What Should You Be EatingAnd What You Should Be Avoiding... Amy's Blog
27/05/09 09:04
What is a Trans Fat?
Simply put, it is a type of fat that is made when liquid oils are made into a solid shortening in a process that makes the oil partially hydrogenated. Food manufacturers prefer it because partially hydrogenated oils are cheaper to use and create products with a longer shelf-life.
What foods have Trans Fat?
The main sources of food with Trans Fat in the U.S. are snack foods, cookies, cakes, doughnuts, pies, fried foods and some brands of stick margarine.
Why are Trans Fats a health threat?
Trans fats raise total and LDL, the bad cholesterol, and promote coronary heart disease, atherosclerosis and high blood pressure.
What are the current recommendations?
Depends on who you ask, but the bottom line is the less the better.
- The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends an upper limit of 1% of total calories from Trans Fat
- The American Heart Association recommends consuming no more than 2 grams of Trans Fat per day.
- The 2005 U.S. Dietary Guidelines recommend trans fat consumption be as low as possible.
How can we limit Trans Fat in our diet?
You can use the nutrition fact label on foods which now lists the amount of Trans Fat per serving. However, there is an important caveat, which is so significant that it is the basis of pending lawsuits - there is currently a loophole in that food manufacturers can claim their product has zero Trans Fat, despite having up to .49 gm per serving. Since serving sizes are notoriously small compared to usual intakes, exceeding the recommended upper limit of 2 grams per day is quite possible.
The bottom line is to avoid any food with partially hydrogenated oils in the ingredient list.
Web resources:
www.cfsan.fda.gov
www.bantransfats.com