When you eat too much fat it’s undoubtedly, and from a medical standpoint, undeniably bad for you. However, this statement must be understood in slightly more complex terms. There are a variety of fat sources available, ranging from fats present directly in foods like dairy products, meat, fish, eggs, nuts, and certain vegetables, to fats we add to foods like oil derived from nuts, olives, and various seeds. Typically you may hear of three types of fat, saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated, but another group that must be considered are trans fats, fats that tend to stay solid at room temperature, which include certain vegetable oils, especially those that have been hydrogenated.

In order to consider whether you eat too much fat, you have to know the types you are eating, which means reading labels and being conscious in your food choices. Another thing you should be aware of is what constitutes “too much” because this can help inform food choices. Eating too little fat can be almost as detrimental to the body as when you eat too much fat. Thus it’s important to have a target.

How much is too much? Dietitians, doctors, and health agencies recommend that no more than 30% of the calories in your diet should come from fat. Further, most doctors give another recommendation; only 7-10% of your daily calorie intake should be made up of saturated fat. Trans fats, oil to which hydrogen is added, should be kept to bare minimum intake because it is simply not healthy, and has little to offer in the way of nutritional benefits. This doesn’t mean you can’t occasionally indulge in a little bit of trans fats, but by choosing more valuable fats, particularly those that are monounsaturated, you’re making a healthier choice.

When you eat too much fat and exceed these limits, you open yourself up to a wide possibility of conditions and diseases. One that is of chief concern is obesity. The amount of Americans that are obese, and the rate of child obesity has become increasingly a concern. Being overweight can shorten life span, raise risk of conditions like diabetes, and raise risk of certain forms of cancer.

A host of other concerns exist when you eat too much fat. Consuming too much saturated fat may not only cause weight gain, but also it begins to have an extremely negative effect on your arteries. Fat consumption boosts “bad” cholesterol, which in turn creates plaque buildup in arteries. This can lead to a variety of heart disease problems like blocked valves that require bypass surgery, and to blood clotting in thinned arteries, which can result in stroke. Trans fat has definitely been shown to correlate to higher risk of cancer, particularly certain cancers that are still difficult to treat such as breast cancer. High blood pressure is also a concern when you eat too much fat of any kind.

This doesn’t mean you should eat no fat. Certain vitamins are fat soluble, and people who have no-fat diets find they may lose less weight. It’s simply important not to go overboard and to eat the right kinds of fat in limited portions. Eat a little fat, but the best kinds, and follow your doctor, nutritionist, or USDA (United States Department of Agriculture or its equivalent departments in other countries) guidelines for healthy eating.