Fat Percentages Explained

Percentage Of Energy From Fats

While health authorities recommend that not more than 30% of our total energy intake (calories/kilojoules) should come from fat, it is not implied nor even recommended that you eat only those foods with less than 30% energy from fat.

Our normal diet is made up of foods that are either well above or below 30%. Only on average should a meal or total day's eating be less than 30% energy from fat.

Some higher fat foods such as avocados, nuts and seeds, are highly nutritious and favour lower blood cholesterol levels. Moderation is the aim . . . not elimination.

Nevertheless, knowing the percentage of energy from fat can be useful in spotting high-fat foods and drinks.

Formula For Calculating Percentage Energy From Fat:

Example:

Mars Bar (11g fat, 265 cals)
Percentage calories from fat

Percent Fat Contents In Food

Don't be fooled by promotion of foods claiming to have a low percentage of fat. It's serving size and total grams of fat that count.

For example, whole milk with 3.8% fat sounds low (3.8g fat/100ml) but a 250ml cup contains 9.5g fat (and 2 cups contain 19g fat).

Icecream with 10% fat seems high, yet a large scoop (50g) has only 5g fat. (Low-fat icecream has less than 2g fat/serve.)

Note: The percentage of fat in a food is not the same as the percentage of calories or kilojoules derived from fat.

Foods with a low percentage of fat can still have a high percentage of energy derived from fat - as shown below.

For example, around 50% of total energy in whole milk comes from fat - yet whole milk has less than 4% fat. Low fat milk with less than 1% fat has only 20% of total energy from fat - a much better choice.

How To Calculate The Amount Of Fat Corresponding To A Set Percentage Of Calories From Fat.

Example:

An active person who consumes 3,000 calories per day (12,540 kilojoules) wished to calculate the amount of fat corresponding to 30% fat calories.

1. Calculate 30% of 3,000 calories
   = 900 fat calories.
2. Divide by 9 since each gram fat supplies 9 calories.
   = 100 grams fat.
   

Fat Content & Percentages of Milk

Last updated: April 2nd, 2002