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Everyday Health  Diet & Nutrition 

Fat-Restricted Diet

What Is a Fat-Restricted Diet?

A fat-restricted diet limits the amount of fat you can consume each day.

Why Should I Follow a Fat-Restricted Diet?

This diet may be prescribed for certain conditions that make it di cult for the body to digest fat, such
as chronic pancreatitis and gallbladder disease. Following a fat-restricted diet will minimize the
unpleasant side e ects of fat malabsorption, such as diarrhea , gas, and cramping.

Fat-Restricted Diet Basics

A fat-restricted diet typically limits fat intake to 50 grams per day. Fat contains nine calories per gram.
So, if you need a total of 2,000 calories per day, this means that only about 22% of those calories can
be from fat. The rest should be from carbohydrate or protein.

For most people, it's possible to meet all nutrient requirements on this diet. But, depending on how
long you follow it and how much fat you can digest, a supplement may be recommended. Vitamins A,
D, E and K are fat-soluble, which means they need fat to be absorbed. Ask your doctor or a registered
dietitian about supplementing with vitamins.

Eating Guide for a Fat-Restricted Diet

The following guide is broken down into categories based on the MyPyramid recommendations for
healthy eating. It is recommended that you work with a registered dietitian to determine how many
servings from each category you should eat. Here are some general recommendations:

The base of your diet should be composed of grains, vegetables, and fruit. Strive to eat foods
from these three categories at every meal.

Limit your intake of meat, sh, poultry, and eggs to 6 ounces per day.

Consume no more than 3 teaspoons of fat per day (such as vegetable oils, butter and margarine).
 Enjoy low-fat or fat-free sweets and snack foods in moderation.
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If you enjoy healthy fats (such as nuts, olives and avocados), ask your doctor or dietitian how you
can add these foods into your diet. Since these foods have a lot of fat, they need to be added to
your day's intake of fat.

Food Category Foods Recommended Foods to Avoid

Grains
Whole-grain breads Fried rice

Low-fat whole-grain cereals Granola

Rice Biscuits

Pasta or noodles Sweet rolls

Homemade pancakes or French Mu ns, scones, co ee bread,

toast made with minimal fat doughnuts

Low-fat crackers Most pancakes and wa es

Baked chips Cheese bread

Pretzels

Unbuttered popcorn

Vegetables
Fresh, frozen or canned vegetables Vegetables prepared with butter, oil
or sauce

Fried vegetables

Mashed potatoes made with butter,

margarine, or cream

French fries

Fruit
Fresh, frozen, canned, or dried Avocados, coconuts, and olives
 fruits Fruit prepared with butter, cream, or
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sauce

Milk
Fat-free milk Reduced-fat (2%) or whole milk

Low-fat or nonfat cheeses Chocolate milk

Fat-free yogurt or ke r Cream (whipped, heavy, sour, etc.)

Fat-free buttermilk Whole-milk yogurt

Regular cheese

Meat and Beans

Lean meats Fatty cuts of meat

Chicken or turkey without the skin Duck or goose

Lean sh Bacon

Beans and legumes Sausage or hot dogs

Egg whites (limit whole eggs to 3 Cold cuts

per week)
Fish canned in oil

Nuts and peanut butter

Oils
Fat-free salad dressings Vegetable oils in excess of allowed
amount
Fat-free mayonnaise
Regular salad dressing
Nonstick cooking sprays

Fats and Sweets (in

Honey Butter, margarine, lard, shortening in
moderation)
excess of allowed amount
Jam
Snack chips
Hard candies
 Jelly beans Ice cream
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Marshmallows Pastries, pie, cake, and cookies

Low-fat or fat-free ice cream or Chocolate

frozen yogurt
Most candy
Sherbets or fruit ice

Jell-O

Angel food cake

Beverages
Co ee, tea Frappes, milk shakes

Carbonated beverages Eggnog

Juice

Water

Co ee drinks made with fat-free

milk

Cocoa made with fat-free milk

Other
Soups made from a fat-free milk or Cream soups
broth base
Non-dairy creamer
Herbs and spices

Salt (in moderation)

Suggestions on Eating a Fat-Restricted Diet

Look for the following key phrases on food labels: low-fat, nonfat and fat-free.

Choose foods that contain less than 3 grams of fat per serving. Be sure to eat only one serving.
 Avoid fried and sautéed foods. Use low-fat cooking methods, such as baking, roasting, broiling,
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poaching, grilling, boiling, or steaming.

Select lean cuts of meat, such as loin and round. Trim visible fat before cooking.

Eat small frequent meals, rather than two or three large meals. This will make it easier for your
body to digest any fat that you consume.

Work with a registered dietitian to come up with an individualized diet plan.

RESOURCES:

American Dietetic Association

http://www.eatright.org/

National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases

http://diabetes.niddk.nih.gov/

CANADIAN RESOURCES:

Canadian Association of Gastroenterology

http://www.cag-acg.org/default.aspx/

Dietitians of Canada
http://www.dietitians.ca/

References:

Nutrition care manual. American Dietetic Association website. Available at:

http://nutritioncaremanual.org/auth.cfm?p=%2Findex.cfm%3F. Accessed January 3, 2009.

Restricted fat diet. Ohio State University Medical Center website. Available at:
http://medicalcenter.osu.edu/pdfs/patiented/materials/pdfdocs/nut-diet/nut-other/restrict.pdf .
Accessed April 16, 2007.

Steps to a healthier you. US Department of Agriculture website. Available at:

http://www.mypyramid.gov/. Accessed January 3, 2010.
Last reviewed March 2011 by Maria Adams, MS, MPH, RD
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Last updated Updated: 3/29/2011

Copyright © 2010 EBSCO Publishing All rights reserved.

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