What are trans fats and why should we avoid them?

You may have already heard about the law limiting the amount of trans fat in foods, but reading this topic will always help.

Read the full text: What is trans fat? Why should you avoid them?

Many studies over the past few decades have shown that there is certainly a strong link between the presence of trans fats in foods and the development of cardiovascular disease, which has been reported to authorities in several countries over the years. In April 2021, European law came into force, requiring manufacturers to limit trans fats. This is a mandatory regulation on trans fats excluding naturally occurring trans fats in animal fats, which was mandated in April 2021 and hopes that all of us will enjoy better health over time.

Fats can be divided into two major categories, saturated and unsaturated, based on the chemical structure of the fatty acids that make them up. Saturated products, like butter, lard, and margarine, are solid at room temperature. Instead, unsaturated fats are liquids at room temperature, such as canola oil, olive oil, and sunflower oil. A special type is trans fat or fatty acid, which is industrially produced during the process of partial hydrogenation of oil.

After ingesting, trans fats enter the bloodstream, lowering "good" cholesterol and raising levels of "bad" cholesterol. Therefore, fat damages blood vessels, maintains a state of systemic oxidative stress and inflammation, and exposes us to cardiovascular disease, which may also be a major cause of death in European Union countries. In summary, high trans fat consumption significantly increases the risk of cardiovascular disease over any other type of food or excess calories. In addition, trans fats are associated with weight gain in some animal studies, especially in the accumulation of abdominal fat, and can adversely affect the ability of insulin to take glucose into available cells. As an energy source.

The European Food Safety Authority EFSA recommends that these fats be included in the European diet in as little amount as possible. The EFSA recommendations are also reflected by the World Health Organization, which proposes to limit the daily intake of calories from trans fats to a maximum of 1%. For an adult with an average calorie intake of 2,000 kcal, 150 pounds, this is equivalent to less than 2.2 grams of trans fat per day. Otherwise, exceeding 2% of the daily calories from trans fats increases the risk of cardiovascular disease by 20% to 32%.