Sunflower seeds provide vitamin E and trace minerals such as zinc

February is heart month. Whereas past research focused on the amount of dietary fat as a trigger for cardiovascular disease, we now know that both quantity and quality of fat impact our blood vessels. Here are six steps to take to make the fat in your diet work for you instead of against you. (This section is by my esteemed co-author and fats and oils expert, Brenda Davis, and from our book The New Becoming Vegetarian, and in Canada, Becoming Vegetarian.)
 
Step 1. Get 15 to 30 percent of your calories from fat. If you are inactive, overweight or have chronic disease, aim for the lower end of this range. People who are lean and active can aim for the higher end of this range, and children higher, such as 35%. By 15 to 30 percent of calories, how much fat do we mean? For someone eating 2,000 calories, this means two and a half to five tablespoons of fat. Good sources are whole plant foods such as those listed below. Note that nuts and seeds are not linked with obesity, unlike concentrated fats and oils and high-fat animal products. Each of the following provides about one tablespoon of fat: 

• 1/4 cup nuts or seeds
• 1/2 avocado
• 20 olives
• 1 cup medium tofu
• 1/2 cup firm tofu or tempeh
• 2 cups regular soymilk
• 1/2 cup shredded coconut
• one tablespoon of fat or oil is entirely fat

Step 2. Minimize, better still eliminate, your intake of trans fats.
Trans fatty acids should make up less than one percent of your calories; an intake of zero is better still. Accomplish this by restricting or eliminating foods containing hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated fats: cookies, crackers, pastries, pies, snack foods, hydrogenated margarine, shortening and most fried foods. Don't be fooled by a label declaration of "All-vegetable oil." Read the ingredient list. Dairy products also contain trans fats.

Step 3. Limit saturated fats.
Restrict saturated fats to seven percent of calories or less; avoid the heavy hitters, such as butter, cheese, eggs, fatty animal products and tropical oils. If you use dairy, replace whole milk and sour cream with skim milk and non-fat yogurt. Spread your toast with nutritious almond or cashew butter. For breakfast, try scrambled tofu. In baking, substitute ground flaxseed for eggs. 

Step 4. Keep your intake of omega-6 fatty acids moderate. 
Humans require some dietary omega-6 fatty acids; excellent sources are sunflower, pumpkin and sesame seeds. Along with valuable fats, seeds deliver minerals (zinc and copper) plus vitamin E. Most Canadians consume too many omega-6s because these are plentiful in a great many foods and in the oils (corn, safflower, sunflower, soy, cottonseed) used in processed foods. Such oils do provide omega-6s, but without the other beneficial nutrients found in whole foods.
 
Step 5. Select reliable sources of omega-3 fatty acids.
The other fats that we need are omega-3 fatty acids; these are present in far fewer foods. We require three to six grams of omega-3 fatty acids per day. Excellent sources are flaxseed, flaxseed oil, hempseeds, hempseed oil, canola oil and walnuts. Each of the following provides three grams of omega-3 fatty acids: 

1 tsp flaxseed oil 1 tbsp hempseed oil 2 tbsp ground flaxseed 2 tbsp canola oil 1/4 cup walnuts