Trans-Fat is found in many of the commercial foods that you usually eat and shop. It is considered the most dangerous form of fat that you can eat Mayo Clinic says. Trans-fat is the type of fat that raises the bad cholesterol (LDL) and lowers the good cholesterol (HDL).
What is Trans-fat? The other name of trans-fat is Trans fatty acids. There are naturally-occurring trans-fat found in the guts of some animals while the other type are the artificial Trans fats that are produced through industrial procedure that turns liquid fats to solid fats.
The fact that Trans fat lowers the HDL and raises the LDL makes a person susceptible to heart disease, the leading cause of death of men and women. There are roughly 600,000 Americans who die every year because of heart disease according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention .
Trans-fat also causes stroke and it is also linked to higher incidence of developing type II diabetes Heart. Org reports.
Trans fat is formed by adding hydrogen to vegetable oils and changes to partially hydrogenated oil. Most restaurants and fastfoods use partially hydrogenated oil to extend the shelf-life of their products. These oils are cheaper and last long time as they don't have to change it again and again.
Trans-fat is present in many foods including:
Refrigerator dough such as cinnamon rolls, frozen pizza and canned biscuits.
Fried foods such as French fries, fried chicken and doughnuts.
Baked goods including crackers, pie crusts, cookies, and cakes.
snacks such as tortilla, corn and potato chips.
Creamer and margarine.
Trans-fat can be hidden in the food nutrition label. Sometimes you will not see trans-fat in the list. Look for the presence of partially hydrogenated oil and it is also trans-fat. If you found 0 grams trans-fat products, it doesn't mean it is totally zero.
Companies label products with zero trans fats when it contains 0 grams to less than 0.5 grams of trans-fat.
Now you know more about trans-fat, make sure to limit your intake with what experts call "most dangerous form of fat you can eat."
