Good Eats: DVH dietician sounds off on trans-fats

The Food and Drug Administration announced earlier this month it would open a 60-day comment period on measures to further reduce trans-fat in all processed foods after making a preliminary determination that partially hydrogenated oils, the primary dietary source of artificial trans-fat in processed foods, are not “generally recognized as safe” or (GRAS) for use in food.

If, after the comment period on this matter, the FDA makes a final determination that partially hydrogenated oils are indeed unsafe for consumption, it would mean trans-fats would be slowly phased out of the food supply over a number of years.

The FDA stated it if the plan is implemented, it could prevent up to 7,000 deaths from heart disease each year.

With the news that trans-fats may eventually disappear from the U.S. food supply, Kathy Lindow, a registered dietician with Desert View Hospital, sat down with the Pahrump Valley Times to discuss trans-fat, where it’s found and how it affects our health.

Q: What are trans-fats?

A: You’ve heard the terms saturated and unsaturated fats? When you have an unsaturated fat, it means there are some chemical bonds that can hold onto more hydrogen. Usually naturally saturated fats are a little bit harder at room temperature, while poly unsaturated fats are more likely to be oils and liquids.

So what the food industry has done is force hydrogen into these unsaturated fats to make them a little bit stiffer like lard, or a perfect example would be shortening. And that would be hydrogenation, pushing the hydrogen into the molecules. And a trans-fat is where they have chemically done that as opposed to nature.

Q: In which food are trans-fats typically found?

A: Typically they are found in baked foods. Things like pie crusts and cookies, cakes and those types of things. They’ve pretty much been eliminated in fryer oils. Foods that were fried typically had a lot of trans-fats, but almost everybody now is using trans-fat free oils in their fryers.

And then snack foods like chips and crackers and all those kinds of things may have them, but some companies have been really aggressive and have already removed trans-fats. Lays and Texaco, which Lays is a part of, have already removed the trans-fats from their products.

So you could say are trans-fats necessary? No. Is it going to take us a while to get it out of the food chain? Yes. Is it a good Idea? I think absolutely.

Q: Why do we have trans-fats in some of our food?

A: One of the main reasons they are found in our food supply is they don’t get rancid. Saturated fats have a longer shelf life. That’s the reason we’ve been using them.

Q: What are the health benefits of avoiding trans-fat?

A: All of the research suggests our body doesn’t handle trans-fats very effectively and it probably increases our risk of heart disease and hardening of the arteries.

If you were avoiding the foods with trans-fats in them, hopefully you’re making better choices like eating fruits and vegetables and getting some nutrients for your calories. But you can still have treats and not have saturated fats.

But of course we’d like to see people making better food choices like whole grains, fruits and vegetables rather than cookies, cakes and donuts. It doesn’t mean you can’t have them, but like everything else just keep it in moderation.