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Good
News
Really good news: By the year 2006, trans fats
must be listed on food labels. They were introduced into
our diet in 1911. By 2006 the industry will have had a free
ride on our health for 95 years. That’s a long time.
Harvard School of Public Health’s (conservative)
estimate of 30,000 annual American deaths from eating trans fats makes industry’s addition of these silent killers
to our foods an atrocity, and while far less violent and dramatic
than the terrorism in the news, a thousand times more deadly.
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A Long Fight
It’s been a long fight. Researchers have been expressing
concern for several decades. I began talking about the dangers
of trans fats in 1980. Some researchers were concerned back
in the 1960s. Harvard School of Public Health got involved
in 1994. The FDA was sued and fought and resisted for more
than a decade. But it looks like the fight’s been won.
The White House sent a letter
to USDA and HHS (US Dep't of Agriculture & Health and Human
Services) to recommend decreasing trans fats in foods because
they increase deaths
from cardiovascular disease.
The industry has for all of these years fought those who want
them to change and be accountable. But the research about the
negative health consequences of trans fats is so consistent
that finally the change will come. What does that research
say?
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Research on trans fats
According to Harvard School of Public health, Trans Fatty acids
double risk of heart attack, increase diabetes, and kill
at least 30,000 Americans every year.
Other
research suggests that Trans Fatty acids interfere
with vision and learning in children; correlate with
increased breast and prostate cancer; increase platelet
stickiness and thereby raise risk of stroke and embolism,
as well as heart attack. trans fats interfere
with the liver’s detoxification function. They
impair both male and female reproduction in animals (no
human studies have been published). trans fats
change the way our immune system functions. And trans fats
make essential omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acid requirement higher
by interfering with the functions of these two essential
fatty acids in our body. |
About Time to Have a Choice
The FDA ruling that they must be listed on food labels by the
year 2006: It’s about time!!
If Trans Fatty acids are not listed on labels, consumers cannot
make good choices for their health. Full disclosure of all
ingredients and accurate guidelines are required.
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Consumers Even Follow
Bad Advice
It is clear that consumers are interested in health and are
willing to follow guidelines. To their detriment, they
followed the recommendations made 20 years ago by government
to eat
less fat (they should have been told to eat less bad fat
and more good fat). They reduced their fat intake from
42% of calories to 32% of calories.
Consumers were
also told to eat more carbohydrates,
and they did that, too. That piece of bad advice (carbohydrates
are the least important food because there are no essential
carbohydrates) led overweight to increase from 25% of
the population to 65%. Obesity has more than doubled.
Childhood obesity has more than tripled. Diabetes has
close to doubled. All of this has happened because of
this bad advice.
Anyone who says that people are not willing to make
changes in their diet to improve health is not paying
attention to what is going on. Clearly, people are
willing. They just need good advice.
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Sources of trans fats
Where are trans fats found?
They are everywhere in processed
and convenience foods.
- Trans Fats are present in partially hydrogenated vegetable
oils, which are found in many margarines and in shortening.
- trans fats are widespread in processed foods, including some
granola bars, breakfast cereals, low fat foods, fish sticks,
frozen pizza, and other frozen foods.
- trans fats are abundant in many baked goods (baked bad?) such
as donuts, crackers, cookies, cakes, bread, and frostings.
- trans fats are present in some puddings, peanut butter,
instant soup mixes, and microwave popcorn.
- trans fats are used in some spreads, sauces, dips, and gravy
mixes.
- trans fats are part of powdered non-dairy coffee creamers.
- trans fats are used for frying in many fast food restaurants.
- trans fats are present in French fries packaged for home frying.
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Many potato and corn chips are fried in partially hydrogenated
vegetable oils containing trans fats.
- trans fats are present even in some cooking oils.
Not all of the above foods contain trans fats, and all of
the above foods could be made without them. You have to read
labels to find out whether they contain trans fats. The words “partially
hydrogenated vegetable (or corn, or soybean, or canola) oil” or
the words “vegetable shortening” indicate that trans fats are present.
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Doing the Math
To find out how much Trans Fat is present in a food, you have
to do some math. If you subtract from the total fat in a
product the sum of adding saturated + monounsaturated + polyunsaturated
fat the number you get is the amount of Trans Fat in the
product.
When trans fats are listed by quantities on the label, consumers’ choices
will be a lot simpler. And that’s what full disclosure
is about.
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Avoiding trans fats Made Simple
If you eat fresh, whole, organic foods—foods the
way God and nature made them, you will get no trans fats
in most
products. Only dairy fat (homogenized milk, whole milk,
butter, cream, sour cream, cream cheese, and cheese) and
beef, lamb,
and goat meat always contain some trans fats.
If non-dairy meat animals are fed bagged foods containing trans fats, these trans fats may end up in the meat, then
on our table, and then in our body. This is a good reason
for meat eaters to choose ‘free range’ or ‘range
fed’ meat and ‘wild catch’ fish.
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Summary
In 3 years’ time, health-damaging trans fats will
require listing on labels. The research is strong, the
industry resistant, and the FDA has—finally—been
forced to face the issue for the sake of the citizens.
Without listing trans fats on labels, consumers are
robbed of choice in their own health care.
While we wait, we can easily avoid trans fats by eating
whole, fresh foods the way Nature made them, which is
the way they are best for our health. By avoiding processed
foods, many of which contain trans fats, we can serve
our health without trying to decipher labels and fine
print hidden in packaging crevices.
Fresh vegetables, grains, seeds, nuts, and fruit
are free of trans fats. Among foods of animal origin, ‘wild
catch’ fish and organically grown pork, chicken
and turkey are free of trans fats.
Only dairy fat, beef, and lamb naturally contain trans fats. Other meat animals may contain trans fats if these
twisted molecules are added to their foods. Certified
organic meat does not contain trans fats.
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All content Copyright © Udo Erasmus 2003 |
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