Trans fat is the common name for a type of unsaturated fat with trans isomer fatty acid (s). Trans fats may be monounsaturated or polyunsaturated.
Chemically, trans fats are made of the same building blocks as non-trans fats, but have a different arrangement. In trans fatty acid molecules, the hydrogen atoms bonded to pair(s) of doubly bonded carbon atoms (characteristic of all unsaturated fats) are in the trans rather than the cis arrangement. This results in a straight, rather than kinked, shape for the carbon chain, more like the straight chain of a fully saturated fat
Trans fat is made when manufacturers add hydrogen to vegetable oil–a process called hydrogenation. Hydrogenation increases the shelf life and flavor stability of foods containing these fats.
Trans fat can be found in vegetable shortenings, some margarines, crackers, cookies, snack foods, and other foods made with or fried in partially hydrogenated oils. Unlike other fats, the majority of trans fat is formed when food manufacturers turn liquid oils into solid fats like shortening and hard margarine. A small amount of trans fat is found naturally, primarily in some animal-based foods.
Trans fat, like saturated fat and dietary cholesterol, raises the LDL cholesterol that increases your risk for CHD. Although saturated fat is the main dietary culprit that raises LDL, trans fat and dietary cholesterol also contribute significantly.
Scientific evidence shows that consumption of saturated fat, trans fat, and dietary cholesterol raises low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or “bad cholesterol,” levels, which increases the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD).

Trans fat and colesterol:

Doctors worry about trans fat because of its unhealthy effect on your cholesterol levels — increasing your LDL and decreasing your HDL cholesterol. There are two main types of cholesterol:
• Low-density lipoprotein (LDL). LDL, or “bad,” cholesterol transports cholesterol throughout your body. LDL cholesterol, when elevated, builds up in the walls of your arteries, making them hard and narrow.
• High-density lipoprotein (HDL). HDL, or “good,” cholesterol picks up excess cholesterol and takes it back to your liver.
A high LDL cholesterol level is a major risk factor for heart disease. If your LDL is too high, over time, it can cause atherosclerosis, a dangerous accumulation of fatty deposits on the walls of your arteries. These deposits — called plaques — can reduce blood flow through your arteries. If the arteries that supply your heart with blood (coronary arteries) are affected, you may have chest pain and other symptoms of coronary artery disease.
If plaques tear or rupture, a blood clot may form — blocking the flow of blood or breaking free and plugging an artery downstream. If blood flow to part of your heart stops, you’ll have a heart attack. If blood flow to part of your brain stops, a stroke occurs.
Cholesterol levels are expressed as milligrams per deciliter of blood, or mg/dL:

LDL targets

• 160 mg/dL is considered a high LDL.
• 130 mg/dL and lower is a good target for most healthy people.
• 100 mg/dL is the target if you have other risk factors for heart disease.
• 70 mg/dL is the target if you already have heart disease.

HDL targets

With HDL cholesterol, higher is better. HDL helps remove excess cholesterol from your body. Higher levels of HDL are associated with a lower risk of heart disease.

• 40 to 50 mg/dL is normal for healthy men.
• 50 to 60 mg/dL is normal for healthy women.
• 40 mg/dL and lower for men or women is considered risky, and the lower the value, the greater the risk.

Trans fat and food:

Commercial baked goods — such as crackers, cookies and cakes — and many fried foods such as doughnuts and french fries — contain trans fats. Shortenings and some margarines also are high in trans fat.
Trans fat used to be more common, but in recent years food manufacturers have used it less. Since January 2006, manufacturers in the United States have been required to list trans fat content on nutrition labels. Manufacturers in other countries have taken similar steps. As a result, some companies have changed their manufacturing process to use little or no trans fat.
Don’t think a trans fat-free food is automatically good for you. Food manufacturers have begun substituting other ingredients for trans fat. However, some of these ingredients, such as tropical oils — coconut, palm kernel and palm oils — contain a lot of saturated fat. Saturated fat raises your LDL cholesterol. A healthy diet includes some fat, but there’s a limit.

Major food sources of trans fat for adults:

(Average Daily Trans Fat Intake is 5.8 Grams or 2.6 Percent of Calories)

  • 40% cakes, cookies, crackers, pies, bread, etc.
  • 21% animal products
  • 17% margarine
  • 8% fried potatoes
  • 5% potato chips, corn chips, popcorn
  • 4% household shortening
  • 3% salad dressing
  • 1% breakfast cereal
  • 1% candy

The Top 10 “Trans Fat” Foods:

1) Spreads. Margarine is a twisted sister — it’s loaded with trans fats and saturated fats, both of which can lead to heart disease. Other non-butter spreads and shortening also contain large amounts of trans fat and saturated fat:

  • Stick margarine has 2.8 grams of trans fat per tablespoon, and 2.1 grams of saturated fat.
  • Tub margarine has 0.6 grams of trans fat per tablespoon, and 1.2 grams of saturated fat.
  • Shortening has 4.2 grams of trans fat per tablespoon, and 3.4 grams of saturated fat.
  • Butter has 0.3 grams of trans fat per tablespoon, and 7.2 grams of saturated fat

2) Packaged foods. Cake mixes, Bisquick, and other mixes all have several grams of trans fat per serving.

3) Soups. Ramen noodles and soup cups contain very high levels of trans fat
4) Fast Food. Bad news here: Fries, chicken, and other foods are deep-fried in partially hydrogenated oil. Even if the chains use liquid oil, fries are sometimes partially fried in trans fat before they’re shipped to the restaurant. Pancakes and grilled sandwiches also have some trans fat, from margarine slathered on the grill.

Examples:

  • Fries (a medium order) contain 14.5 grams.
  • A KFC Original Recipe chicken dinner has 7 grams, mostly from the chicken and biscuit.
  • Burger King Dutch Apple Pie has 2 grams.

5) Frozen Food. Those yummy frozen pies, pot pies, waffles, pizzas, even breaded fish sticks contain trans fat. Even if the label says it’s low-fat, it still has trans fat.
6) Baked Goods. Even worse news — more trans fats are used in commercially baked products than any other foods. Doughnuts contain shortening in the dough and are cooked in trans fat.
7) Cookies and cakes (with shortening-based frostings) from supermarket bakeries have plenty of trans fat. Some higher-quality baked goods use butter instead of margarine, so they contain less trans fat, but more saturated fat.

8) Donuts have about 5 grams of trans fat apiece, and nearly 5 grams of saturated fat.
9) Cream-filled cookies have 1.9 grams of trans fat, and 1.2 grams of saturated fat.
10) Pound cake has 4.3 grams of trans fat per slice, and 3.4 grams of saturated fat.

Sources: Vpul Uenn, Mayo Clinic, FDA, Wikipedia

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