Trans Fats: Health Effects : Minimizing Your Risk

by Health Canada

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The best way to minimize the risk of adverse health effects related to trans fat is to reduce your intake of foods that contain trans fatty acid.

Avoid commercially fried foods and high-fat bakery products unless they are identified as being reduced in or free of trans fat.

Follow the suggestions in Canada's Food Guide to Healthy Eating. The Guide advises you to choose lower fat dairy products, leaner meats and foods prepared with little or no fat.

Read the labels on pre-packaged food products. Since December 2005, it has been mandatory for most foods to list on the "Nutrition Facts" table the amount of trans fat in the product. Also, look for the phrase "partially hydrogenated oil." If you see this phrase in the list of ingredients on the label, it means the product contains trans fat.

Choose soft margarines that are labelled as being free of trans fat or made with non-hydrogenated fat.

Fry foods less often. When you do fry foods, use healthier oils that contain a higher proportion of monounsaturated fats. Do not re-use the oils more than two or three times.

When you eat out, ask about the trans fat content of foods on the menu.

Remember, saturated fat also increases your risk of developing heart disease. You can lower your intake of both saturated and trans fats by eating more vegetables and fruit, fish, shell-fish and other seafood, whole grain breads and cereals, peas, beans, lentils and nuts. It also helps to choose oils and fats that contain a high proportion of polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fatty acids.

Finally, help your children develop healthy eating habits. Encourage them to eat healthy snacks that are lower in trans fats and saturated fats, and lead by example. Good snack choices for children include fruits and vegetables, milk, yogurt, and whole grain cereal and bakery products that are lower in trans fats and saturated fats.

The Government of Canada's Role

As part of its ongoing commitment to provide Canadians with the information they need to make healthy lifestyle choices, the Government of Canada introduced mandatory nutrition labelling for pre-packaged foods. Canada was the first country in the world to introduce mandatory labelling of trans fat. As of December 12, 2005, these new labelling regulations require that calories and the content of 13 core nutrients, including trans fat, be listed on the labels of most pre-packaged foods.

The mandatory labelling of trans fat is intended to help consumers make healthy food choices. It has already prompted a number of food companies to reduce or even eliminate trans fat in their products.

In addition, Health Canada, along with the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada, has been working with a task force made up of various stakeholders to develop recommendations and strategies for reducing trans fats in Canadian foods to the lowest level possible. The report of the Task Force was released in June 2006.

About the Author

www.hc-sc.gc.ca
Health Canada is the Federal department responsible for helping Canadians maintain and improve their health, while respecting individual choices and circumstances.