Managing fat intake and reducing saturated fats are essential for weight control and a healthy heart. Try these ideas to reduce the amount of total fat and saturated fat you use in your cooking:

• Make the switch: Trade 2% milk for fat-free milk. During a week's time, a person who drinks 2 cups of milk per day would take in 60 fewer total fat grams and 36 fewer saturated fat grams.
• Forget the skin: Remove the skin from a 3-ounce roasted chicken breast and save nearly 4 fat grams, one of which is saturated fat. For moister chicken, cook with the skin on and remove it before serving.
• Bake, grill, poach, or broil meat instead of frying it. Roast a chicken breast rather than batter fry it and save 8 fat grams, two of which are saturated.
• Grill, broil, or poach fish without fat, or with a "better" fat. Grill salmon without adding olive oil and save 14 fat grams.
• Exchange regular fat for reduced fat. Have 1 tablespoon of reduced-fat cream cheese instead of 1 tablespoon of regular cream cheese and save 2.5 fat grams, 1.5 of which are saturated.
• Go faux. Instead of one fried egg, have a generous cup of eggs scrambled from a fat-free egg substitute using a vegetable oil spray. Save 7 fat grams, 2 saturated fat grams, and 211 cholesterol milligrams. For additional flavor, add veggies, herbs, and spices.
• Indulge in good-quality, nonstick cookware and utensils. Cooking with vegetable oil spray instead of added fat is easier, and cleanup is a breeze.
• Get creative with condiments. Instead of mayonnaise or butter, try a variety of mustards, reduced-fat salad dressings, and fat-free dressings for everything from sandwiches to baked potatoes and vegetables to salads.