Fresh off a recent trip to Orlando, Fla., I was frequently asked to recount my most memorable experience. Despite having truly enjoyed the trip, I would begin railing about my observations from the one day I spent at Disney World: the mass consumption of unhealthful foods, the general out-of-shape appearance of a majority of the visitors and the sheer numbers of these visitors who were riding around on motorized scooters rather than walking. Then I would begin to babble about the perils of partially hydrogenated oils, and how the consumption of foods containing them would lead to the destruction of our society. At this point, everyone lost interest, signaling that no one knew what partially hydrogenated oils were. So here's a bit of a primer on fats and how important they are to our daily diet.
First and foremost, it's key to realize that not all fats are bad for you. Fat is necessary for overall nutrition in terms of building cell membranes, ensuring the proper workings of our nervous system and helping to absorb the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K. Similarly, fat protects vital organs, insulates the body and keeps our hair shiny and our skin baby soft. That said, there are two camps when it comes to fats: good, or unsaturated, fats and bad, or saturated, fats.
Unsaturated fats, which are in liquid form at room temperature, come in two kinds: monounsaturated and polyunsaturated. The only noticeable difference between these two types is the temperature at which they begin to solidify. Consuming these unsaturated fats has been proven to lower bad cholesterol levels, which can help prevent heart attacks later in life caused by plaque buildups on the walls of arteries. Additionally, these fats help stimulate the production of good cholesterol and lower the total amount of cholesterol in the blood.
So how do you incorporate these good fats into your diet? Everyone's heard of the benefits of olive oil -- but peanut, sunflower, safflower and canola oils are also high in unsaturated fats, as are avocados, most nuts, olives and many fish. Coldwater fish, such as salmon, herring, albacore tuna, mackerel and lake trout are all high in omega-3 fatty acids, a type of unsaturated fat that lowers blood pressure and prevents heart arrhythmia. Deficiencies in omega-3s can result in short-term symptoms like dry skin, poor wound healing and diarrhea, so it's recommended to eat fish about four times a week to get the proper three grams a day. As this may not be convenient, omega-3 supplements do exist, but have not been tested yet by the FDA for safety.
If anything, the discussion about good fats should reveal that typical American eating habits do not incorporate enough good fats into the everyday diet. How many of you eat fish four times a week? I know I don't. But I do realize that what we eat has shifted dramatically from man's early days as a hunter/gatherer, when eating routines were much more irregular and the diet highly varied based on what could be found instead of bought. Today, we can be picky and choose not to eat vegetables, for example, simply because chicken nuggets are plentiful and available at a cheaper price, which is where bad fats come into play.
These bad, or saturated fats, which are also found naturally in animal products and tropical plant oils, are mostly used to prolong the shelf life of snack foods. So we are risking bad health -- including raised bad cholesterol levels, increased risk of heart attack and more plaque buildup in arteries -- for the sake of convenience!
Yet the true transgressors of the saturated fat world are trans fats -- so bad, in fact, that New York City and Chicago have banned them from restaurant repertoires! Trans fats occur through a process called hydrogenation -- when hydrogen is added to good, unsaturated oils in order to keep them solid at room temperature. Once added to food products, these processed oils increase the stability of the ingredients, allowing them to keep longer. The presence of hydrogenated oils is ubiquitous in snack foods, fried or baked goods and nearly any processed food in grocery stores. In fact, if you haven't done so already, check the label of any item from the bakery at a supermarket -- you will most likely find partially hydrogenated oil on the ingredients list.
You might be asking why these hydrogenated oils are so harmful to your health. It's because they aren't naturally occurring. Hydrogenation is a process that results in a cheaper, more stable fat -- a boon for food manufacturers. Besides putting a man-made by-product into your body, hydrogenated oils also block the positive effects of good fats. You also need to eat more of them to feel sated, leaving you fatter in the end! That should be enough to scare anyone.
If I can pass on one word of advice, do read the labels on processed food items you purchase at the store. Armed with knowledge of good and bad fats and what they do, it'll be easier to make daily decisions about how you choose to nourish yourself. Processed foods are cheaper to produce and unfortunately, the step up to more naturally made foods can be hard to afford. Doing so, however, could add up to a lifetime of more healthful eating, and that is food for thought.
Nora White is a Cavalier Daily Life columnist. Her column runs biweekly Wednesdays.
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