PGR News from the Pacific

Posted 10:05 PM by Tevita

Hidden Trans Fats Exposed

New Food Labels List Trans Fats

Once upon a time, only true diet detectives knew whether a particular food contained trans fat, a phantom fat added to thousands of foods that has the most damaging effects on the heart
and blood vessels. They were the people who knew that the code phrases partially

hydrogenated vegetable oil" and "vegetable shortening" meant that trans fat lurked in the food.

Now, thank goodness, anyone can tell. As of January 1, 2006, trans fat must be listed on food labels along with other bad fats (saturated fats) and good ones (unsaturated fats).(1)

The addition is a victory for Harvard School of Public Health researchers who helped sound the alarm about trans fat in the early 1990s(2, 3) and who advocated that it be explicitly listed on food labels. After much equivocation by the FDA and intense lobbying against adding trans fat
to food labels by parts of the food industry, the FDA finally approved the addition.

This small, one-line change is sparking a major makeover of the American food supply. The FDA once estimated that approximately 95% of prepared cookies, 100% of crackers, and 80% of frozen breakfast products contained trans fat.(1) Now that trans fat must be listed on food labels, some companies are scrambling to remove them from their products. Many others have
already succeeded in going trans free.

The shift follows the growing realization that trans fats are even worse for the heart and blood vessels than saturated fats.

Why bother?

Trans fats are a type of mostly man-made fat that the food industry
loves, but our hearts and blood vessels don't.

In the late 19th century, chemists discovered that they could turnliquid vegetable oil into a solid or semi-solid by adding hydrogen atoms to the fat backbone. They did this by bubbling hydrogen gas through vegetable oil in the presence of a nickel catalyst.(4) This was far more than a chemical curiosity. Partially hydrogenated oils don't spoil as easily as nonhydrogenated fats. They can also withstand repeated heating without breaking down.

These characteristics were attractive to food makers. Over time, partially hydrogenated oils became a mainstay in margarines, commercially baked goods, and snack foods. When saturated fat was fingered as a contributor to high cholesterol, companies such as McDonalds and Dunkin Donuts switched from beef tallow to partially hydrogenated vegetable oil for frying French fries and donuts.

At the time, switching from butter or lard-both full of saturated fatto a product made from healthy vegetable oil seemed to make sense. Intake of trans fat increased dramatically. Before the advent of partial hydrogenation, the only trans fat that humans consumed came from eating cows (or dairy products), lambs, and deer; in ruminants like these, bacteria living in the forestomach make small amounts of trans fat. But due to the growth of partial hydrogenation, by the early 1990s, trans fat intake in the United States averaged 4-7% of calories from fat.

In 1981, a group of Welsh researchers speculated that trans fat might be linked with heart disease.(5) A 1993 Harvard study strongly supported the hypothesis that intake of partially
hydrogenated vegetable oils contributed to the risk of having a heart attack.(3) In that study, the researchers estimated that replacing just 2% of energy from trans fat with healthy unsaturated fat would decrease the risk of coronary heart disease by about onethird.
An influential symposium on trans fat later in the 1990s drew public attention to the issue.

Today we know that eating trans fats increases levels of lowdensity lipoprotein (LDL, "bad" cholesterol), especially the small, dense LDL particles that are most damaging to arteries. It lowers levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) particles, which scour blood vessels for bad cholesterol and truck it to the liver for disposal. It increases the tendency of blood platelets to clump and form potentially artery-blocking clots. It also fires inflammation,(6) an overactivity of the immune system that has been implicated in heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and other chronic conditions.

This four-pronged attack on blood vessels translates into heart disease and death. Researchers estimate that eliminating trans fats from the U.S. food supply could prevent between 6 and 19 percent of heart attacks and related deaths each year--a staggering number, given that there are 1.2 million heart attacks and related deaths in the U.S. annually.(7)

Big changes

Some food makers fought the label change because they suspected that consumers, if given a fair choice, would avoid products containing trans fat. (Although it is too early to tell, they are
probably right.) Fearing lost sales, many food companies looked for ways to make their products without partially hydrogenated oils. Some margarines, such as Promise and Olivio, have been virtually trans fat-free for several years. Frito-Lay now uses trans-free oils for making Doritos, Cheetos, Tostitos, and other snacks. Tyson Foods has introduced frozen fried chicken products without trans fat. A few grocery store chains, such as Whole Foods, never carried products that contain trans fat. And a few restaurants, like Legal Seafood and Ruby Tuesday's, no longer use partially hydrogenated oils. Oreos are now trans-free, and sooner or later there may even be a trans-free McDonald's French fry, though the fast-food giant has dragged its feet in this race. Back in 2002, McDonald's announced--with some fanfare--that it was voluntarily changing to a cooking oil with less trans fat and that the change would be completed by February 2003.(8) That plan never materialized, and a large order of fries still delivers about eight grams of trans fat. Interestingly, McDonald's has managed to go trans-free in Denmark, where trans fats are banned.

