Fats: good, bad and evil

By Michelle Theall (Kansas)
Updated: 2006-06-20 15:22
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According to the federal Food and Drug Administration, more than 6,000 heart attacks per year would be prevented if trans fats were removed from margarine. Staggering.

So what are the little devastating buggers? Also called partially hydrogenated fats or oils, trans fats are toxic, man-made fats that in no uncertain terms will kill you.

'Evil' fats

The manufactured fats extend the shelf life of food but will make your own perishable date quite short. You won't find them in the diet of any other species on our planet, because they simply aren't real food.

Creators of trans fats make the killer by adding hydrogen to vegetable oil -- which turns the oil into a more solid fat -- so the food it goes into can have an expiration date of the year 3008.

If it doesn't go bad in your pantry, chances are nothing's going to break that stuff down, including the digestive processes of the human body.

Scared yet? If you see the words partially hydrogenated on the label, run for your life.

Saturated and polyunsaturated fats sit one step below trans fats on the evil meter. For the most part, they include commercially available cooking oils and animal fats from dairy, poultry, beef and pork. Better choices mean cooking with olive, sesame or grape seed oil, and sticking with small doses of meat and dairy comprising around 5 percent or less of the day's total calorie intake.

Healthy fats

Some fats actually help you stay healthy. These include Omega 3-rich foods such as fresh fish, walnuts, pumpkin seeds and flaxseed oils.

Monounsaturated fats, including seeds, nuts and olive oil, reduce blood pressure, lower cholesterol, calm inflammation and boost immunity. The next time someone asks how you got so svelte, you can tell them you're on a Mediterranean diet with lots of fat.

Fat challenge

Read the label on the foods you buy. Replace items containing hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated fats or oils with monounsaturated and Omega 3-rich foods.

We weren't meant to eat trans fats or chemically altered food. The convenience of a quick meal or a 10-year shelf life pales in comparison to your untimely demise. You are what you eat.