Too little of a good thing?

I know it’s been awhile. A little over a week ago my mom started having some health problems, so I have been otherwise occupied. However, I have been (mostly) keeping up with my quest to be fit. Today, my Spark People newsletter contained an article that I want to share: 6 Risks of Eating a Low-Fat Diet (By Sarah Haan, Registered Dietitian). Risks? Low-Fat? I've known for awhile that fat-free is not always better - it's all about the right kind of fat. And we all are aware of the risks of a diet too high in fat. But I didn't know that there were actual risks if your fat intake was too low. According to this article, your fat intake should be anywhere from 20%-35% of your daily caloric intake (although an article linked to this article says your fat intake should be less than 30%). That seems like a LOT.

Risks are:

1. Poor vitamin absorption - "Eating a diet too low in fat can interfere with the absorption of the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K. Because these nutrients are fat soluble, your body needs dietary fat to utilize them." Maybe that's why I'm always low in Vitamin D?

2. Depression - "Both omega-3s and omega-6s play roles in mood and behavior." I found this especially interesting.

3. Increased Cancer Risk - "Colon, breast, and prostate cancers have all been correlated with low intakes of essential fatty acids."

4. High Cholesterol and Heart Disease - this one was weird because I've always associated high fat and high cholesterol, but according to this article "[w]hen your diet is too low in fat, your body's level of HDL (the "good" cholesterol) goes down. This is problematic because you want your HDL level to be high to help protect against heart disease."

5. Imbalance of Nutrients—Especially Carbs

6. Overeating - "Many of these [low-fat/fat-free] processed foods contain added sugars to enhance taste; often they're similar in calories to the original full-fat product." "[F]at helps carry flavor in our foods. It leads to fullness and satiety, which means you can get by longer on a meal or snack that provides fat without feeling the need to eat again soon."

It's all about moderation (and knowing which fats to eat), folks.

Good fats

#1 Monounsaturated fats (they help lower bad cholesterol while not lowering good cholesterol). Foods include: certain oils and margarines (canola, olive, peanut, sesame), avocado, nuts (almonds, cashews, hazelnuts, macadamia, pecans, peanuts, pistachios), peanut butter, olives, and sesame seeds.

#2 Polyunsaturated fats (they help lower bad cholesterol but also lower good cholesterol). Foods include: certain oils and margarines (corn, safflower, soybean), walnuts, mayonnaise, most salad dressings, pumpkin and sunflower seeds.

So, not only can you have too much of a good thing, but now you can have too little as well.