Keeping track

Now that the once-ubiquitous but invisible trans fats are listed in bold print on food labels, it's easier to spot them in packaged foods. Keep in mind, though, that according to the FDA, a product claiming to have zero trans fat can actually contain up to a half gram. (Canada set a different standard of zero as under 0.2 grams.) So you may still want to scan the ingredient list for "partially hydrogenated vegetable oil" and "vegetable shortening," and look for an alternative product without those words, especially if it's something you eat regularly.
Take the federal Institute of Medicine's advice and get as little added trans fat as possible. Look for products that don't contain any. This is easier now that more and more companies are
competing for the attention of trans-free shoppers. It's harder to avoid trans fat in restaurants, since they are not required to provide nutrition information about the food they serve. One strategy is to avoid deep-fried foods, since many restaurants continue to use partially ydrogenated oils in their fryers. You may be able to help change this behavior by asking your server, the chef, or manager if the establishment uses trans-free oils. One final note: Just because a food has been prepared without partially hydrogenated oil doesn't necessarily make it healthy, cautions Walter Willett, chair of the Department of Nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health. "It can be trans-free and still contain a lot of sugar, refined starch, or saturated fat, which isn't a good choice."

References

1. Food Labeling: Trans Fatty Acids in Nutrition Labeling.
Government Publishing Office.
2. Ascherio A, Hennekens CH, Buring JE, Master C, Stampfer MJ,
Willett WC. Trans-fatty acids intake and risk of myocardial
infarction. Circulation 1994; 89:94-101.
3. Willett WC, Stampfer MJ, Manson JE, et al. Intake of trans fatty
acids and risk of coronary heart disease among women. Lancet
1993; 341:581-5.
4. Katan MB, Zock PL, Mensink RP. Trans fatty acids and their
effects on lipoproteins in humans. Annual Review of Nutrition
1995; 15:473-93.
5. Thomas LH, Jones PR, Winter JA, Smith H. Hydrogenated oils
and fats: the presence of chemically-modified fatty acids in human
adipose tissue. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 1981;
34:877-86.
6. Mozaffarian D, Pischon T, Hankinson SE, et al. Dietary intake
of trans fatty acids and systemic inflammation in women.
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2004; 79:606-12.
7. Mozaffarian D, Katan MB, Ascherio A, Stampfer MJ, Willett
WC. Trans fatty acids and cardiovascular disease. N Engl J Med.
2006 Apr 13;354(15):1601-13.
8. Kaufman M. McDonald's To Give Fat A Break; Fast-Food
Chain to Use Healthier Oil for Cooking. Washington Post: Sept. 4,
2002, A07
9. Sizzling test results boost demand for new soybean oil. Iowa
State University.
10. Natreon canola oil. Dow AgroSciences. Accessed December
22, 2005.

(Courtesy of : L. Simpson)



