Download Current Perspective on Trans Fat

Current Perspective
on Trans Fat
Canadian Council of Food and Nutrition Phone: 905-625-5746 Email: [email protected] Web: www.ccfn.ca
2810 Matheson Boulevard East, 1st Floor, Mississauga, Ontario L4W 4X7 CANADA
Chances are you’ve heard about trans fats. They’re a type of fat that has been routinely used in
foods such as donuts, muffins, and some fried fast foods like French fries, and they’re one of the
most risky types of fat for heart disease. The good news is that Canada is making progress in
lowering the amount of industrially produced trans fat in our foods. From dietary advice on fats,
to nutrition labelling, to a national Trans Fat Task Force, steps have been taken to help us eat less
of this unhealthy fat.
Dietary advice on fats—the big picture
Limiting the amount of fat in your diet is recommended to improve
your health. But, we still need to eat some fat for good health. The
type of fat you choose is important.
Healthier (unsaturated) fats
are found in:
vegetable oils, nuts (like
walnuts), seeds (like flaxseed),
avocados, olives, fish, soft
margarines, and foods
enriched with omega-3 fats
In fact, for the first time ever, Eating Well with Canada’s Food Guide
advises that we eat about 30 to 45 mL (2 to 3 Tbsp) of unsaturated
fat each day. This includes vegetable oils used for cooking,
salad dressings, margarine and mayonnaise. These unsaturated fats, also known as
“monounsaturated” and “polyunsaturated” fats, are considered “healthier fats” because they help
to lower our risk for heart disease and stroke. Omega-3 fats are a type of polyunsaturated fat.
Reduce your intake of
saturated fat from:
fatty meats, high fat cheese,
cream, butter, ghee, lard,
shortening, hard margarine,
tropical oils such as coconut
and palm, and foods made with
“hydrogenated vegetable oil”
On the other hand, we need to limit both saturated and trans fats
because they can raise our chances of developing heart disease.
Trans fat is actually more harmful than saturated fat because
while both trans fat and saturated fat raise the “bad” LDL (low
density lipoprotein) blood cholesterol, trans fat ALSO lowers the
“good” HDL (high density lipoprotein) blood cholesterol.
Most of the trans fat in our diet is “man-made” or industrially
produced when vegetable oils are partially hydrogenated. This is
a process that changes the vegetable oil from a liquid into a semi-solid product. Trans fat has
been used to give foods texture, flavour and a longer shelf life. But, there’s no nutritional or
health benefits from eating industrially produced trans fat.
You may find trans fat in: cookies, crackers, donuts, muffins, pies, waffles, potato chips and other
snack foods, French fries and other fried fast foods, and foods that have the ingredients “vegetable oil
shortening” or “partially hydrogenated vegetable oil”
Did you know? A small amount of natural trans fat is found in dairy products, beef and lamb.
This natural type of trans fat does not have negative effects on our heart health.
There’s no need to avoid these nutritious foods because of concerns about trans fats.
Read more about fat, cholesterol and heart disease:
• Current Perspective on Understanding Fat, by Canadian Council of Food and Nutrition
• Dietary Fat—the Good, the Bad and the Ugly, by Dietitians of Canada
• Dietary Fat and Cholesterol, by Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada
Canadian Council of Food and Nutrition
Current Perspective on Trans Fat • 2
Nutrition labelling of trans fat
Trans Fat Task Force in Canada
In 2003, Canada became the first country in the
world to require that the trans fat content of foods
be listed on food labels. Since December 2005, all
pre-packaged foods sold in Canada must list the
trans fat content.
Health Canada, along with the Heart and Stroke
Foundation of Canada, formed a Trans Fat Task Force
in 2005 to develop recommendations for reducing
industrially produced trans fat in Canadian foods to the
lowest level possible.
You can make informed, healthy choices!
Typically, the trans fat content of foods such as
crackers, cookies, donuts, muffins and fried foods can
be as high as 45% of the total fat content. In other
words, almost half of the fat in these foods can be
trans fat! In June 2006, the Trans Fat Task Force
released its report, TRANSforming the Food Supply,
with a recommendation to reduce trans fat to 2%–5%
of a food’s total fat content.
9 Read the Nutrition Facts table on processed
foods and choose foods that contain less
trans and saturated fat.
