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Trans Fats
December 14, 2007
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Cakes, cookies, and pies seem to be synonymous with the holiday season. Mandy Lawrence
says holiday treats are a staple at her family gatherings. “Things like Christmas
cookies and pumpkin pie were always around during the holidays. They’re just as
much a tradition as a Christmas tree.” While your favorites may be tasty, they’re
likely packed with trans-fats. Marjorie Chutkan is a nutritionist
with Lee Memorial Health System. She says, “Trans fat is mostly found in stick margarine, shortening
and in a lot of the cakes and pies and cookies we buy normally from the stores they’re
made from trans fats a lot of processed foods are made from trans-fats. Nutritionists
say when it comes to good and bad fats, trans fats can have some of the most damaging
effects on the body. “It’s liquid fat, liquid oils that
they have transformed into
solid fat so it behaves like saturated fats. These are the fats, saturated fats
and trans fats that cause the arteries to clog up which leads to heart disease and
possibly a stroke,” says Marjorie. Manufactures are now required to list trans fat
on food labels. But Marjorie says some labels may be deceiving. “Manufactures can
put zero grams of Trans fat even if the product has 0.49 grams of Trans fat. Once
you see that word hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated fats it’s trans fats that
they’re talking about so we need to stay away from that as much as possible.” One
way to ensure your favorite holiday goodies are trans fat free is to get them the
old fashioned way; by baking them at home from scratch. Nutritionists also advise
incorporation fruits and vegetables into your traditional holiday dinners and desserts.
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