	A blog maintained by Tevita Kete, PGR Officer Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC), Suva, Fiji Islands
This weblog documents the activities of Pacific Agricultural Genetic Resources Network (PAPGREN), along with other information on plant genetic resources (PGR) in the Pacific. The myriad varieties found within cultivated plants are fundamental to the present and future productivity of agriculture. PAPGREN, which is coordinated by the Land Resources Division of the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC), helps Pacific countries and territories to conserve their crop genetic diversity sustainably, with technical assistance from the Bioversity International (BI) and support from NZAID and ACIAR. SPC also hosts the Centre of Pacific Crops and Trees (CEPaCT). The CEPaCT maintains regional in vitro collections of crops important to the Pacific and carries out research on tissue culture technology. The CEPaCT Adviser is Dr Mary Taylor (MaryT@spc.int), the CEPaCT Curator is Ms Valerie Tuia (ValerieT@spc.int). PAPGREN coordination and support IPGRI ACIAR NZAID CTA SPC PAPGREN CEPaCT Click on the thumbnail to see a map of the locations of Pacific genebanks. Click here to download a regional directory of genebanks in the Pacific, including information on their location, contact details and holdings. PAPGREN partners Mr William Wigmore Director of Research Ministry of Agriculture Department of Resources & Development P.O. Box 96 Rarotonga Cook Islands Tel: (682) 28711-29720 Fax: (682) 21881 Email: cimoa@oyster.net.ck Mr Adelino S. Lorens Chief Agriculture Pohnpei Office of Economic Affairs P.O. Box 1028 Kolonia Pohnpei 96941 Federated States of Micronesia Tel: (691) 3202400 Fax: (691) 3202127 Email: pniagriculture@mail.fm Dr Lois Englberger Island Food Community of Pohnpei Research Advisor P.O. Box 2299 Kolonia Pohnpei 96941 Federated States of Micronesia Email: nutrition@mail.fm Mr Apisai Ucuboi Director of Research Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries & Forest Koronivia Research Station P.O. Box 77 Nausori Fiji Islands Tel: (679) 3477044 Fax: (679) 3477546-400262 Email: apisainu@yahoo.com Dr Maurice Wong Service du Developpement Rural B.P. 100 Papeete Tahiti 98713 French Polynesia Tel: (689) 42 81 44 Fax: (689) 42 08 31 Email: maurice.wong@rural.gov.pf Mr Tianeti Beenna Ioane Head, Research Section Division of Agriculture Ministry of Environment, Lands and Agricultural Development P.O. Box 267 Tarawa Kiribati Tel: (686) 28096-28108-28080 Fax: (686) 28121 Email : agriculture@tskl.net.ki; Beenna_ti@yahoo.com Mr Frederick Muller Secretary Ministry of Resources & Development P.O. Box 1727 Majuro 96960 Marshall Islands Tel: (692) 6253206 Fax: (692) 6257471 Email: rndsec@ntamar.net Mr Herman Francisco Director Bureau of Agriculture Ministry of Resources & Development P.O. Box 460 Koror 96940 Palau Tel: (680) 4881517 Fax: (680) 4881725 Email: bnrd@pnccwg.palaunet.com Ms Rosa Kambuou Principal Scientist PGR NARI Dry Lowlands Programme Laloki Agricultural Research Station P.O. Box 1828 Boroko National Capital District Papua New Guinea Tel: (675) 3235511 Fax: (675) 3234733 Email: kambuou@global.net.pg Ms Laisene Samuelu Principal Crop Development Officer Crops Division Ministry of Agriculture, Forests, Fisheries & Meteorology P.O. Box 1874 Apia Samoa Tel: (685) 23416-20605 Fax: (685) 20607-23996 Email: lsamuelu@lesamoa.net Mr Jimi Saelea Director of Research Department of Agriculture and Livestock P.O. Box G13 Honiara Guadalcanal Solomon Islands Tel: (677) 27987 Mr Tony Jansen Planting Materials Network Kastom Gaden Association Burns Creek, Honiara P.O. Box 742 Honiara Solomon Islands Tel: (677) 39551 Email: kastomgaden@solomon.com.sb Mr Finao Pole Head of Research Ministry of Agriculture & Forests P.O. Box 14 Nuku'alofa Tonga Tel: (676) 23038 Fax: (676) 24271 Email: thaangana@hotmail.com Mr Frazer Bule Lehi Head of Research Department of Agriculture & Rural Development Private Mail Bag 040 Port Vila Vanuatu Tel: (678) 22525 Fax: (678) 25265 Email: flehi@hotmail.com Other links Other CROP agencies Forum Secretariat University of the South Pacific SPREP Pacific biodiversity Biodiversity hotspots Breadfruit Institute Hawaiian native plants Intellectual property rights Nature Conservancy PBIF PestNet SIDS WWF South Pacific Program Other Pacific organizations Foundation of the Peoples of the South Pacific Micronesian Seminar Te Puna web directory Pacific news Cafe Pacific CocoNET Wireless Island Directory Pacific Islands News Pacific Islands Report Pacific Islands Travel Pacific Time South Pacific travel Time Pacific Interested in GIS? DIVA-GIS	Sunday, July 01, 2007 Posted 10:05 PM by Tevita Hidden Trans Fats Exposed From: Harvard School of Public Health New Food Labels List Trans Fats Once upon a time, only true diet detectives knew whether a particular food contained trans fat, a phantom fat added to thousands of foods that has the most damaging effects on the heart and blood vessels. They were the people who knew that the code phrases partially hydrogenated vegetable oil" and "vegetable shortening" meant that trans fat lurked in the food. Now, thank goodness, anyone can tell. As of January 1, 2006, trans fat must be listed on food labels along with other bad fats (saturated fats) and good ones (unsaturated fats).