Trans Fats Nutrition Facts

There's a lot of focus on trans fats these days; we read about it in the news, there's talk of pending legislation against trans fats, we're bombarded with the term. Unfortunately for most consumers there is no real education or understanding about what trans fats truly are and why they are so bad for us. And, in typical manufacturing fashion, a lot of food production companies want to get your dollars and your brand-loyalty by boldly printing "Trans Fat Free" on their label. Sadly, they may not be telling the truth.

So what is a trans fat really? In very plain English a trans fat is a liquid fat that is turned into a solid. Although there are very small amounts of natural trans fats in meat and dairy products the overwhelming majority of them are created by adding hydrogen to liquid fat, which makes it solidify. Manufacturers do this because it makes the product last longer on the shelf. Ever wonder why cookies can still be crisp and "tasty" after six months to a year on a grocery store shelf? It's because of trans fats. Trans fats are are typically found in things like donuts, french fries, margarine, vegetable shortening, cookies, microwave popcorn, and potato chips.

Why are trans fats bad for you? Your body treats trans fats similarly to saturated fats, helping to raise LDL (bad) cholesterol levels; this can lead to heart disease and stroke. However, trans fats also reduce the levels of HDL (good) cholesterol, making heart disease an even bigger possibility. The effect is cumulative, taking years for the effects to show up.

Why can the label state trans fat free when it isn't? Because of the way the nutrition labeling laws work the FDA has allowed that if a food has less than .5 grams per serving it can be classified as trans fat free. That's if you eat a serving size of whatever the product is. Read the label and you may discover that the package actually contains 6 servings and you just ate three of them for a snack. You've just consumed a potential 1.49 grams of trans fats. Because most fast food restaurants do not list ingredient and nutrition information at the counter you may be surprised at what you are eating. An article in Men's Health magazine pointed out that although KFC makes bold claims about having no trans fats, partially hydrogenated oils appeared 91 times among the ingredients from the menu list.

How do you really know if there are trans fats in the food you are eating? Aside from the obvious injunction to eat less processed foods is the ever important step that most people skip because they think it's boring, read the label. Your health is not boring. One way to truly understand what you are eating is to read the label. Yes it takes longer but it's important. Another is to understand your ingredients. Anything on the label that says hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated, even if the package states "Trans Fat Free", has trans fats in it. If this concerns you, and it should, don't buy that product. Make a different choice, a choice for your health.

References:

University of Maryland Medical Center, 2009
eatthis.menshealth.com, 2008, Rodale, Inc.