| Introduction
British food-lovers are quickly discovering the culinary benefits
of cooking with goose fat, not least for making the best-tasting
roast potatoes. However, it’s a little known fact that
as well as tasting great, goose fat is also good for you.
In comparison to other animal fats, it is possibly one of
the reasons that cardio-vascular disease is not as prevalent
in the goose rearing and consuming regions of the South West
of France as in some other regions of Europe. There is also
a growing interest in Duck Fat, which is not dissimilar in
terms of its production and composition.
Nutritional Benefits
As with all fats, goose fat is a good source of energy;
1 gram of fat provides 9 Kcal. Government guidelines recommend
that fats make up a third of our diet. For the average woman
this means about 76g a day; for men, roughly 100g.
• Fat is an essential part of any balanced diet.
It provides the body with the fat-soluble vitamins A, D,
E and K; which are essential for growth; and contains essential
fatty acids which are important in maintaining normal health
and body functions.
• Although animal fats are often considered to be
‘bad fats’, goose fat is one of the better ones
and contains far fewer saturated fats than butter or lard.
Goose Fat contains 32.7g Saturated Fat per 100g compared
with 54g for Butter and 40.8g for Lard.
• Goose Fat is high in ‘heart healthy’
monounsaturated (55g compared to 19.8g in butter) and polyunsaturated
fats (10.8g compared to 2.6g in butter).
• Goose Fat is also rich in Oleic acid C18.1 (a specific
type of monounsaturated fatty acid) which can lower blood
cholesterol levels. Goose fat contains on average 58% oleic
acid, C18.1, and is generally higher in comparison to other
animal fats.
Understanding the Different Types
of Fats
There are three types of fat; saturated, polyunsaturated and
mono-unsaturated fatty acids, all of which are classed according
to their degree of saturation .A fatty acid is saturated when
all the available carbon bonds are occupied by a hydrogen
atom. Goose Fat, like most foods contains all three fats in
varying proportions.
In simple terms, fats that have the highest degree of saturation
are the fats that are most likely to raise the level of bad
cholesterol. Raised levels of blood cholesterol can in turn
lead to an increased risk of Coronary Heart Disease.
• Consumption of saturated fats, which are found mainly
in meat and dairy products should be limited to avoid increasing
the risk of cardiovascular disease. Saturated fats are solid
at room temperature
• The two types of unsaturated fats: polyunsaturated
and monounsaturated are healthier than saturated fats. These
are liquid at room temperature.
• Monounsaturated fats can help to lower levels of
unhealthy blood cholesterol. For more information visit
the British Nutrition Foundation’s website at www.nutrition.org.uk
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