(1) The addition is a victory for Harvard School of Public Health researchers who helped sound the alarm about trans fat in the early 1990s(2, 3) and who advocated that it be explicitly listed on food labels. After much equivocation by the FDA and intense lobbying against adding trans fat to food labels by parts of the food industry, the FDA finally approved the addition. This small, one-line change is sparking a major makeover of the American food supply. The FDA once estimated that approximately 95% of prepared cookies, 100% of crackers, and 80% of frozen breakfast products contained trans fat.(1) Now that trans fat must be listed on food labels, some companies are scrambling to remove them from their products. Many others have already succeeded in going trans free. The shift follows the growing realization that trans fats are even worse for the heart and blood vessels than saturated fats. Why bother? Trans fats are a type of mostly man-made fat that the food industry loves, but our hearts and blood vessels don't. In the late 19th century, chemists discovered that they could turnliquid vegetable oil into a solid or semi-solid by adding hydrogen atoms to the fat backbone. They did this by bubbling hydrogen gas through vegetable oil in the presence of a nickel catalyst.(4) This was far more than a chemical curiosity. Partially hydrogenated oils don't spoil as easily as nonhydrogenated fats. They can also withstand repeated heating without breaking down. These characteristics were attractive to food makers. Over time, partially hydrogenated oils became a mainstay in margarines, commercially baked goods, and snack foods. When saturated fat was fingered as a contributor to high cholesterol, companies such as McDonalds and Dunkin Donuts switched from beef tallow to partially hydrogenated vegetable oil for frying French fries and donuts. At the time, switching from butter or lard-both full of saturated fatto a product made from healthy vegetable oil seemed to make sense. Intake of trans fat increased dramatically. Before the advent of partial hydrogenation, the only trans fat that humans consumed came from eating cows (or dairy products), lambs, and deer; in ruminants like these, bacteria living in the forestomach make small amounts of trans fat. But due to the growth of partial hydrogenation, by the early 1990s, trans fat intake in the United States averaged 4-7% of calories from fat. In 1981, a group of Welsh researchers speculated that trans fat might be linked with heart disease.(5) A 1993 Harvard study strongly supported the hypothesis that intake of partially hydrogenated vegetable oils contributed to the risk of having a heart attack.(3) In that study, the researchers estimated that replacing just 2% of energy from trans fat with healthy unsaturated fat would decrease the risk of coronary heart disease by about onethird. An influential symposium on trans fat later in the 1990s drew public attention to the issue. Today we know that eating trans fats increases levels of lowdensity lipoprotein (LDL, "bad" cholesterol), especially the small, dense LDL particles that are most damaging to arteries. It lowers levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) particles, which scour blood vessels for bad cholesterol and truck it to the liver for disposal. It increases the tendency of blood platelets to clump and form potentially artery-blocking clots. It also fires inflammation,(6) an overactivity of the immune system that has been implicated in heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and other chronic conditions. This four-pronged attack on blood vessels translates into heart disease and death. Researchers estimate that eliminating trans fats from the U.S. food supply could prevent between 6 and 19 percent of heart attacks and related deaths each year--a staggering number, given that there are 1.2 million heart attacks and related deaths in the U.S. annually.(7) Big changes Some food makers fought the label change because they suspected that consumers, if given a fair choice, would avoid products containing trans fat. (Although it is too early to tell, they are probably right.) Fearing lost sales, many food companies looked for ways to make their products without partially hydrogenated oils. Some margarines, such as Promise and Olivio, have been virtually trans fat-free for several years. Frito-Lay now uses trans-free oils for making Doritos, Cheetos, Tostitos, and other snacks. Tyson Foods has introduced frozen fried chicken products without trans fat. A few grocery store chains, such as Whole Foods, never carried products that contain trans fat. And a few restaurants, like Legal Seafood and Ruby Tuesday's, no longer use partially hydrogenated oils. Oreos are now trans-free, and sooner or later there may even be a trans-free McDonald's French fry, though the fast-food giant has dragged its feet in this race. Back in 2002, McDonald's announced--with some fanfare--that it was voluntarily changing to a cooking oil with less trans fat and that the change would be completed by February 2003.