What Are the Healthiest Fats for Weight Loss?

Years ago, you may have heard the saying that “fat makes you fat.” Now we know that for optimal health, your body needs a healthy variety of fats. 

Fats help your body to absorb vitamins, make hormones, and keep your brain working well — among many other important functions. And they have some benefits for weight loss, too. They make you feel full more quickly and for longer. For most adults, about 20% to 35% of your calories should come from fat. But when it comes to fats, some are better for you than others. 

List of healthy fats for weight loss

Fats are named based on their chemical structure. Unsaturated fats are usually liquid at room temperature. Saturated fats are solid. Trans fats usually start out as unsaturated fat, but they’re chemically changed to make them more solid. 

The healthiest fats are unsaturated fats. This category includes monounsaturated fats — like olive oil — and polyunsaturated fats, which are omega-3 and omega-6. So let’s start by discussing those two categories. 

Monounsaturated fat

You might also hear monounsaturated fats called omega-9 fats. Monounsaturated fat comes from:

• Olive oil

• Canola oil

• Avocados

• Nuts

• Peanut butter

• Pumpkin seeds and sesame seeds 

These foods are part of the Mediterranean diet. In this diet, about 35% to 40% of calories come from fat. People who choose a Mediterranean diet tend to have lower rates of heart disease, cancer, stroke, and even dementia compared to a typical Western diet. 

Monounsaturated fats are a great choice if weight loss is your goal. And research shows that people diagnosed with obesity who choose a diet rich in monounsaturated fat and lower in carbohydrates are more likely to lose weight than those who follow a high-carb, low-fat option.

Omega-3 fat

Omega-3 fats are an important type of polyunsaturated fat, the second category of unsaturated fat. Omega-3 fats come from:

• Fatty fish like salmon, sardines, trout, and mackerel

• Flaxseed and chia seeds

• Walnuts

• Canola oil

• Soybeans and soy oil

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Your body uses the omega-3 fats from fish most effectively. That’s because they’re already in the form your cells need. Plant-based omega-3s are harder for your body to use, but they are still healthy choices. And they add other valuable nutrients to your diet as well.

Some studies have found that omega-3 fats may be helpful for weight loss and might even shrink belly fat a small amount. But the evidence for that isn’t strong, and other studies have shown no definite benefit. Several studies even suggest that omega-3 fat from supplements might increase appetite. 

Even if omega-3s don’t directly lead to weight loss, they still offer big health benefits. They support your heart and brain, help reduce inflammation, and play a key role in keeping your eyes healthy. 

How much fat do you need in your diet?

The World Health Organization (WHO) and other expert groups agree that about 20% to 35% of your daily calories should come from fat. For example, on a 2,000-calorie-per-day diet, that works out to roughly 44 g to 78 g of fat per day. That’s about 3 tbsp to 5½ tbsp of fat.

If you don’t get enough fat, you may risk losing muscle mass. But if you get more fat than you need, it may leave less room for healthy foods like fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. These foods supply important nutrients that you can’t get from fat. 

But keep in mind that fat is very high in calories. This means that eating too much of it can easily push you over your daily calorie needs. When this happens, even with healthier options, your body stores the extra calories as fat.

And the type of fat matters. If you get too much of the “wrong” type of fat, like saturated or trans fat, you’ll have a higher risk for heart disease and stroke.

If you’re trying to lose weight, what types of fat should you avoid?

You don’t need to completely avoid specific types of fat if you’re trying to lose weight. That would be hard to do without a severely restrictive diet. But try to limit the following types of fat.

Saturated fat

Saturated fat comes mainly from animal products but also from tropical oils. Common sources include:

• Red meat, such as beef, lamb, and pork

• Chicken skin

• Whole-fat dairy products, including butter, cheese, milk, and ice cream

• Coconut oil

• Palm oil

Too much saturated fat can raise your low-density lipoprotein (LDL) or “bad” cholesterol. That’s why experts recommend keeping saturated fat to under 10% of your daily calories. 

But not all saturated fats are equal. Processed meats like bacon and sausage tend to cause more health problems than unprocessed meats. Some dairy foods, like cheese and yogurt, may have a neutral or even beneficial effect on cardiovascular health. But butter doesn’t offer the same advantage.

When it comes to weight loss, there’s some evidence that saturated fat may work against you, making it harder to lose weight. And saturated fat may be tougher on your liver than unsaturated fat.

Omega-6 fat

Omega-6 fats are another type of unsaturated fat. You may recall from above that unsaturated fats are healthy and good for weight loss. And this includes omega-6 fats — but only in the right amounts.

Omega-6 fats come from:

• Vegetable oils like soybean, sunflower, safflower, and corn oil

• Nuts

• Seeds, including sunflower and pumpkin seeds

Like omega-3 fats, your body needs omega-6 fats for growth, hormone balance and healthy cells. And they may be particularly helpful when they replace saturated fats. Studies show that swapping foods high in saturated fat for foods rich in omega-6 fats can lower LDL cholesterol. That can improve your heart health. 

The reason omega-6 fats get a bad reputation is because many people eat more than they need.

Omega-6 fats are found in many processed foods and restaurant foods. And many people are getting plenty of omega-6 fats but missing out on omega-3s. That’s important because there’s some evidence that people whose diets include a lot of omega-6 but little omega-3 are at a higher risk for obesity. There are several possible reasons for this. Those include inflammation, appetite, fat storage, and sensitivity to insulin. But scientists are still studying the issue. 

For most people, it makes sense to limit (but not eliminate) omega-6 fats and boost your intake of omega-3 and monounsaturated fats.

Trans fat

Trans fats are a type of fat created when liquid oils are turned into solid fats. This process is called hydrogenation. Even small amounts of trans fats can be harmful. Trans fats raise LDL or “bad” cholesterol, lower high-density lipoprotein (HDL) or “good” cholesterol, and increase inflammation in the body. 

Experts recommend avoiding trans fats as much as possible. Trans fat was once common in margarines, baked goods, and fried foods. In 2021, these fats were largely removed from the U.S. food supply because of their strong link to heart disease. 

When you’re trying to lose weight, trans fats offer no benefits and several drawbacks. Foods that contain trans fats are usually highly processed, full of calories, and easy to overeat. Trans fats may also raise your risk for diabetes, making weight loss harder.

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Written by:

Sarah A. Samaan, MD

Sarah Samaan, MD, FACC, FACP, FASE is a board-certified cardiologist who practiced clinical cardiology for nearly 30 years. She is a member of the American College of Cardiology and the American College of Physicians, among others.

Edited by:

Katie E. Golden, MD

Katie E. Golden, MD, is a board-certified emergency medicine physician and a medical editor at GoodRx.

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