When we are losing weight, it is much harder to get the nutrients we need, so the focus is usually on how many nutrients for the calories. Where milk is concerned, the no-fat stuff will generally be healthier than whole or 2% for dieters.
  • CorneliusPhoton
    CorneliusPhoton Posts: 965 Member
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    I prefer full fat dairy, but I try to only buy it if it is organic. If I can't find full fat organic dairy, I get fat free and stick more to plant-based fats like avocados and nuts. You need fat in your diet!
  • ashliedelgado
    ashliedelgado Posts: 814 Member
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    I think this is really one of the personal preference things. Full fat is more calorically dense, but you get the nutrient bang for your buck. Low fat flips that a little bit. I ate about 50/50 when I was losing, and now that I am maintaining for a pregnancy, I found I was having a hard time hitting my calorie goals so I made it with full fat dairy and adding more oil when I cook.
  • robininfl
    robininfl Posts: 1,137 Member
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    Full fat for things that are naturally full of fat - mayonnaise, butter, eggs, cream. The de-fatted versions of those are made of things that are not food. I am not sure what low fat mayonnaise is made of, but it's not mayonnaise.

    Low fat for things that are naturally low fat - popcorn, fruit and veg, etc. and really I like skim milk on cereal, we don't buy it because nobody else in my house likes it, but milk is all skimmed and fat added back to it to make it uniform in fat %, so it's not "natural" in any case, and they don't replace the fat with something else.

    I don't limit fat in my diet, anyway, never have. And I do not believe low fat diets are healthier. Moderation in all things.
  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,575 Member
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    JanetYellen wrote: »
    Never eat anything that is labeled low fat.
    Ex: Low fat cookies or low fat ice cream.
    Manufacturers just add sugars to add taste.

    Full fat ice cream and cookies don't have sugar??
  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,575 Member
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    Which is healthier depends on what else you are eating and how much.
  • AlisonH729
    AlisonH729 Posts: 558 Member
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    ticiaelizabeth wrote: »
    I say full fat when it comes to much of anything. When they remove the fat it removes a lot of the flavour so they must add crap to make it more palatable.
    This.
    kommodevaran wrote: »
    It doesn't really matter all that much. Eating healthy is getting enough of everything you need and not too much of anything. It's a lot about preference and habit. A diet consisting of a variety of foods from all food groups, food you like and foods you can eat to satiety without craving more (so you end up feeling deprived and/or overeating), is a healthy diet.
    But also that.

    So-
    Hornsby wrote: »
    The exact answer is "It depends".
  • geneticsteacher
    geneticsteacher Posts: 623 Member
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    hokiemom14 wrote: »
    They remove the fat and replace it with other ingredients. It's also been proven that you tend to eat more when you eat no/low fat. You need more to make you feel full, but you are still eating the calories. If you eat the full fat versions, you are more satisfied and it won't take as much to fill you up. Take a look at the labels of full fat and then no/low fat products. There are a lot more ingredients in the no/low fat products. I go for as few ingredients as possible as a general rule of thumb.

    It depends on the product. Skim milk does not have any added ingredients not found in the full fat version, nor do some brands of fat-free yogurt and sour cream.
  • tanya_03
    tanya_03 Posts: 14 Member
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    Wow! Thank you soo much everyone! This really helped!
  • hokiemom14
    hokiemom14 Posts: 105 Member
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    geneticsteacher wrote: »
    hokiemom14 wrote: »
    They remove the fat and replace it with other ingredients. It's also been proven that you tend to eat more when you eat no/low fat. You need more to make you feel full, but you are still eating the calories. If you eat the full fat versions, you are more satisfied and it won't take as much to fill you up. Take a look at the labels of full fat and then no/low fat products. There are a lot more ingredients in the no/low fat products. I go for as few ingredients as possible as a general rule of thumb.

    It depends on the product. Skim milk does not have any added ingredients not found in the full fat version, nor do some brands of fat-free yogurt and sour cream.

    I just counted 9 ingredients in a very popular brand fat free sour cream and only 3 in their full fat regular version. I'm sure there are the exceptions, but in general products that have fat taken out will have more ingredients.
  • 2snakeswoman
    2snakeswoman Posts: 655 Member
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    Full fat animal products can bring your cholesterol up. Mine was too high last checkup, so my doctor put me on the DASH diet, which is mostly plant based and low fat dairy or lean meats/fish.
  • belimawr
    belimawr Posts: 1,155 Member
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    ticiaelizabeth wrote: »
    I say full fat when it comes to much of anything. When they remove the fat it removes a lot of the flavour so they must add crap to make it more palatable.

    Adding that crap still doesn't return the good flavor to the end product. It's still a rather bland version of its former self.

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