Garner Healthy Living
With Coach G.
Trans Fats: Why worry?
March 10th, 2008
Trans fats are fats where the molecule has a bit of a twist so that it kind of twists around putting hydrogen bonds on the opposite side from each other. Trans means 'across' in Latin.
You have probably heard that trans-fatty acids are bad for you. Let's take a look at if that is true, and if it is, why.
I would have to say that not all trans-fats are bad for you. But I must say that most trans-fats are bad for you. Let me explain.
Trans fats do occur naturally in small amounts. This leads to the conclusion that Nature or God must have some purpose for them. Therefore they should not be entirely done away with simply because we don't yet know what the purpose may be.
Many studies have shown the dangers of artificial trans fats in human diets. It is a major contributing factor to heart disease and stroke. It is a very significant contributor to fertility problems. It has been connected to cancer, obesity, and liver dysfunction. It has even been connected to diabetes. Many of our long term debilitating diseases seem to be much more likely to occur when we consume a diet high in trans fats. The body has trouble breaking down trans fats.
However, there were studies done recently where they specifically compared natural and artificial trans fats and they discovered that natural trans fats did not cause the same problems as artificial trans fats. But the natural trans fats also caused trouble if taken in large enough amounts.
The problem we have in the Standard American Diet (SAD) is that we eat tons of artificial trans fats. Folks eating the SAD are eating up to about 50% of their dietary fat in trans fats. If you eat only raw natural foods you eat only very small amounts of trans fats. Two to four percent of the dietary fat at most.
This tells us that if we eat trans fats it should only be in very small amounts.
Trans fats are found in anything that contains any hydrogenated, or partially hydrogenated oils. Hydrogenation is a process that was created to make oils more solid and less rancid. In so doing it made them very unhealthy for human consumption. If you start reading labels in the grocery store, you will find these oils in a huge percentage of products on the shelves. It makes the food easier to preserve and helps it be solid at room temperature. However, it can be disastrous to your health.
Beware that products that are labeled "0 Trans Fats" may not be. Our benevolent government has decided that anything with less than 6% trans fats can be labeled as free of trans fats. So of course products that have 10% or more trans fats will often dilute the product down with extra vegetables oils to get under the 6% and then call the product a "0 Trans Fats" product.
Now, you may be thinking, "Well if they dilute it down so there is only a small amount then it could be safe to eat." You would be wrong.
Remember that trans fats only occur in very few natural foods, and in very small amounts. Also remember that man-made trans fats (hydrogenated oils) are much more dangerous than naturally occurring ones.
Hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils may be some of the most dangerous products to human health that we have come up with for human consumption– doubly dangerous because most people don't know that yet. (Another 'most dangerous product' would be "High Fructose Corn Syrup".)
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) has determined that there is NO SAFE LEVEL of artificial trans fat consumption for humans. They don't support a ban of trans fats, however, because they recognize that there are small amounts of trans fats in natural foods, and to remove those could cause other problems due to the artificially-created imbalance that would result.
Natural balance from whole natural foods: that is the key.
Perhaps it should be mentioned here that cooking vegetable oils in an open frying pan does not cause trans fats to appear. That is a myth. Heating vegetable oils to high temperatures is unhealthy, but that is because it forms free-radicals (polymerized oil). However, trans fats can be made by cooking oil in some type of pressure cooker.
The healthiest oils to cook with are those that remain stable at high temperatures. Coconut oil, olive oil, palm oil, and even real butter are some of your best oil to cook with.
But remember, most foods are healthier eaten raw, or steamed.
Just eat a high quality natural foods diet, exercise, drink plenty of good clean water, make sure you get fiber (whole raw foods), get plenty of sleep, breathe deeply and have a gratitude attitude.
Your body will take care of you, if you take care of it.
Coach G.
Success in health comes from lifestyle described here.
Tags: balance, cooking, fats, health, hydrogenated, hydrogenation, lifesytle, oil, trans fats
Catagories: Basics, Heart Health, Warnings, lifestyle
You have probably heard that trans-fatty acids are bad for you. Let's take a look at if that is true, and if it is, why.
I would have to say that not all trans-fats are bad for you. But I must say that most trans-fats are bad for you. Let me explain.
Trans fats do occur naturally in small amounts. This leads to the conclusion that Nature or God must have some purpose for them. Therefore they should not be entirely done away with simply because we don't yet know what the purpose may be.
Many studies have shown the dangers of artificial trans fats in human diets. It is a major contributing factor to heart disease and stroke. It is a very significant contributor to fertility problems. It has been connected to cancer, obesity, and liver dysfunction. It has even been connected to diabetes. Many of our long term debilitating diseases seem to be much more likely to occur when we consume a diet high in trans fats. The body has trouble breaking down trans fats.
However, there were studies done recently where they specifically compared natural and artificial trans fats and they discovered that natural trans fats did not cause the same problems as artificial trans fats. But the natural trans fats also caused trouble if taken in large enough amounts.
The problem we have in the Standard American Diet (SAD) is that we eat tons of artificial trans fats. Folks eating the SAD are eating up to about 50% of their dietary fat in trans fats. If you eat only raw natural foods you eat only very small amounts of trans fats. Two to four percent of the dietary fat at most.
This tells us that if we eat trans fats it should only be in very small amounts.
Trans fats are found in anything that contains any hydrogenated, or partially hydrogenated oils. Hydrogenation is a process that was created to make oils more solid and less rancid. In so doing it made them very unhealthy for human consumption. If you start reading labels in the grocery store, you will find these oils in a huge percentage of products on the shelves. It makes the food easier to preserve and helps it be solid at room temperature. However, it can be disastrous to your health.
Beware that products that are labeled "0 Trans Fats" may not be. Our benevolent government has decided that anything with less than 6% trans fats can be labeled as free of trans fats. So of course products that have 10% or more trans fats will often dilute the product down with extra vegetables oils to get under the 6% and then call the product a "0 Trans Fats" product.
Now, you may be thinking, "Well if they dilute it down so there is only a small amount then it could be safe to eat." You would be wrong.
Remember that trans fats only occur in very few natural foods, and in very small amounts. Also remember that man-made trans fats (hydrogenated oils) are much more dangerous than naturally occurring ones.
Hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils may be some of the most dangerous products to human health that we have come up with for human consumption– doubly dangerous because most people don't know that yet. (Another 'most dangerous product' would be "High Fructose Corn Syrup".)
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) has determined that there is NO SAFE LEVEL of artificial trans fat consumption for humans. They don't support a ban of trans fats, however, because they recognize that there are small amounts of trans fats in natural foods, and to remove those could cause other problems due to the artificially-created imbalance that would result.
Natural balance from whole natural foods: that is the key.
Perhaps it should be mentioned here that cooking vegetable oils in an open frying pan does not cause trans fats to appear. That is a myth. Heating vegetable oils to high temperatures is unhealthy, but that is because it forms free-radicals (polymerized oil). However, trans fats can be made by cooking oil in some type of pressure cooker.
The healthiest oils to cook with are those that remain stable at high temperatures. Coconut oil, olive oil, palm oil, and even real butter are some of your best oil to cook with.
But remember, most foods are healthier eaten raw, or steamed.
Just eat a high quality natural foods diet, exercise, drink plenty of good clean water, make sure you get fiber (whole raw foods), get plenty of sleep, breathe deeply and have a gratitude attitude.
Your body will take care of you, if you take care of it.
Coach G.
Success in health comes from lifestyle described here.
Tags: balance, cooking, fats, health, hydrogenated, hydrogenation, lifesytle, oil, trans fats
Catagories: Basics, Heart Health, Warnings, lifestyle
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