(8) That plan never materialized, and a large order of fries still delivers about eight grams of trans fat. Interestingly, McDonald's has managed to go trans-free in Denmark, where trans fats are banned. Keeping track Now that the once-ubiquitous but invisible trans fats are listed in bold print on food labels, it's easier to spot them in packaged foods. Keep in mind, though, that according to the FDA, a product claiming to have zero trans fat can actually contain up to a half gram. (Canada set a different standard of zero as under 0.2 grams.) So you may still want to scan the ingredient list for "partially hydrogenated vegetable oil" and "vegetable shortening," and look for an alternative product without those words, especially if it's something you eat regularly. Take the federal Institute of Medicine's advice and get as little added trans fat as possible. Look for products that don't contain any. This is easier now that more and more companies are competing for the attention of trans-free shoppers. It's harder to avoid trans fat in restaurants, since they are not required to provide nutrition information about the food they serve. One strategy is to avoid deep-fried foods, since many restaurants continue to use partially ydrogenated oils in their fryers. You may be able to help change this behavior by asking your server, the chef, or manager if the establishment uses trans-free oils. One final note: Just because a food has been prepared without partially hydrogenated oil doesn't necessarily make it healthy, cautions Walter Willett, chair of the Department of Nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health. "It can be trans-free and still contain a lot of sugar, refined starch, or saturated fat, which isn't a good choice." References 1. Food Labeling: Trans Fatty Acids in Nutrition Labeling. Government Publishing Office. 2. Ascherio A, Hennekens CH, Buring JE, Master C, Stampfer MJ, Willett WC. Trans-fatty acids intake and risk of myocardial infarction. Circulation 1994; 89:94-101. 3. Willett WC, Stampfer MJ, Manson JE, et al. Intake of trans fatty acids and risk of coronary heart disease among women. Lancet 1993; 341:581-5. 4. Katan MB, Zock PL, Mensink RP. Trans fatty acids and their effects on lipoproteins in humans. Annual Review of Nutrition 1995; 15:473-93. 5. Thomas LH, Jones PR, Winter JA, Smith H. Hydrogenated oils and fats: the presence of chemically-modified fatty acids in human adipose tissue. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 1981; 34:877-86. 6. Mozaffarian D, Pischon T, Hankinson SE, et al. Dietary intake of trans fatty acids and systemic inflammation in women. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2004; 79:606-12. 7. Mozaffarian D, Katan MB, Ascherio A, Stampfer MJ, Willett WC. Trans fatty acids and cardiovascular disease. N Engl J Med. 2006 Apr 13;354(15):1601-13. 8. Kaufman M. McDonald's To Give Fat A Break; Fast-Food Chain to Use Healthier Oil for Cooking. Washington Post: Sept. 4, 2002, A07 9. Sizzling test results boost demand for new soybean oil. Iowa State University. 10. Natreon canola oil. Dow AgroSciences. Accessed December 22, 2005. (Courtesy of : L. Simpson) * Comments: Post a Comment	Archive October 2002 November 2002 December 2002 January 2003 February 2003 March 2003 April 2003 May 2003 June 2003 July 2003 August 2003 September 2003 October 2003 November 2003 December 2003 January 2004 February 2004 March 2004 April 2004 May 2004 June 2004 July 2004 August 2004 September 2004 October 2004 November 2004 December 2004 January 2005 February 2005 March 2005 April 2005 May 2005 June 2005 July 2005 August 2005 September 2005 October 2005 November 2005 December 2005 January 2006 February 2006 March 2006 April 2006 May 2006 June 2006 July 2006 August 2006 September 2006 October 2006 November 2006 December 2006 January 2007 February 2007 March 2007 April 2007 May 2007 June 2007 July 2007 August 2007 September 2007 October 2007 November 2007 December 2007 January 2008 February 2008 March 2008 April 2008 May 2008 June 2008 July 2008 August 2008 September 2008 October 2008 November 2008 December 2008 January 2009 February 2009 March 2009 April 2009 May 2009 June 2009 July 2009 August 2009 September 2009 October 2009 November 2009 January 2010 RSS Feed Alternative feed Contact Tevita Something new: Agrobiodiversity Weblog: For discussions of conservation and sustainable use of the genetic resources of crops, livestock and their wild relatives. 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