Fats consist of a wide group of compounds that are generally soluble in organic solvents and generally insoluble in water. Chemically, fats are triglycerides, triesters of glycerol and several fatty acids. Fats may be either solid or liquid at room temperature depending on their structure and composition.
There are two types of fat:
Saturated Fats
It has no double bonds and is solids at room temperature. Butter, ghee etc are saturated fats. High intake of saturated fats increases blood cholesterol level that can lead to coronary disorders and high blood pressure. Thus people who have a sedentary lifestyle such as old people should reduce the intake of saturated fats. However, people who involved in heavy labour fat intake should be more, as their energy requirement is high.
Unsaturated fats
It has one or more double bonds and is liquid at room temperature. Oils are unsaturated fats. Unsaturated fats may be monounsaturated fats, polyunsaturated fats, trans fats, cis fats, omega fatty acids etc.Read More »
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