When consumed in moderation, dietary fats can boost your health in countless ways. However, like many things in life, you can get too much of a good thing. This article will expand on this topic and discuss the dangers of overdosing on dietary fats.
- High Blood Glucose Levels
Consuming excessive amounts of polyunsaturated fats can cause your blood glucose levels to rise to dangerously high levels. This is particularly problematic for people suffering from type 2 diabetes and can lead to unstable energy levels, organ damage and the loss of nerve function.
- Increased Cancer Risk
Another adverse effect of overdosing on polyunsaturated fats is cancer. Studies have shown that people who eat high volumes of this type of fat are more likely to contract cancer and are at a particularly high risk for breast cancer and prostate cancer.
- Increased Heart Disease Risk
In the right quantities, dietary fats can protect and strengthen your heart. However, eating large amounts of polyunsaturated fats can reverse these positive effects, restrict the flow of blood to your heart and increase your heart disease risk.
- Increased LDL Cholesterol Levels
There are two main types of cholesterol – LDL cholesterol and HDL cholesterol. LDL cholesterol (also known as bad cholesterol) builds up in your artery walls, restricts the flow of blood and can ultimately cause heart disease and strokes. HDL cholesterol (also known as good cholesterol) scrapes LDL cholesterol from the artery walls, removes it from the body and promotes optimal blood flow.
When consumed in moderation, monounsaturated fats lower your blood levels of LDL cholesterol and increase your blood levels of HDL cholesterol. However, if you go overboard on saturated fats, you undo all this good work and cause your blood levels of LDL cholesterol to become dangerously high.
- Weight Gain
Unlike carbohydrates and protein (which contain four calories per gram), dietary fats contain nine calories per gram. Therefore, if you don’t keep your consumption of dietary fats under control, their high calorie count will lead to you rapidly gaining weight and potentially becoming obese. This can then lead to further health complications which include limited mobility, poor circulation and joint pain.
Summary
To avoid the adverse effects of dietary fat overdose, make sure no more than 60% of your daily calories come from dietary fats. If you do this, you’ll be able to enjoy all their health benefits without any adverse side effects.
