What Are Trans Fats and How Do They Affect Our Health?

February 15, 2019 · Nutrition Articles

Trans fats are universally recognised as being bad for our health.

What are Trans Fats?

Trans fats were created by food producers looking for a cheaper and more shelf stable alternative to butter. Their solution was to turn cheap refined oils into a product that was solid at room temperature. This was the beginning of artificially produced trans fatty acids (TFAs).

The food industry developed a process called hydrogenation where hydrogen is added to oils to make them more solid or spreadable. The result is a hardened colourless fat that can be used to make spreads, shortenings and other food products such as biscuits and cakes. The resulting product is often referred to as “partially hydrogenated oil” (PHO) or “partially hydrogenated fat”. The use of PHOs helps to maintain flavour stability and prolongs the shelf life of food. This was great news for food producers and supermarkets, but not so much for your health.

Are trans fats found in nature? 

A very low level of these fats occurs naturally in animal products such as lamb, beef and full fat dairy products. The artificial versions produced through hydrogenation are the ones you should be worried about.

Are they really bad for our health? 

Yes. According to WebMD we should avoid them as much as possible as they are bad for heart health. Trans fatty acids raise LDL (bad) cholesterol and lower HDL (good) cholesterol. This increases likelihood of developing heart disease. According to an article in Business Insider, the World Health Organisation (WHO) says eliminating trans fats could save at least 500,000 lives a year.

Are partially hydrogenated oils and fats still being used? 

Not everywhere. In fact, they are gradually being phased out. In 2001 the Danish Nutrition Council recommended the government reduce trans fats in food to promote good cardiovascular health. Denmark paved the way by banning industrially produced trans fats in 2003. The result – Denmark saw a reduced rate in cardiovascular disease. Other countries followed suit.

In 2015 the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) announced that partially hydrogenated oils were no longer GRAS (Generally Recognised as Safe) and announced a nationwide ban against artificial trans fats. Within the US ,most products containing these artificial trans fats have been phased out as of June 2018, while the final few will be phased out by 2021 at the latest.

So where are TFAs still in circulation? 

As Kevin Loria reported for Business Insider, these dangerous fats are still commonly contained in products sold in Africa and South Asia. Looser regulation and pressure by the food industry have kept these products in circulation.

In May 2018 the WHO introduced a plan calling for governments to ban industrially produced trans fats within 5 years. The WHO doesn’t have the power to force individual countries to ban these products but it is hoped that their stance on these products will encourage countries to enact their own bans. 

What kind of food products contain these “partially hydrogenated oils” or TFAs? 

Margarines, shortenings, spreads, biscuits, cakes, doughnuts, fried foods, frozen pizza, crackers, cakes, pies and cookies are some of the foods that may contain trans fats.

How do you know if they’re in your food? 

TFAs aren’t required to be listed on the label in all countries. Even if they are listed on the label, 0g trans fats doesn’t necessarily mean there are none in there. In fact, there could be up to half a gram per serving.

The best way to see if a product contains trans fats is to check the ingredients label and see if “partially hydrogenated oils” are listed. Those are trans fats.

Should you be worried? 

For those consuming a largely plant based diet and who rarely eat processed foods, there is little reason to worry. However, if you’re reaching for the cookie jar on a regular basis you might want to start checking the labels.

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References and Further Reading:

• Belluz, J. (2015) ‘Why it took the FDA nearly 40 years to ban trans fats’ Vox. Accessed on 15.02.19 <https://www.vox.com/2015/6/17/8793937/why-fda-banned-trans-fats>
• Loria, K. (2018) ‘The world’s leading health organization says banning one type of fat could save half a million lives every year’. Business Insider. Accessed on 15.02.19 <https://www.businessinsider.com/trans-fat-ban-world-health-organization-2018-5>
• Food Safety Authority of Ireland. (2009) ‘Trans Fatty Acids and Hydrogenated Vegetable Oils’. Accessed on 15.02.19 <https://www.fsai.ie/faq/trans_fatty_acids.html>
• U.S. Food and Drug Administration. (2018) ‘Final Determination Regarding Partially Hydrogenated Oils (Removing Trans Fat)’.  Accessed on 15.02.19 <https://www.fda.gov/food/ingredientspackaginglabeling/foodadditivesingredients/ucm449162.htm>
• WebMD. (2018) ‘Understanding Trans Fats’. Accessed on 15.02.19 <https://www.webmd.com/diet/guide/understanding-trans-fats>
• World Health Organisation. (2018) ‘Denmark, Trans Fat Ban Pioneer: Lessons for Other Countries’. Accessed on 15.02.19 <https://www.who.int/news-room/feature-stories/detail/denmark-trans-fat-ban-pioneer-lessons-for-other-countries>