Trans Fat

Trans fat has been spending its share of time in the headlines lately, and finally the news is looking up for you, the consumer. Trans fat still plays a major role in increasing the risk of heart disease. But, the good news is that trans fat is now required to be listed on the Nutrition Facts label of foods and more food producers are finding ways to avoid unhealthy trans fat in their products.

The bottom line: Armed with a little knowledge, you can make your way through the trans fat maze with flying colors, while reducing your risk for heart disease.

What is trans fat and where does it come from?

Trans fat is created when liquid vegetable oil is processed or “hydrogenated” into a solid fat. Hydrogenated and partially-hydrogenated vegetable oil looks and acts more like butter, lard and other saturated animal fats during baking, so it improves the taste and texture of baked and fried foods. Food manufacturers started using trans fat when researchers found that saturated fats like butter and lard contributed to heart disease and high LDL (lousy) cholesterol. Using trans fat also helped to extend the shelf life, stabilize the flavor and improve the texture of packaged foods.

It didn’t take long for researchers to find that trans fat, like saturated fat, raises LDL (lousy) blood cholesterol levels. Even worse, trans fat may decrease the HDL (healthy) blood cholesterol that helps protect against heart disease. Studies have found that trans fat can also increase heart disease risk in other ways that include increasing triglyceride levels and preventing blood vessels from dilating. The effects of trans fat add up to a powerful increase in the risk for heart disease—not a healthy fat!

How can I tell if a food contains trans fat?

Trans fats are found in about 40% of foods on grocery store shelves. You are most likely to find trans fat in vegetable shortenings, stick margarines, crackers, candies, cookies, snack foods, microwave popcorn, fried foods, doughnuts, pastries, baking mixes and icings, and store-bought baked goods. Fried foods in restaurants are typically fried in partially hydrogenated oils, so these foods also have a high trans fat content. Some meats and dairy products contain a naturally occurring amount of trans fat.

If you look at the nutrition facts label on these common foods, you will probably see an amount of trans fat listed on the label. If you look at the ingredients list, you will see “partially-hydrogenated” oil or “shortening” in the list. However, according to food labeling rules, a food can be labeled “0 grams trans fat” or “no trans fat” if there is less than 0.5 grams of trans fat per serving of the food. These foods may still contain partially hydrogenated oil or shortening in the ingredients list and still contain trans fat, but they are not required to list the amount of trans fat.

What’s the best way to avoid eating trans fat?

Even though trans fat is now listed on the label and many foods boast “Trans Fat Free” or “Zero Trans Fats”, snack foods and packaged baked goods still contain a high amount of fat and calories and should be eaten in moderation.

Your best defense:

1. Learn how to identify high fat and trans fat foods.
   • Check the Nutrition Facts panel on food labels, and avoid foods with trans fat and more than 1 gram of saturated fat.
   • Avoid foods that have the words "hydrogenated” or “partially-hydrogenated" in the ingredient list on the food label.
     
     
2. Limit your intake of foods that are likely to have trans fat.
   • Vegetable shortenings, some margarines
   • Crackers, cookies, snack foods
   • Fried foods such as French fries or donuts
   • When dining out, the best way to avoid trans fat is to avoid fried foods. Some restaurants may have their nutrition facts online and you can always ask for an ingredients list or ask what type of oil they use for frying or cooking.
     
     
3. Choose unprocessed foods most of the time by shopping the outer edges of the grocery store. Most processed foods are located in the inner aisles.
   
   
4. Substitute unsaturated fats for the trans fats and saturated fats in your diet.
   • Choose moderate amounts of monounsaturated fats such as olive oil, canola oil, peanut oil, almonds, walnuts and avocados. These monounsaturated fats may actually raise the HDL (healthy) cholesterol levels in the blood and help protect against heart disease.