Alternatives exist to trans fatty foods
Consumers who scan ingredient lists have already realized that it's hard to find packaged food products and baked goods that are free of trans fats. But there are plenty of healthy alternatives to trans-laden foods, and many of them actually taste good.
Industrial-made fat is in virtually all of our packaged food, and the tip-off is ingredients like hydrogenated vegetable oils and shortening. Walk through major grocery stores and it's hard to find packaged food products and baked goods without them. And trans fat is the frying fat of choice in our restaurants.
But trans fat does not have to be in our diets, and there are healthier ways to fuel our bodies and feed our children.
Nutritionist Jane Durst Pulkys took a walk through the aisles at Wholesome Foods, a whole foods grocery store in Toronto's Beaches neighbourhood with CTV. She found an array of non-trans fat treats, including vanilla creme cookies and granola peanut bars with no trans fatty acids.
"Absolutely, they can make foods without trans fats -- and there are lots out there," she said.
With growing evidence industrially-made trans fats trigger heart disease, perhaps even diabetes, Alzheimer's and premature birth, nutritionists say consumers should keep their eye out for trans-free snacks.
One hallmark of trans-free foods is that they have an expiry date. That's because foods without trans contain oil that will eventually go bad, and won't last on shelves for more than a few months.
So without the partially hydrogenated oils, what do many of the trans-free snacks contain instead? Palm oil and coconut oil. Those oils were vilified in the late 1980s by a campaigns like "The Poisoning of America," claiming they were bad for our health.
So in their stead, trans fats, made from partially solidified vegetable oils, became the norm. The problem is scientists think they're at least twice as bad for our health as those original plant fats. That's why nutritionists and doctors are advising parents to go back to the basics.
"There's no question that snacks that include fresh fruits and vegetables, cut-up celery and carrots, crackers, whole wheat crackers, etc., are going to be healthier and more filling than snacks that are high in fats and high in sugars and overly processed," says Dr. Robert Issenman of the Canadian Pediatrics Society.
Issenman says he's worried that kids who eat too many packaged foods are risking their health.
"We're concerned at the Canadian Pediatric Society about the prevalence of obesity, it really is an epidemic," he said. "And we are concerned about treats and snacks, particularly if they have a high saturated fat level and trans fat level, that really undermines children's health," says Isserman.
"Many families where there are working parents, we've got busy lives, including my own. We rely on pre-prepared and processed snacks which have high appeal to children. And if they're both high in calories and high in unhealthy fats, that's a real cause of concern."
As an antidote to the chips and trans-laden foods that many kids bring for lunch, some schools are experimenting even more radical solutions, including a $2 a day healthy salad bar.
"If we start early and give them practice in making choices, hopefully in the long term improve their ability to make food choices," says Margaret McIntosh, the principal at Bruce Junior Public School in Toronto.
The message is there are other ways to feed ourselves and our children that don't contain trans fats or other unhealthy ingredients. We just have to look at little harder.
|
|
| |
|
|
 |
Chart with estimates of trans fat content of five popular take out foods
|
Chart on 14 randomly selected foods popular with children and teens.
|
Answers to your questions and tips on how you can avoid trans fat.
|
What exactly is hydrogenated fat? An explanation here.
|
CTV News contacted some food companies to ask them their position on trans fat
|
 |
Avis Favaro on the fight to ban the use of trans fats in processed food
Avis Favaro on the move to get restaurants to reveal trans fat content in meals
Avis Favaro reports Trans fat isn't listed on any restaurant or takeout menu -- but it's there
Medical specialist Avis Favaro looks at healthy alternatives consumers can use to replace trans fat
Avis Favaro finds children under age two may be most vulnerable to trans fat
Avis Favaro looks at the pros and cons of labelling for trans fat ingredients in foods
Avis Favaro with results of trans fat food tests
Avis Favaro explains how trans fats may be playing havoc with our health
Jennifer Tryon on new rules for labelling of trans fats
|
|
|
|
|
