Recently there has been a lot of publicity against the use of trans fats in the media. Just recently New York State banned the use of trans fats in restaurants. Trans fat is the common name for unsaturated fat with trans-isomer fatty acid(s). Trans fats are chemically synthesized oils which are partially infused with hydrogen in order to make it more spreadable like margarine. This makes it more appealing to customers and ultimately more profitable for companies. Unfortunately, trans fats cause more harm that good. So what exactly is all the fuss about anyway? What are the danger of trans fats?
Dangers of Trans Fats
1.
Trans fats raise your bad cholesterol (LDL) and lower your good
cholesterol (HDL). This ultimately increases your risk of heart disease, which is the leading cause of death of men and women in the country.
2.Trans fats increase your triglyceride levels which may contribute to hardening of the arteries or thickening of the artery walls. This increases the risk of stroke, heart attack and heart disease.
3.Trans fats causes inflammation. Inflammation is a process by which the body responds to injury. It's thought that inflammation plays a key role in the formation of fatty blockages in heart blood vessels. Trans fat damages the cells lining blood vessels which leads to tissue scaring.
Any scar on the body develops a scab. In the blood vessel, this scab is covered with oil or cholesterol to allow the blood to flow over the scab easily. As the cholesterol builds, it eventually blocks the whole artery resulting in a stroke or heart attack. A stroke occurs when the blood vessels to the brain are blocked. A heart attack occurs when the blood vessels to the heart are blocked.
How to Beware of Trans Fats
Trans fat is found in many products because it is cheap to manufacture. It can be commonly found in many baked goods and commercial packaged products. Beware of any foods that have the words "partially hydrogenated vegetable oil” or as “partially hydrogenated oil” listed as an ingredient. Also beware of anything that has shortening in it, because this means that the product has trans fat.