9 Review the ingredient list. Avoid buying
foods that have “partially hydrogenated
vegetable oil” or “vegetable oil shortening”
because they will contain trans fat.
9 Remember, if the product has dairy, beef or
lamb, expect there to be natural trans fat.
9 Reduce the amount of trans fat and saturated
fat you eat, but also have a nutritionally
adequate diet by following Eating Well with
Canada’s Food Guide.
What does “trans fat free” mean?
In Canada, a product is only allowed to be
labelled “trans fat free” or “0 trans fat” if:
- it contains less than 0.2 grams of
trans fat per stated serving amount
AND
- the total amount of saturated plus
The goal of the Task Force’s recommendations was to
significantly improve the heart health of Canadians by
reducing our average daily intake of trans fat to less
than 1% of total energy intake. This translates to
eating less than 2 grams of trans fat every day for an
average adult who eats 2000 calories daily.
In December 2007, Health Canada released its first set
of trans fat monitoring data—an analysis of the trans
fat content of different fast foods and pre-packaged
foods. So far, about 60%–80% of the fast foods and
pre-packaged foods tested now have 5% or less trans
fat as recommended. Monitoring updates are posted
every six months.
trans fats adds up to 2 grams or less
per stated serving amount.
Learn more about reading nutrition labels:
• It’s Your Health: Nutrition Labelling, by Health
Canada
• Interactive Nutrition Label and Quiz, by Health
Canada
• Healthy Eating is in Store For You, a nutrition
labelling education centre, by Canadian Diabetes
Association and Dietitians of Canada
Read the Nutrition Facts
table on processed foods
and choose foods that
contain less saturated and
trans fat.
Canadian Council of Food and Nutrition
Current Perspective on Trans Fat • 3
Making better choices
It may be impossible to eat a diet that contains no
trans fat. But you can make choices to keep your
trans fat intake as low as possible. Here’s how:
At home:
9 Remember the big picture. Healthy eating
is about enjoying a variety of foods while
eating less salt, sugar, saturated fat and
trans fat. Even though they may be
labelled “trans fat free,” high fat cookies,
sugary donuts and salty potato chips still
aren’t healthy everyday choices.
9 Eat more vegetables, fruit, fish, lean
meats, meat alternatives (such as beans,
lentils, and tofu), lower fat milk products,
and whole grain breads and cereals to cut
back on both trans and saturated fats.
In your community:
9 Talk to your child’s daycare and school and
ask them to offer healthy snacks and foods
that are lower in trans fat. (But remember that
for young children the message isn’t “low fat;”
to grow and develop well, they need the food
energy that comes from a balanced diet
including fat. Don’t restrict nutritious foods
like milk because of the fat content.)
9 Call or write to your provincial and federal
Ministers of Health to voice your concern
about trans fat, and encourage them to
continue monitoring of trans fat in processed
foods and restaurant foods.
For more information and updates on trans fat, see:
• It’s Your Health: Trans Fat, by Health Canada
9 Cook from scratch as often as you can so
that you can control how much fat is used.
At work:
9 Pack your own healthy lunch so that you
won’t be tempted to buy something from
the fast food court.
9 Visit restaurants that have nutritious, low
fat items on their menu.
9 Use caterers who offer healthy options, or
bring in your own healthy snacks for
meetings. Veggies with dip, low fat
cheese, and fresh fruit are better choices
than donuts or store-bought muffins.
When eating out:
9 Check the restaurant’s menu on their
website ahead of time so that you can see
which foods have the lowest amounts of
trans and saturated fats.
9 Order grilled, steamed, broiled or baked
menu items instead of fried ones.
__________________________________________
Author: Sue Mah, MHSc, RD, Nutrition Solutions Inc.
Developed by: Canadian Council of Food and
Nutrition (CCFN) www.ccfn.ca 02/2008.
This resource is based on a Watching Brief
prepared for CCFN by Catherine J. Field, PhD, RD,
Professor of Nutrition, Alberta Institute for Human
Nutrition, Department of Agricultural, Food and
Nutritional Science, University of Alberta, and
reviewed by CCFN’s Policy Committee.
CCFN is a multi-sectoral trusted voice for science and
evidence-based food and nutrition policy and
information in Canada. CCFN was a member of the
Trans Fat Task Force.
This factsheet may be reproduced in its entirety
without permission.