Trans fats were developed in the early
20th century in an attempt to find cheaper
fats to use in cooking that would not melt
or deteriorate as fast as butters and
liquid oils.
1 Today, trans fats appear in many
food products, from muffins and cookies to
ice cream, to canned goods. Processed
foods are a common source of trans fats in
the modern diet, due to the fact that
trans fats increase the shelf life of food
goods. Fast foods are particularly an area
of concern, because their presence in fast
food results in high amounts of trans fat
being consumed by young people and old
alike when they need food “on the go”.
2
The way trans fats were and are made
was to heat naturally occurring fats in
the presence of a metal catalyst and
hydrogen. The catalyst is there to speed
up or increase the chance that the
hydrogenation reaction would occur. This
adds hydrogen atoms (hence the term
“partially hydrogenates”) to the fat
molecule. Before the addition of the
hydrogen atoms, the fatty acid chain was
bent at the point where hydrogen atoms
were missing. Once the hydrogens have been
added, however, the molecule straightens
out, and “packs” more closely with other
fatty acid chains. The closer the
molecules pack to each other, the more
solid the fat will be. Hence, liquid oils
become semi-solid. It was found that
hydrogenation had the added benefit of
prolonging the time when rancidity would
end the shelf life of the product. This is
done by changing the natural bent shape of
a fat molecule and making it a straight
shape.
3
Trans fats serve as a catalyst for
inflammation all over the body.
4 This may result in many health
problems, but in particular, trans fats is
implicated as a major contributing factor
to heart disease. .
Another problem is that because of the
straight shape, trans fats cause LDL (bad
cholesterol) to rise, while lowering HDL
(good cholesterol). Triglycerides also are
increased as a result of increased trans
fat consumption. Both of these factors may
account for the increase in coronary heart
disease deaths in individuals who consume
a diet with trans fats.
5
Today, with trans fat having been
implicated as a causative factor in heart
disease, we are starting to see many
products that are advertised as “trans-fat
free”. This is deceptive, as manufacturers
are allowed to say that their product is
trans- fat free as long as the level of
trans fat is below “half a gram per
serving”. Serving, of course, may be set
abnormally low by the amount of the
product that will contain less than half a
gram! To be absolutely safe, check the
ingredients. If the product says:
“hydrogenated” or “partially
hydrogenated”, those words are evidence
that trans fats are present in the
product. One thing to look for is USDA
certified organic products, as trans fats
are absolutely prohibited in such foods.
6
Fat
Substitutes:
Several artificial fats have been made
by manufacturers in order to placate the
public’s desire to have the smooth texture
on their tongue that fats normally
provide, but without the calories or
cholesterol.
To date, these are: Simplesse, Oatrim,
Olestra, and products fortified by plant
based ester compounds.
Simplesse is comprised of a protein
derived from milk and egg whites, and has
about 1/5 the calories of natural fats.
Then the protein is heated and whipped
into tiny particles that, while they have
no taste, they have a similar texture to
fat when on the human taste buds. It is
used in foods such as salad dressings,
mayo, and dairy products. It will degrade
when heated however, so it may not be used
in foods that are baked or fried.
Simplesse may look like there is no
problem with it, however, individuals
allergic to milk or egg may not realize
the fact that Simplesse is derived from
these substances. Others may include it in
recipes that allergic individuals may eat,
causing an allergic reaction. Simplesse
occurs in frozen dairy foods, and other
foods that do not have to be cooked.
7
Oatrim (brand names are: Beta-Trim® and
TrimChoice®) is made from oat flour,
treated with enzymes. It is high in beta-glucans,
which has been shown to lower glucose and
insulin responses in individuals. It looks
and tastes like fat, but is not absorbed
into the body from the gut. It can be used
in cooking since it is heat resistant. A
lower cost product called Z-trim is being
readied for production that utilizes bran,
or hulls of oats, corn, rice, wheat,
soybean and peas. The bran is treated to a
multistage process that results in a
finely flowing powder that can replace
carbohydrates in “low fat” products that
previously contained many sugars and/ or
starches.
Cholesterol-lowering margarine (e.g.
Benecol®) qualify as fat substitutes
because they have lower fat content than
regular margarines. These products are
spreadable margarine products and are
fortified with compounds called
phytostanol esters that prevent absorption
of dietary cholesterol. This may result in
a lowered blood
cholesterol level for the person who
consumes the product, depending on how
much they replace the normal fats in their
diet with the product. This is the reason
some of these products have been
associated with reduced coronary artery
disease.
Olestra (Olean): Olestra is a
nonabsorbable, energy-free fat substitute
generally used in salty fried snack foods
such as potato chips. Olestra is made from
soybean or cottonseed oil, but processed
so that it will not break down and be
absorbed from the G.I. track, even though
it tastes and feels like ordinary fat.
Since it is not absorbed, it adds no
calories to food. It does, however, have
several side effects and areas of concern
to consumers. There are some reports that
10-15% of the users may suffer
gastrointestinal problems such as cramps,
gas and / or diarrhea. Also, since Olestra
is a large molecule, it grabs onto fat
soluble substances with great efficiency.
This results in decreased absorption of
the fat-soluble vitamins, A,D,E,K. This
may account for some studies that
correlate ingestion of Olestra by lab
animals with increased occurrences of lung
cancer or liver foci, a precursor to liver
cancer.
8
1
http://www.jacn.org/cgi/content/full/21/5/410
2
http://www.jacn.org/cgi/content/full/21/5/410
3
http://www.jacn.org/cgi/content/full/21/5/410
4
http://www.prevention.com/article/0,5778,s1-3-61-93-7594-1,00.html
5
http://www.jacn.org/cgi/content/full/21/5/410
6
http://www.prevention.com/article/0,5778,s1-3-61-93-7594-1,00.html
7
http://www.pharmacy.utah.edu/pharmtox/common_meds/icm16.html
8
http://www.cspinet.org/olestra/11cons.html
(Back to "The
Fake Five")
