You almost have to be a detective to make sense of the claims now made on many food packages. Snacks marked as low calorie, for example, may still be high in troublesome trans fats.
Fortunately, the FDA made an addition to the Nutrition Facts label to help consumers more easily identify trans fats. They are now listed along with saturated and mono- and polyunsaturated fats.
Small amounts of trans fats occur naturally in some animal products, but most are created when oils are hydrogenated, a process that turns liquid vegetable oil into solid shortening. Hydrogenated fats are popular additives in commercial baked goods, snacks and solid margarines. But, in the body, trans fats behave like saturated animal fats, raising LDL ("bad") cholesterol levels. Even worse, trans fats add to inflammatory changes in the blood vessels, creating a double risk factor for cardiovascular disease.
To help you minimize your consumption of trans fats, Doylestown Hospital's dietitian/nutritionist Amy Pieczarka offers these tips:
Read the Nutrition Facts label to learn what is in the products that you choose.
Avoid solid stick margarines; use vegetable oils like olive and canola; and, if you can't do without the taste of butter, use liquid margarine.
Use natural peanut butter and other nut butters, without added hydrogenated fat.
Even products that may legally claim "no trans fats" can have less than one-half gram per serving. Check the label to see what the manufacturer calls a serving - it may be much less than the amount you are accustomed to eating.
When you go to the supermarket, shop first around the perimeter of the store: that's where you will find the fresh, unprocessed foods that should be the mainstays of your meals.
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