Trans Fat

Trans Fat

According to medicinenet.com, trans fat are “An unhealthy substance, also known as trans fatty acid, made through the chemical process of hydrogenation of oils. Hydrogenation solidifies liquid oils and increases the shelf life and the flavor stability of oils and foods that contain them.” [retrieved on may 17, 2016 from http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=11091]. There are two types of trans fat in foods: naturally-occurring and artificial, the last one is very comun because is easy to use, inexpensive to produce and last a long time. Also, trans fats give foods a desirable taste and texture, so it’s very popular and it’s very favorable for sellers.

Trans fats increase the levels of bad cholesterol (LDL), therefore eating foods with high levels of trans fats can cause health problems. For example, if somebody had eaten a lot of fried food, he/she would have risked of developing heart disease and stroke. It’s also associated with a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes. In fact, according to medicinenet.com, “In the realm of dietary dangers, trans fats rank very high. It has been estimated that trans fats are responsible for some 30,000 early deaths a year in the United States. Worldwide the toll of premature deaths is in the millions.” [retrieved on may 17, 2016 form http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=11091]

There’s a lot of food that contain trans fat, and how we said before, they are very popular. According to the American Heart Association, “Trans fats can be found in many foods – including fried foods like doughnuts, and baked goods including cakes, pie crusts, biscuits, frozen pizza, cookies, crackers, and stick margarines and other spreads.” [retrieved on may 17, 2016 from http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/HealthyLiving/FatsAndOils/Fats101/Trans-Fats_UCM_301120_Article.jsp#.VzzGa_nhDIU].

We need to avoid the consumption of foods that contain trans fat. One way to do this is to be very stric when buying food. If you see the Nutrition Facts panel in a particular packaged food, you can determine the amount of trans fat that it has. According to the World Health Organization, it is recommended up to 1% of your total caloric intake, this constitutes a maximum consumption of 2 to 2.5 grams of trans fat per day taking as reference a average diet of 2000 to 25000 calories. [retrieved on may 17, 2016 from http://www.vitonica.com/alimentos/grasas-trans-lo-que-tienes-que-saber]