Trans Fat, the Bad Fat
by Amy Levendusky
Trans fat (also called trans fatty acids) has been shown to increase the risk for heart disease. Trans fat is formed when liquid vegetable oils go through a chemical process called hydrogenation, in which hydrogen is added to make the oils more solid. Hydrogenated vegetable fats are used by food processors and restaurants because they allow longer shelf-life and give food a more "buttery" taste and texture.
The majority of trans fat can be found in shortenings, stick (or hard) margarine, cookies, crackers, snack foods, fried foods (including fried
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fast food), doughnuts, pastries, baked goods, and other processed foods made with or fried in partially hydrogenated oils. Some trans fat is found naturally in small amounts in various meat and dairy products.
According to research, trans fat is especially heart unhealthy, because it increases LDL ("bad") cholesterol and decreases HDL ("good") cholesterol. Earlier this year, a review of the scientific literature published in the New England Journal of Medicine concluded that, per calorie, trans fats raise the risk of coronary heart disease more than any other micronutrient.
One of the common fats used in Micronesia is shortening or Crisco, which is produced through the hydrogenation process. To protect our health and the health of our family, we need to avoid this fat and take it out of our diets. A healthy substitution for shortening or Crisco would be to use coconut oil which has no trans fat.
Effective Jan. 1, 2006, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the United States requires food companies to list trans fat content separately on the Nutrition Facts panel of all packaged foods. (See Label) Under this rule, consumers can see how much saturated fat, trans fat, and cholesterol are in the foods they choose.
Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC), a global chicken fast food company joins Kellog Company in announcing the use of low-linolenic soybeans to reduce or eliminate trans fats in its products. The switch to the new oil to replace partially hydrogenated soybean oil will be completed by April 2007.
This fall, the New York City Board of Health voted unanimously to consider banning trans fat in food served at the city's 20,000 restaurants. Days after the New York vote, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommended that governments worldwide move to phase out trans fats.
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