Hidden Fats
More and more products on the shelves nowadays are being marketed
as healthy choices. Low-fat cereal bars are being offered as a healthy alternative to indulging in a danish on the way to work, or veggie sausages as a healthy dinner. As a result consumers might be cutting back on fat, but what they are beginning to discover is that some of these new products could be doing them more harm than good.
Eating these so-called 'healthy' choices (and many other processed foods such as cakes, pastries, margarine, and even some stock cubes) may mean inadvertently consuming what are commonly known as trans fats. These fats can harden arteries and raise 'bad' cholesterol levels which can in turn increase the risk of heart disease. Health experts believe that trans fats may even be worse for us than the much-demonised saturated fats.
Trans fats can arise in products as a by-product of the hydrogenation of oils. Healthier unsaturated vegetable oil isn't very useful when producing solid products as most of it is liquid at room temperature. So hydrogen is bubbled through the oil to harden it, extend its shelf-life and make it much more useable. Although trans fats don't always result from this process they're a possibility, especially if the oil is only partially hydrogenated.
Unlike in the US where labelling of trans fats will be compulsory from 2006, current laws in the UK mean manufacturers aren't obliged to say whether a food contains them or not. This makes it tricky for consumers to avoid them. The only way to do so at the moment is to stop buying all products containing hydrogenated vegetable oil or fat, just to be on the safe side.
Some food manufacturers are taking notice of the bad publicity trans fats are receiving. A quick survey shows that several brands including Flora, McVities, Mars and Jacob's have all removed hydrogenated vegetable oils from their products.
But more can done. The European Food Safety Authority has advised manufacturers to reduce trans fat levels wherever possible. Although the government seems reluctant to legislate on this issue manufacturers shouldn't underestimate public feeling.
Joanne Finney is food writer at Good Housekeeping Magazine, http://www.goodhousekeeping.co.uk
