Trans-fatty acids
It’s Everywhere!
Speaking of consumer responsibility, have you taken steps to remove trans-fatty acids (TFAs) from your diet?
According to a recent analysis of restaurant food commissioned by Canada’s Globe and Mail and Canadian Television (CTV), one good way to avoid TFAs is to not eat out at all. Every single restaurant product that was tested contained some amount of TFA.
Without naming any specific restaurants or brands, here are some of the items tested and their TFA totals:
- One slice of double-cheese pizza – about half a gram of TFA
- Large order of French fries – 4 to 6 grams
- Chicken pot pie – 5 grams
- One sour cream glazed doughnut – 5 grams
- Five chicken nuggets – almost 4 grams
- Two spring rolls – 2 grams
- “Captain’s” platter of fried shrimp, fish, clams, and scallops – 22 grams
That last one is not a misprint: 22 grams of TFA!
According to at least one research report, a daily intake of only one gram of TFA may increase the risk of heart disease by as much as 20 percent. And a 2002 report from the National Academy of Sciences concluded that, “the only safe intake of trans-fat is zero.”
Obviously, most of the foods listed above would come under the “junk” category. Or to be more generous, we’ll call it “convenience food.”
Convenient or not, it’s obvious that you need to be a picky eater when you’re dining out if you want to avoid TFAs.
To Your Good Health,
Jenny Thompson
Health Sciences Institute
Sources:
“Trans Fats Almost Everywhere, Tests Find” Andre Picard, Avis Favaro and Jenny Wells, The Globe and Mail, 12/8/03, theglobeandmail.com
