While it is true that obesity has many causes and not all of them dietary, it is correspondingly true that the eating of excessive fat contributes to the limiting condition. This is something parents of young children have to watch carefully. It's generally true that children like fried food, because this means of cooking slightly caramelizes the food by burning natural sugars. In short, it tastes sweet.
Grilling, often thought to be healthier, has a similar total effect, and so too does roasting.
But the real villain where fat consumption is concerned is frying, because the food often has fat added to it, the overriding task of which is to discourage meat from sticking to the hot metal pan.
Many oils are sold as healthy ways to cook, however they are still fats and will have an impact on your fat intake.
One way to counter this is to use non-stick cookware, and leave out the extra fat altogether.
This mode of cookware has had some adverse comment recently, and pet lovers in particular have been worried by it. There has been much unverified supposition that the death of caged birds has been linked to harmful fumes from heated non-stick surfaces.
It's important to understand that this has been about Teflon coated surfaces. There are quantities of other non-stick surfaces available which do not have this kind of criticism attached.
In fact the use of this type of cooking surface has now become so common, it has led to a new style of healthy home cooking using those double-sided grills.
These have an added fat-reducing bonus in that any grease cooked out of the meat runs away into a separate tray, and of course there's no need for any extra oil to prevent food sticking.
This means that low fat cuts of meat such as prime steak and loin of lamb remain just that, low fat. This is a huge bonus not just for those of us fighting weight-gain, but for anyone who cares about having a healthy life-style.
It's very easy to cook with these grills, and this may well mean more home cooked food and less takeaways. In addition, these grills cook food quickly, further helping the busy family cook to 'do the right thing'.
If the well-being assertions don't convince you, perhaps the budget ones will. Most non-stick cookware is made from aluminium, making it less costly than stainless steel and cast iron.
What's more, a simple rinse in warm, soapy water is all that is entailed to keep non-stick surfaces clean. That should convince even the most reluctant cook to make the change.
