[pct-l] trans fats

[Bill Burge]

First Wiki is a _questionable_ source.  I use it, but to get a quick  
start and to see the references at the bottom.

You are correct that partially hydrogenated oil is a source of trans  
fat.  It is also true that saying "0gr" means less than 0.5gr per  
serving.  he problem is that people seem to want that to mean that  
there is 0.49gr in a serving.  ;-)  It might be 0.01gr in a serving.

Everything else you say is true, but doesn't say anything to the  
AMOUNT of trans fats, just that they are bad (they ARE bad) and that  
labeling can be confusing (deceptive?) but that still doesn't speak to  
the tested levels.  One is a "value" judgement ("trans fats are bad")  
and the other is a "fact" judgement ("there are this many grams in  
this sample") - they are independent of each other.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fact-value_distinction   ;-)

So if we go back to the FDA study:

They chose "...11 brands of peanut butter, including major store  
brands and “natural” brands..."

I don't know which those were, but I would have to assume we would  
recognize some of the "major store brands".  Does that mean Jif is low  
in trans fats?  Nope.  They might have tested Skippy instead.  Does  
that mean you should eat either?  Nope (that would be a "value"  
judgement and that is left to the INDIVIDUAL - EYOTFs "Eat You Own  
Trans Fats"). Does that mean I will eat EITHER or BOTH?  (probably, my  
parents fed me tons of the stuff, along with Mazola and Crisco and any  
number of things made with the "magic solid oils" since I was little -  
so I'm probably screwed! ;-)

BillB



On Feb 16, 2010, at 7:52 PM, Dan Africk wrote:

> That's an interesting link, and the results are strange. I don't know
> what brands where tested in that research, but it doesn't say whether
> or not any of them contained partially hydrogenated oil.
> It is a widely accepted scientific fact that partially hydrogenated
> oils contain trans fat. It is produced by bubbling hydrogen gas
> through the oil while being heated to high temperatures, for the
> specific purpose of altering the the bond angles from cis to trans
> position(that's where 'trans' comes from, the bond angle is either cis
> or trans). It is the trans fats that give the oils the desired
> properties- smooth consistency, stable, long shelf life. But trans
> fats rarely occur in nature, and our bodies are not able to digest it
> well and it causes all sorts of problems.
> FYI, if the nutrition label says that there is 0 grams of trans fat
> per serving, it doesn't mean that there aren't any- it just means that
> there is less than 0.5 grams per serving, and scientifically and
> legally speaking, 0.4 = 0
>
> The following quotes are from wikipedia, there are a bunch of
> citations but I didn't bother to check them:
>
> "Health authorities worldwide recommend that consumption of trans fat
> be reduced to trace amounts. Trans fats from partially hydrogenated
> oils are more harmful than naturally occurring oils.[4]"
>
> "Researchers at the United States Department of Agriculture have
> investigated whether hydrogenation can be achieved without the side
> effect of trans fat production. They varied the pressure under which
> the chemical reaction was conducted — applying 1400 kPa (200 psi) of
> pressure to soybean oil in a 2 litre vessel while heating it to
> between 140 °C and 170 °C. The standard 140 kPa (20 psi) process of
> hydrogenation produces a product of about 40% trans fatty acid by
> weight, compared to about 17% using the high pressure method. Blended
> with unhydrogenated liquid soybean oil, the high pressure processed
> oil produced margarine containing 5 to 6% trans fat. Based on current
> U.S. labelling requirements (see below) the manufacturer could claim
> the product was free of trans fat."
>
> In other words, it is currently impossible to produce hydrogenated oil
> without creating trans fats.
>
>
> "full of artery clogging trans fats..." ??
>
> http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2001/010612.htm
>
> I'm not saying that it isn't better to look at sources like "once
> again" and justin's; I'm just saying that accuracy and reason are
> better than inflammatory statements.
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