I should probably know this already...

[allana]

Can anyone explain to me what the deal is with trans fats? Why should I be eliminating them from my diet?

Comments

[stonefinder.livejournal.com]

Because they are the ones that apparently kill you, while the others are fine, even necessary.

[heliotic.livejournal.com]

They're the ones that cause heart attacks.

Or, more so than regular fats.

[glam-ang.livejournal.com]

Hello stranger! How the devil are you?

[heliotic.livejournal.com]

hehe.. I'm not doing too badly.

I'm getting ready to break out on my own again - Moving into my own place and what have you :)

I'm going to have to hit you up for cooking advice :)

[glam-ang.livejournal.com]

You guys split up? Shit, I'm so out of touch these days. *hugs*

I'm just getting back into cooking, so I should be able to dole out advice on command ;) My biggest piece of advice atm is to keep an eye on your pan. I burnt dinner the other night when I wandered off to play with Lucas half-way through :P

[heliotic.livejournal.com]

It seems to be the happening thing these days :)

It was about 3 months ago, and we're still living together for the moment, but once the relevant house related parts happen I'll be on my own again!

PS: That's good advice about the pans. Rest assured, once I get some, I'll be watching them!

[feelforfaith.livejournal.com]

I don't really know much more than trans fats are created during the process of partial hydrogenation and unlike other fats, they are not healthy. And that you should be getting you daily fat amounts from the good kinds of fats.

~is not very helpful~

[madandy.livejournal.com]

Personally, I ignore such things.

Hey, the smoking'll kill me loooooooooooooooooooooooong before any of the various Food Flaps do.

[screwthedaisies.livejournal.com]

The Reason Trans Fats Kill You
by Heather Lackey

Saturated fats are bad for you because they raise your LDL (bad) cholesterol. Trans fats are even worse for you because they both raise your LDL cholesterol and lower your HDL (good) cholesterol. LDL causes clogged arteries. HDL helps protect against heart attacks. Trans fats are therefore a double whammy in increasing your heart attack risk.

Even small amounts of trans fat can work against you, so the more you can avoid it, the better. (And by "trans fats" here I mean the man-made kind. There are naturally occurring trans fats, but they present no greater harm to your well being than the other fats. So you really want to check ingredients lists and avoid anything that has shortening, hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oil. (And really, isn't butter yummier than shortening anyway?))

[heliotic.livejournal.com]

Mmm.. hydrogenated.

I don't even know what it means, but it just screams healthiness.

Try our new flavoured grains! They're hydrogenated!

[glam-ang.livejournal.com]

Aha! Now that makes sense. You can tell that I snoozed through most of my lectures on lipids at Uni, can't you? I should be an expert on all this stuff and it's all just flown out of my mind.

And now I shall go and read a few packages, just in case anything nasty is lurking in my favourite foods....

Thanks, H!

[hanks-lil-pit.livejournal.com]

*watch me poke my head in here*

When my sister in law was dying from liver cancer at the age of 17, her parents saw fit to seek several alternative therapies. This was done with much research and reading. Didn't save her, but it did open up a world of information in just what we expose ourselves to every day.

Frightening if you think about it.

But in reality the formula is terribly simple. Frightening and terribly simple.

The basic premise is that your body doesn't know what to do with man made or man altered products, so that means go fresh. All this crap they add to prepackaged food is simply toxic...all of it, because it is added with the intention of preserving the food so it can sit in transit and then on market shelves for an inordinate amount of time, as is warranted by our convenience driven society of today.

Predominantly, when you cook any oil it spoils it, makes it toxic, like spoilt milk. Cooked nuts are considered toxic, go figure.

The best and safest bet in all things is to eat fresh, and eat 50% raw (vegetables and fruits, of course, although I am not opposed to eating raw meat prepared correctly.)

This is one of the best researched books out there:

http://www.amazon.com/YOU-Owners-Insiders-Healthier-Younger/dp/0060765313/sr=1-2/qid=1168906690/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2/103-6933409-1967050?ie=UTF8&s=books

But, if you're not interested in that, the hands down easiest thing to do is eat fresh,and eat half raw. You'll win every time. Problem with that is most people don't have the time...but I know...you're a helluva cook. So buck up to doing it scratch and you've got it made. The other key and obvious thing is everything in moderation.

The Hank