The chemically altered fats known as trans fats are heading for the exit and that’s good news for your heart. New findings suggest the trans fat ban instituted in some New York restaurants has paid off, leading to fewer hospitalizations for heart attacks and strokes. Trans fats — artificial fats used in commercial-grade cooking oils for frying — are also hidden in consumer products throughout grocery stores. These heart-unhealthy fats can be found in cakes, pies, biscuits, cookies, margarine, crackers, frozen pizzas, creamy candies, doughnuts and more.
[See: The 12 Best Heart-Healthy Diets.]
Fortunately, you can relax your vigilance next year, when sweeping trans-fat restrictions by the Food and Drug Administration are implemented across the nation, affecting everything from store-bought foods and caterers to food trucks and food chains. Until then, here’s what you need to know about avoiding this unwholesome ingredient in your diet:
1. Restrictions are already reducing heart disease. Starting in 2007, New York state restaurant-goers took part in a public health experiment, although they didn’t exactly volunteer. In New York City and six designated counties in other parts of the state, trans fats were restricted in restaurants and eateries, forcing bistro chefs and fast-food cooks to choose healthier cooking oils. The result? A combined 6 percent decrease in strokes and heart attacks in areas with the bans compared to the rest of the state — which translates to 43 fewer of these events per 100,000 people.
Positive results appeared as soon as three years after restrictions took effect, according to data published in the April 12 issue of JAMA Cardiology. “What actually makes our results more powerful is that people didn’t really change their lifestyle or anything because of this,” says study co-author Dr. Tamar Polonsky, a cardiologist and an assistant professor of medicine at the University of Chicago. “It’s just that this oil that we know has these harmful health effects was recently taken out of use.”
2. Harmful health effects are clear. Trans fats can wreak havoc on your cholesterol levels and they contribute to clogged blood vessels. “It’s very hard to argue that there’s anything good about trans fats,” Polonsky says. “The vascular effects are very well-documented. They’ve increased levels of inflammatory markers. They’ve decreased levels of good cholesterol, or HDL, and they’ve increased triglycerides. What they mainly do is increase shelf life and improve texture of some baked goods.”
3. Trans fats were created to extend shelf life. Since the introduction of trans-fat based shortenings and vegetable oils more than a century ago, food manufacturers have incorporated trans fats into many foods to increase their shelf life, improve stability during cooking and boost flavor. If you’re into organic chemistry, trans fats are produced by adding hydrogen atoms to natural fats. Jill Weisenberger, a Virginia-based registered dietitian nutritionist, says her clients are more concerned about the effects of trans fats on their health. “Your body doesn’t process trans fats in the same way [as other fats], as we thought years ago,” she tells them. “It turns out they’re pretty detrimental, so we try to avoid them.”
4. Cutting trans fats may extend your life. The New York trans fat ban is also tied to an estimated 4.5 percent decrease in mortality rates from cardiovascular disease — or 13 fewer such deaths per 100,000 people per year. That’s according to a previous study published in the January 2016 issue of the Journal of Health Economics.
[See: 17 Ways Heart Health Varies in Women and Men.]
5. Food labels require careful reading. Next time you’re food-shopping, check labels for partially hydrogenated oils — aka trans fats — and place those items back on the shelves. “If a food label lists ‘fully hydrogenated oils,’ then trans fats are absent,” says Weisenberger, author of “21 Things You Need to Know About Diabetes and Your Heart.” However, she adds, “If the label says ‘partially hydrogenated,’ even if it says ‘zero trans fats,’ there’s a trace.” The issue isn’t the amount of hydrogen per se but the nature of hydrogen-carbon bonds within the fat molecules. It’s legal for the Nutrition Facts panel to list items with less than 0.5 grams of trans fat per serving that way, she notes. But those “trace” amounts can add up. If partially hydrogenated oil is a listed ingredient, she recommends looking for a different brand. For instance, one brand of frozen pizza might contain partially hydrogenated oils while another brand is transfat-free. However, she emphasizes, “Whether a doughnut has trans fat in it or not, [it’s] still only a now-and-then food.”
6. Trans fats aren’t the only problematic fat. “None of the cooking oils that we have in our pantries are going to have trans fat in them,” Weisenberger says. “But they have varying levels of saturated fat.” Although trans fats are the “worst,” she says, that doesn’t mean saturated fats are healthy. “We do not have evidence to say saturated fats are fine,” she says. “We want to minimize our intake of saturated fats and completely get rid of our intake of trans fats the best we can.” Canola oil, olive oil and peanut oil all have healthy profiles, making them good choices, in moderation, for consumers, she says. Coconut oil, however, is not, she adds: “It’s very high in saturated fats and is linked to increased LDL cholesterol — people sometimes refer to that as the bad cholesterol.” To address restrictions, many restaurants and food manufacturers are replacing trans fats with healthier high-oleic oils.
7. Trans fats are on the way out. Looking for a healthy 2018 New Year’s resolution? The FDA will make it easy to avoid trans fats in your diet as it puts nationwide restrictions on partially hydrogenated oils into effect. Both Polonsky and Weisenberger praise this public-health measure and anticipate the larger-scale health benefits it should bring (assuming it goes forward as planned during the current administration).
8. Eliminating trans fats is just a start. Obviously, a lot more can be done to improve public health. That requires a partnership among individuals, governments and health care providers, Polonsky says. “It’s having sidewalks and parks where people can feel safe to go outdoors and exercise. And it’s about removing things from our diet that are harmful.” For instance, she’d like to see more done to reduce salt in processed foods.
[See: The Best Foods for Lowering Your Blood Pressure.]
Weisenberger, for her part, is pleased that added sugars (sugars in processed foods — not in fresh fruit) are listed on nutrition labels. One lifestyle change she’d like to see: “If people could understand the need for three meals a day and fruits and vegetables at every one of them, we could get rid of a lot of heart disease that way.”
The new trans fat policy is worth celebrating, Polonsky says. Moving forward, she says, “This should certainly encourage people to work together to identify other health measures that benefit not just cardiovascular outcomes, but other health outcomes as well.”
Lisa Esposito is a Patient Advice reporter at U.S. News. She covers health conditions, drawing on experience as an RN in oncology and other areas and as a research coordinator at the National Institutes of Health. Esposito previously reported on health care with Gannett, and she received her journalism master’s degree at Georgetown University. You can follow her on Twitter, connect with her on LinkedIn or email her at lesposito@usnews.com.
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