Trans Fat Research Paper

Polyunsaturated fats are found in fish and vegetable oils and are an essential nutrient which reduces the risk for coronary heart disease (Shulman, 2010, pg. 51).  The unhealthy fats are the trans fatty acids, saturated and unsaturated, such as butter, cheese and animal fat, should be completely removed from diets.  Saturated trans fats contribute to an increased low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels, high blood pressure, increase inflammation and heart disease. Unsaturated trans fats also contribute to higher LDL cholesterol and lower the high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels (Shulman, 2010, pg. 52).  A fast paced society has lead to and increased consumption of prepackaged food is because it is a convenient option when people are in a time restraint and for people who are stressed (C.L. Rocks, personal communication, October 11, 2011). A way to overcome this is to spend some time planning meals for a week and by arranging healthy snacks, such as preparing raw vegetables ahead of time, to make it easier to eat healthy when in a time restraint. Trans fatty foods containing hydrogenated vegetable oil, foods such as chips or cookies, typically are high calorie foods and are lacking in essential nutrients (Brandt, 2011, pg 158). Cravings increase over time because people turn to them so often it develops into a habit. These unhealthy habits could unfortunately result in a person gaining weight (C.L. Rocks, personal communication, October 11,

People who care about nutrition often search for regulations that might end up in good food habits. These rules concentrate on eliminating hydrogenated oils and including at least half plate of vegetables. But not every rule is helpful or necessary at all.

Unsaturated fatty acid not filled with all the hydrogen it can hold. Because of that, it's less thick and less dense like liquid oil. Monounsaturated fat has one empty spot. Examples of monounsaturated fat include plants base liquid oil which contains olive oil and peanut oil

(b.) The fluidity of lipids depends on the length and saturation of their hydrocarbon tails. Butter is a saturated lipid with a short hydrocarbon tail, waxes are lipids with extremely long hydrocarbon tails but are still saturated, and oils are unsaturated lipids with long hydrocarbon tails.

This regulation is necessary in order to increase awareness of what individuals eat. Bent Glass argues in "Should the Government Regulate What We Eat?" that "the support of the ban on trans fats are quick to point out the negative health effects of consuming food prepared with the banned item." Many restaurants are putting the amount of calories on their food menus. However, many Americans just keep eating the food because of its quality and flavor, been conscious of how many calories it contains. This clearly demonstrates the importance of the regulation necessary to maintain individuals in a safe environment.

Additionally, trans fats are in processed foods and they are considering banning them. Tracie McMillan quotes “if you want to

2. The hydrocarbon chains of fatty acids vary in length as well as in the number and location of double bonds between the carbon atoms.

Restaurants are an important source of daily food intake for New York City residents. An estimated one third of daily consumption comes from foods purchased from restaurants. Assuring healthy dining options is a public health concern. The public health concern this health policy aims to address is the presence of trans fat in foods served in restaurants. The presence of trans fat in foods creates a dangerous and yet preventable health risk to restaurant goers (2).

The availability of these restaurants and the willingness to consume food from them is allowing our bodies to ingest one major ingredient that is poorly absorbed in our bodies, and that is trans fats. Trans fats, properly known as trans fatty acids are an unsaturated fatty acid found in some vegetable oils (Merrium-Webster, 2015). These trans fatty acids are found in fast food, biscuits, cakes, frozen pizza, and microwave popcorn among many other commonly consumed foods. Fast food restaurants use these trans fatty acids with other oils to deep fry food that allows food to “taste good” or be more desirable. These trans fats are thought to generate a higher amount of stomach and abdominal fat and are also known to raise LDL cholesterol and cause additional health problems (Astrup, Dyerberg, Selleck, & Stender, 2008). Another leading cause of poor nutrition in the United States is portion size. Portion sizes vary all over the world and even from our homes to the restaurant. The bigger the portion size the more people feel like they have to eat. This feeling causes them to eat more than they need to be fulfilled and more calories consumed than needed for the body to run. Generally if people don’t eat all of their food they feel like they are being wasteful and they continue to eat even after they are full (Astrup, Dyerberg, Selleck, & Stender, 2008). One major problem with this is the amount of food being consumed. People have to be able to know

There are many trans fats in the foods that seem healthy that is why people should watch what they eat and take care of their bodies as much as they can. One might not know this, but trans fats are formed when oils that are liquid at room temperature are mixed with hydrogen and become solid fats. People will not be able to notice when they are consuming these trans fats because they have a taste and texture that many consumers find desirable. Trans fats can raise our level of “bad” cholesterol while also lowering our “good” cholesterol levels which can contribute to heart disease. These can also lead to a numerous amount of health problems requiring medical

A molecule of dietary fat typically consists of several fatty acids (containing long chains of carbon and hydrogen atoms), bonded to a glycerol. They are typically found as triglycerides (three fatty acids attached to one glycerol backbone). Fats may be classified as saturated or unsaturateddepending on the detailed structure of the fatty acids involved. Saturated fats have all of the carbon atoms in their fatty acid chains bonded to hydrogen atoms, whereas unsaturated fats have some of these carbon atoms double-bonded, so their molecules have relatively fewer hydrogen atoms than a saturated fatty acid of the same length. Unsaturated fats may be further classified as monounsaturated (one double-bond) or polyunsaturated (many double-bonds). Furthermore, depending on the location of the double-bond in the fatty acid chain, unsaturated fatty acids are classified as omega-3 or omega-6 fatty acids. Trans fats are a type of unsaturated fat with trans-isomer bonds; these are rare in nature and in foods from natural sources; they are typically created

Trans fat may not be as dangerous as people say. 1.) Studies show that some types of Trans fat may be good for you. 2.) Naturally occurring Trans fat could help protect the heart. 3.) Artificial Trans fat is not dangerous in low doses. This shows me to not eat lots of Trans fat. Small doses aren't dangerous but I have to regulate the amount of Trans fat I eat. I will eat more dairy products so it could help protect me from future heart problems. Not too much artificial Trans fat, such as packaged baked good, are bad for me, so I won't eat as

Since the Agricultural Revolution, people have been using nature as the basis for the creation of artificial foods. At the dawn of the Tech Age and in the aftermath of the Industrial Revolution, technology has enhanced our ability to do this, allowing us to create new industrially processed foods. With this power, also comes the responsibility and challenge of keeping a healthy diet. This challenge is a monumental one, as poor diet and inadequate physical activity together account for at least 300,000 deaths in the United States annually. One example of an industrial food source which has challenged our ability to keep a healthy diet in the twenty-first century is trans fat. Despite its health risks, trans fat possesses

According to the Mayo Clinic article Trans Fat is unhealthy for the heart and cholesterol. It affects the arteries and cholesterol levels. Excessive consumption of trans fats can lead to heart disease and increase level of the “bad” cholesterol and low levels of the “good cholesterol.

There are two types of trans fats found in food: natural and artificial. Natural trans fat are produced in the guts of some animal or found in food obtained from those animal such as milk and meat produce (American Heart Association, 2015). On the other hand, artificial trans fat are introduced in food through the partial hydrogenation of vegetable oil resulting in a semi-solid or solid fat found in margarine and shortening. (American Heart Association, 2015). Many food manufacturing companies use artificial trans fat because they are inexpensive, it makes the food last longer, have better texture and gives food desirable taste (U.S. Food& Drug Administration, 2015). This hardened oil are used in making pies, cakes, ready to use frosting, fried food like donuts and dough