Fat is the Rodney Dangerfield of nutrients: it gets no respect. The next time you’re in a store, look at the number of products you see labeled low-fat or fat-free. It’s enough to make you think you need to avoid it altogether.

The truth is that fat is just as vital to your body as any other nutrient, so avoiding it is not only ill-advised, it is also detrimental to your health. So, to better understand the importance of fat, its 4 main functions are listed below.

power reserve

Fat provides a ready source of energy and, in a well-nourished person, provides 80-90% of your body’s energy needs. This is also important to prevent loss of muscle mass while losing weight. And since each gram of fat has 9 Calories, it provides more than twice the energy of carbohydrates and protein.

Protect Vital Organs and Thermal Insulation

Vital organs like the heart, lungs, liver, brain, and kidneys need fat to protect them from trauma. In addition to this protection, the fat just under the skin allows it to tolerate exposure to cold.

Transport medium for fat soluble vitamins

In addition to the three main or macronutrients, your body also needs micronutrients or vitamins. Vitamins A, D, E, and K are essential for health and are transported through fat, which is why they are sometimes referred to as fat-soluble vitamins. So if you reduce your vitamin intake too much, this could lead to vitamin deficiencies.

hunger suppressant

If you’ve ever experienced hunger pangs shortly after eating what you consider to be a large meal, it’s probably because it didn’t have enough fat content. In addition to its nutritional elements, it also contributes to the satiety of food. In fact, fats can take up to 3.5 hours to empty from the stomach, which may explain the initial success of some high-fat diets.

So the next time you hear someone start criticizing the ills of fat, remember that it plays a huge role in maintaining your health. And when you make sure it’s part of your diet, those hunger pangs you get on low-fat or no-fat diets will be a thing of the past.