GoodHealthMD.com
The Detriment of Trans Fats to your Health
Wake up America! Even Improved Soybean Oil Isn't Good For You
The heart risks of trans fat has sparked greater demand for a new variety
of soybean oil, to the extent that food companies have recruited farmers to
grow more of the new beans.
No Need for Hydrogenation
The new soybeans contain lower levels of the acids that make food stale or
rancid, meaning their oil does not need hydrogenation, the process the
creates trans fats. Most soybeans contain roughly 7 percent linolenic acid.
The new varieties contain 1 to 3 percent.
Outstripping Supply
Use of the oil has increased ever since the FDA began requiring
manufacturers to list trans fat content on food labels. As a result, demand
for the new soybeans is beginning to outstrip the supply.
Kellogg uses new
genetically modified soybean oil in some of their snack products to get rid
of trans fats.
No wonder companies are frantically searching for alternatives, considering
the FDA's edict that processed food products must list the amount of trans
fats they contain. And supply isn't keeping up with the demand, not unlike
the unsafe trend seen with Splendid
Why these so-called healthier vegetable oils are a disastrous choice for
most people: They can contain as much as 100 times the level of harmful
omega-6 fats, far in excess of the average American's intake of more
beneficial omega-3 fats.
We all need to eat omega-6 fats but about the only people who are deficient
in this fat are those on exclusive IV nutrition that is not supplemented
with IV fat or those who are consuming a low-fat vegan diet.
Omega-6 fats are in nearly every animal food and many plants, so that is why
deficiencies are very rare.
Around 1900, Americans ate less than a pound of processed vegetable oil
annually. Just last year, the average American ate more than 80 pounds,
largely thanks to processed fast food using oils like these. Suffice to say,
the human body wasn't designed to consume these high levels of vegetable
fats.
Excessive consumption of omega-6-laden vegetable oils can lead to:
Asthma
Blindness
Heart disease
Cancer
Just as virtually no one is deficient in omega-6 fats, it is very rare for
the typical person to be consuming enough omega-3 fats. The vast majority of
people are deficient in this critical fat.
One crucial way to right-size your intake of more beneficial omega-3 fats:
Take a high-quality fish or cod liver oil daily.
And in addition, to avoid overly high quantities of omega-6 fats, avoid
highly processed foods, which frequently contain heated vegetable oils and
other dangerous ingredients. If you must cook with oil at home, use coconut
oil. Despite the bad reputation of saturated fats, they are actually better
for cooking because they are far less damaged by the heating process.