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Trendsetting New York was the first city in the United States to limit the amount of transfatty acids in all items on restaurant menus in the last year. Now, from September 1, 2007, India will follow suit as the WHO recommends that transfat should not be consumed at all. From September 1 2007, the use of transfats will have to be listed on the food labels of all products manufactured in India. It is estimated that three years after the effective date, transfat labelling would prevent from 600 – 1,200 cases of CHD and 250 – 500 deaths each year. It takes about three years for lower LDL-cholesterol to result in lower CHD risk.
The nutritional guidelines recommend that transfat are not essential and provide no known benefit to human health. The radical move is a reflection of growing concern over the consumption of transfat. This is a specific type of fat artificially created through the partial hydrogenation of oils, mainly of vegetable origin. There is a growing body of medical evidence on the link between transfat consumption and coronary heart disease; a study by researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health suggests that removing transfats from industrial food supplies can prevent tens of thousands of heart attacks and cardiac deaths in the US every year.
While both saturated fat and transfat increase the levels of artery-clogging "bad cholesterol" (low density lipids), transfat has been shown to reduce the levels of "good cholesterol" (high density lipids), thus heightening the risk of heart disease. Dietary transfat is inessential and has no known health benefit. While traces of it occur naturally in meat and dairy products, its use in the processed food industry — mainly in snack foods, fried and baked — is wholly a matter of convenience. Foods made with transfat have a higher melting point, enjoy a longer shelf life, and require less refrigeration.
Dr Sengottuvelu, leading interventional cardiologist, Sri Ramachandra Medical College & Research Institute, said, "In India, the processed food industry lists transfat as 'partially–hydrogenated vegetable oil', 'hydrogenated vegetable oil' or 'vegetable shortening' in their nutrition fact levels. The list of ingredients on the pack of biscuits or noodles your child consumes may likely have transfat under one of these terms."
Harmful effects of transfat consumption:
Transfatty acids and cardiovascular diseases:
The primary health risk identified for transfat consumption is an elevated risk of cardiovascular disease. The consumption of transfatty acids raises levels of low-density lipo-protein (LDL), reduces levels of high-density lipo-protein (HDL) i.e., increases the bad cholesterol and decreases the good cholesterol and increases the ratio of total cholesterol to HDL cholesterol, a powerful predictor of the risk of the cardio-vascular diseases. It causes the artery to become clogged and develop heart disease and stroke.
Dr Sengottuvelu said, "A comprehensive review of studies indicates that there is a strong and reliable connection between transfat consumption and cardiovascular diseases. For these reasons, health authorities worldwide recommend that consumption of transfat be reduced to trace amounts. Transfat from partially hydrogenated oils are generally considered to be more of a health risk than those occurring naturally."
Other effects:
There are suggestions that the negative consequences of transfat consumption go beyond the cardiovascular risk. In general, that consuming transfat specifically increases the risk of other chronic health problems.
Cancer: One recent study has found connections between transfat and prostate cancer.
Diabetes: There is a growing concern that the risk of Type 2 diabetes increases with transfat consumption.
Obesity: Research indicates that transfat may increase weight gain and abdominal fat, despite a similar caloric intake.
Liver dysfunction: Transfat are metabolised differently by the liver than other fats.
Fertility: Each 2 per cent increase in the transfat intake is associated with a 73 per cent greater risk of ovulatory infertility.
Type of dietary fat key to heart risk:
Transfats are generally found in absolutely unnecessary foods like doughnuts and margarines. Butter is much healthier than margarine and healthy meat and poultry for most people will promote health rather than cause disease. High levels of insulin will cause the liver to make saturated fats. This happens in humans and is one of the main reasons why carbohydrates like bread, pasta, cereal, fruit, rice, potatoes and cereals should be limited if one wants to avoid heart disease and cancer. Most commercially available oils are highly processed and should not be consumed.
One of the best oils would be extra virgin olive oil. All corn and soy oils should be avoided and not consumed. For certain individuals, sesame oil is excellent as it can inhibit the formation of arachidonic acid, which is a fat that is major precursor of inflammation. Other oils, obtained from health food store and cold pressed which might be useful are safflower, sunflower, almond and organic peanut oil. Organic coconut oil would be the best oil to cook with as it is completely saturated and no transfats can be made from it.
Role of fat in the diet:
It is important to know about the role of fat in the diet so as to know about the transfat. Fat is a major source of energy for the body and aids in vitamin absorption. Both animal and plant derived products contain fat. Unsaturated fats are beneficial when consumed in moderation, saturated and transfat are harmful. Therefore, it is advisable to choose foods low in both saturated and transfats as part of a healthful diet.
Occurrences of transfat:
Some amount of transfat is found naturally, primarily in some-animal based foods such as butter, milk products, cheese, beef and lamb. Transfat can be found in some of the same foods as saturated fat, such as vegetable shortenings, some margarines, crackers, candies, cookies, snack foods, fried foods, baked foods and other processed foods made with partially hydrogenated vegetable oils. Transfat consumed today is used in many areas notably in the fast food, snack food, fried food and baked goods industries. This cheap and harmful oil is used as an ingredient in products that range from biscuits to noodles, deep-frying samosas and French fries. Transfat are also found in restaurants in the form of shortenings which is used for deep frying because of its cheap value, rancidity and taste.
Percentage of transfat:
Major sources -
Breakfast cereal and candy 1 %
Salad and toppings 3 %
Household shortenings 4 %
Potato chips, corn chips and popcorn 5 %
Fried potatoes 8 %
Margarine 17%
Animal products 21%
Cakes, cookies, cracker, pies, breads and pizzas 40 %
Dr Sengottuvelu has listed a few steps to lower the intake of transfat:
1. Check the nutrition facts panel to compare foods. Choose foods lower in saturated fat, transfat and cholesterol.
2. Choose alternative fats - Replace saturated and transfat in your diet with mono and polyunsaturated fats.
3. Consider fish. Most fish are lower in saturated fat than meat and contain Omega-3 fatty acids which give protection against heart disease.
4. Limit foods high in cholesterol such as liver and organ meats.
5. Ask before you order when eating out. A good tip to remember is to ask whether hydrogenated oil such as Dalda, Vanaspathi, are being used in the preparation of your food when eating or ordering out. If it is used, avoid it.
Dr Sengottuvelu added, "The intake of transfat can be reduced by consumer's decisions to choose foods free of transfat, assisted by advice from healthcare professionals and physicians. Transfat intake could also be reduced if food manufacturers and restaurant owners choose to use alternatives to partially hydrogenated oils. To maximise health benefits, such alternatives should be low in both trans and saturated fats. Fast food or chain restaurants should have tables of the nutritional content of their food products that they should provide upon request. The hazards of this heart-threatening 'transfat' have not yet sunk in even among educated and urban people."
He pointed out, "So, to reduce the consumption of transfat we need clarity in food labelling about the use of oil in a particular food item, replacing partially hydrogenated oils with a healthy oil, banning the transfat in commercial cooking, forcing companies or food manufacturers to use transfat-free oil in packaged foods and making restaurants to use healthy oils will be more effective in decreasing the consumption of transfat. Cutting back on transfat food intake brings immediate benefits to our health."
R Rangaraj
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