Healthy High-Fat, High-Calorie Foods

You can’t look at overall health as a matter of how many calories you consume. With all the diet information, and disinformation, out there it can be easy to think “less calories good, more calories bad.” That approach is a little too narrow and can even be unhealthy. The truth is, you should focus more on where the calories you consume come from than how many you consume. You could eat 2000 calories of chocolate everyday and nothing else and still lose weight but you’d likely be pretty miserable and you might die of malnutrition. Granted, you might die with a big chocolaty grin on your face, but I wouldn’t recommend it.

Some people don’t want to lose weight at all, while the rest of us try and lower our caloric intake and up our energy expenditures. In either case, what you eat is extremely important. High-fat foods are going to be naturally high in calories, but not all high-fat high-calorie foods are bad for you. In fact, some of the best, and healthiest, things you can eat fit in this category. It might seem counterintuitive, but some of the right fats can actually help lower the “bad” cholesterol in your body and lead to better cardiovascular health.  The following are some good examples of high-fat high-calorie foods that are good for you:

Oils

Oils are used in cooking to either add flavor, aid in the cooking process or both. You can’t really do much cooking without them and a lot of the foods we eat get their flavor from the natural oils inside. When choosing a good cooking oil, you want Monousaturated fats that are found in legumes, different nuts, avocados and olives. Canola oil is a good example of an all purpose cooking oil that has a neutral taste and is low in saturated fat.

If you are looking to add flavor to your cooking you might want to consider oils like Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Sesame Oil, or even Macadamia Nut Oil. Each of these oils has a distinct flavor that can be used in the cooking process or even as a dressing for salads or other dishes. All of them are also high in monounsaturated fat and contain other elements that can lower cholesterol and improve heart health.

Nuts

Official health agencies like the World Health Organization have cited evidence linking tree nuts and peanuts to significant heart health benefits. Similar studies done by the FDA here in the US found that 1.5 ounces of nuts per day may decrease the risk of heart disease. Even though most nuts are relatively high in calories, most of those calories coming in the form of fat, the omega-3 fatty acids in nuts like walnuts, almonds and cashews can help you lower LDL (bad) cholesterol. Nuts are a  great high-protein food with the right kind of fats your body needs.

Avocados

The Avocado Industry Council states there are nearly 20 vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients in an avocado that help your body fight disease.  When you combine avocados with the right partners, like red chili peppers and romaine lettuce, they can help improve your body’s ability to absorb important fat-soluble nutrients such as beta-carotene and lutein. Avocados are also high in fiber and add a lot of flavor to any food.

Olives

It shouldn’t come as a surprise that I mention olives when I already recommended Olive oil. Olives are a good source of iron, vitamin E and vitamin A, and make for a healthy alternative snack. They also make a good addition to pasta, pizza and seafood dishes instead of butter or cheese that might not be as good for you. Olives are high in oleic acid, one of the omega fatty acids often chosen as an unsaturated substitute for the animal fats.

Word to the Wise

I know I’ve just spent the last few minutes of your life recommending all these high-calories foods, but I should caution against over-indulgence. If you want to maintain proper weight and good overall health you still have to monitor your caloric intake. Just because ¼ cup of nuts in good it doesn’t mean a pound is better but in the right amounts, these foods will add flavor and variety to your diet and provide your body with all the right kind of fats it needs.