Trans-Fat Free Food Doesn't Mean Fat Free Food

Trans-fats have been in the news quite a bit lately. In fact, you may have heard that New York passed a law, which goes into effect in 2008, banning these dangerous and unnatural additives. The law states that restaurants can no longer use the partly hydrogenated oils that produce trans-fats in their foods.

Why the fuss? Well, scientific studies have linked trans fats to heart disease.

But a lot of consumers are confused. Many think that "no trans-fat" means fat free. This is not true. Unhealthy saturated fats, which are the artery-clogging animal fats, as well as the healthier unsaturated fats are still in many of the foods you eat, and you should know the difference. It's recommended that adults get no more than 10% of their daily calories from saturated fats. Aside from the fact that many fats are unhealthy, they can impact your waistline too. At nine calories per gram, versus four calories for proteins and carbohydrates, fats pack twice the caloric punch of their macro-nutrient counterparts.

Here are a few examples of how the latest news on trans fats can be misleading:

Starbucks recently announced that their baked goods will be trans-fat free. While that's a positive step, their products are still loaded with unhealthy crap - it's just trans-fat free crap. Yet many consumers may feel that it's okay to eat more of these products now that they're trans-fat free. Not so.

Some Subway sandwich shops are now displaying window advertisements showing two cookies and this tag line: "No more guilt. Our cookies have no trans-fat."

And most recently, the Girl Scouts announced that their cookies are now trans-fat free. But even with the changes, most varieties are still high in sugar and saturated fat.

With this misleading publicity, the average person will probably consume more of these products thinking that they're fat free. But the bottom line is that although many junk foods and fast foods may now be trans-fat free, they're still junk foods just the same. You can call a rattlesnake by any name you like, but it's still a venomous animal that can poison you.

Here's the "skinny" on trans-fatty acids, better known as trans-fats:

Trans fatty acids are produced by heating liquid vegetable oils in the presence of hydrogen. This process is known as hydrogenation. The more hydrogenated an oil is, the harder it will be at room temperature. For example, spreadable tub margarine is less hydrogenated, and therefore has fewer trans-fats, than stick margarine.

These artificially made oils are derived from, and interfere with, the omega-3 and omega-6 essential fatty acids. The body is not capable of manufacturing essential fatty acids. Since they are "essential" they must be obtained through the diet. But not only do trans-fats destroy these essential nutrients, they make them toxic. This double effect makes hydrogenation so detrimental.

Simply put, molecules are dangerously transformed during the process of partial hydrogenation. Full hydrogenation makes less toxic, but still unhealthy, saturated fats.

Trans-fats lower good cholesterol and raise bad cholesterol. They are found in nearly all store-bought baked goods made with shortening. Unfortunately, 99% of commercial fries and 90% of chips, shortenings and margarines contain trans-fats. About 40% of the fat in U.S. donuts, fries, store-bought cookies, crackers and margarines include trans-fats.

As a result of the health concerns associated with these dangerous fats, the Food and Drug Administration began requiring trans-fat information on food labels last year. However, under FDA rules, if a product has less than half a gram per serving it is allowed to make a "zero grams of trans-fat" claim.

But if you eat several servings in a day, you could still consume 2 or 3 grams of trans-fat. That's significant and can't be overlooked.

So how can you tell if the food you're eating really contains trans-fats? Well, if the ingredient list includes "shortening" or "partially hydrogenated vegetable oil" it has at least some trans-fats.

Remember, a healthy diet and sound nutrition require more than just eating less unhealthy foods; they require eating a lot more healthy foods as well.

Sean Kennedy is a freelance writer in Los Angeles. He has been working in the health and fitness business for a decade; training, teaching, writing, lecturing, and consulting.

Copyright © 2007 Sean M. Kennedy. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without the author's consent.