This week in our Explainer we are going to tell you all about Trans fats.
What are trans fats?
Trans fatty acids, or ‘trans fats’, are a type of fat created through a manufacturing process called ‘hydrogenation’. It involves taking an unsaturated fat like a vegetable oil – which is a liquid at room temperature – and processing it with hydrogen to make it become solid at room temperature.
It’s how they make margarine, which would otherwise be runny! Because the process improves the stability of the fat – making it more resistant to becoming rancid – it is the type of fat frequently used in the manufacture of commercial baked goods like biscuits, cakes and other snack foods as well as fried fast foods, because it helps give the products a longer shelf life.
In the last decade, trans fats have become one of the biggest dietary health concerns. High levels of trans fat have been linked to a higher risk of coronary heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes – some research reports they can worsen everything from Alzheimer’s Disease to cancer.
Trans fats increase our risk of heart disease by increasing the ‘bad’ LDL cholesterol, while also lowering the ‘good’ HDL cholesterol in our blood. There are no positive benefits from trans fats so they should be avoided wherever possible. These fats are literally as bad and unhealthy as it gets and pretty much everyone in the nutrition field agrees with this.
How can I avoid trans fats?
You can avoid trans fats by eating healthy food and we give you some tips below. Keep in mind though, we tend to eat a lot of saturated fat as well and this is not as bad as trans fats. If you eat too much saturated fat it can be unhealthy for you but if you limit saturated fat to roughly 10 per cent of your calorie intake per day, most health professionals consider this is fine, or even beneficial.
Not so with trans fats – this type of fat should be completely cut out of your diet.
To avoid trans fats you need to:
1. Choose polyunsaturated and monounsaturated spreads and margarines – these are usually the ones made from canola, sunflower or olive oil, and dairy blends with the Heart Foundation Tick instead of butter. Spread thinly so you can still see the bread.
2. Cook with polyunsaturated or monounsaturated oils, such as canola, sunflower, soybean, olive, sesame and peanut oils. Measure out your oil with a teaspoon or use a spray oil.
3. Grill, bake or poach, steam or stir fry rather than shallow or deep frying and roasting in oil so that you don’t need to use a lot of fat.
4. Choose lean meat and trim some of the visible fat.
5. Choose reduced, low or no fat dairy foods. Opt for cheeses that are lower in saturated fat, such as cottage cheese, ricotta and light tasty cheddar.
6. Try to limit the amount of fast foods and take-away meals including deep-fried and baked foods such as store-bought biscuits, pastries, pies and cakes, to once a week.
7. Avoid foods showing ‘hydrogenated oils’ or ‘partially hydrogenated vegetable oils’ in the ingredients list.
The Heart Foundation Tick
To earn the Heart Foundation Tick, vegetable oils and margarines must contain no more than one per cent trans fat as part of their total fat. Other products must be virtually free of trans fat to qualify for the Tick. For more info visit here.
The US has banned trans fat
Just recently, on 16 June 2015, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) came out with a final verdict trans fats are not generally recognised as safe. They set a three-year time limit for the removal of trans fats from all processed foods. In the UK, in recent years many food manufacturers have removed trans fats from their products.
In Australia the law doesn’t currently enforce companies to even list trans fats on the labels of food. The Australian Heart Foundation is now lobbying the government for mandatory labelling of trans fat but in the meantime, look for foods with the Heart Foundation Tick.
