Trans fats are created through an industrial process called partial hydrogenation that turns oil, usually a liquid vegetable oil, into a more solid form
By: Rameck Hunt, M.D.
Heart disease, cancer, diabetes, immune dysfunction, obesity
and reproductive problems are just some of the known health problems that researchers
have linked to the consumption of trans fatty acids.
Trans fats are commonly found in margarine and solid vegetable
shortening. They also turn up in many popular snack foods, such as doughnuts,
crackers, cookies, chips, cakes, pies and bread. By some estimates, some Americans
eat as many as 30 to 40 grams of trans fat every day. To put that into perspective,
one large serving of fast food fries contains 8 grams of trans fat. Four cookies
may contain 1.5 grams of trans fat.
Consumed in excessive amounts, trans fats can be lethal.
Just what kind of effect do they have on health and health care costs? Top
nutritionists at Harvard University say that trans fat is responsible for at
least 30,000 deaths related to coronary disease per year.
The Food and Drug Administration estimates that some 6,300
heart attacks could be prevented each year by removing trans fatty acids from
all margarines. The FDA also estimates that $59 billion could be saved in health
care costs over the next 20 years if trans fats were eliminated by just 3 percent
in all breads and cakes and by 15 percent in all cookies and crackers.
And a major study published last year in the New England
Journal of Medicine confirms the harmful health effects of trans fats. In an
analysis involving nearly 140,000 subjects, the study discovered that a 2-percent
increase in energy intake from trans fatty acids was associated with a 23-percent
increase in the incidence of coronary heart disease.
The American Heart Association and virtually every health
authority and expert in the country have been calling for a reduction of trans
fat in the American diet as well as responsible food labeling by producers
to accurately reflect the amount of trans fat in packaged foods.
New York City became the first major city in the country to answer that call. Last December, the Board of Health unanimously voted to ban unhealthy trans fats in restaurant cooking. All city restaurants from the fast food joint on the corner to the fanciest, upscale eateries have
until July 1 to replace cooking oils containing trans fats with healthier alternatives.
By July 2008, they must eliminate trans fats from all foods they serve.
In February, the Philadelphia City Council followed New York’s
lead by voting to require city restaurants to eliminate trans fats by Sept.
1. The movement has caught on, with at least 13 other states considering similar
action.
There are four kinds of fats typically found in foods. Monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats are considered the "good" fats. Saturated fats and trans fats are considered the "bad" fats. Trans fats are considered the worst kind because they raise "bad" cholesterol LDL, the main source of cholesterol buildup and blockage in the arteries. They also lower "good" cholesterol HDL,
which carries cholesterol from the blood back to the liver, processing the
cholesterol for elimination from the body and making it less likely for it
to be deposited in the coronary arteries. As a result, eating trans fats contributes
to the risk of developing heart disease and having a stroke.
Unlike the healthier fats that occur naturally in foods,
trans fats are created through an industrial process called partial hydrogenation
that turns oil, usually a liquid vegetable oil, into a more solid form. The
process prolongs shelf life in baked products and provides longer life for
cooking oils used in frying.
The best strategy when it comes to fat in the diet is to
restrict saturated fats, which occur in meat and dairy products, and to eliminate
all trans fats. There are some simple steps you can do on a daily basis to
cut your consumption of trans fats.
- Use olive oil for all cooking. If you wish
to use margarine, use trans fat-free margarine, which usually comes in a
soft tub or liquid form. Avoid stick margarine, as it has about 1.9 grams
of trans fat, more than twice the same amount of regular tub margarine, which
has .8 grams of trans fat. The general rule of thumb when it comes to margarine
is the softer the better. - Avoid deep-fried foods, especially when eating
out. One whole batter-dipped fried onion has 18 grams of trans fats. Onion
rings, french fries, fried seafood and fried fish also carry unhealthy amounts
of trans fats. - Try to avoid foods with labels that say they are made with "partially hydrogenated" oils. The higher up these words appear on the list of ingredients, the higher the levels of trans fat these foods will contain. If the label does not list trans fat, note the total number of fat grams. Add up the fats that are listed saturated, monounsaturated, polyunsaturated and
subtract from the total number of fat grams. The difference is trans fat.
For more information about trans fats and the health risks
they pose, visit www.heart.org. To find a physician with Princeton HealthCare
System, visit www.princetonhcs.org or
call (888) 742-7496.

