Trans fat hidden in many U.S. foods, tests reveal. Many are labelled as having zero grams per serving.

An Aug. 28, 2014 CBC article is entitled: “Trans fat hidden in many U.S. foods, tests reveal: Labelling called cause for concern for consumers.”

The opening paragraphs read:

“Nearly 10 per cent of top-selling packaged foods in the U.S. contain trans fats — and many of them are labelled as having zero grams per serving, says a new study published Thursday.

“The study, published in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) journal Preventing Chronic Disease, looked at 4,340 packaged foods and found that nine per cent of those products contained partially hydrogenated oils.

“‘These findings, which are consistent with FDA research findings, provide evidence of the prevalence of industrial trans fat and show that most products that contain partially hydrogenated oils are labelled as containing zero grams of trans fat (84 per cent),’ Jennifer Clapp, acting director of healthy eating and active living at New York City’s health department and her co-authors concluded.”

Consuming trans fat increases the risk of heart disease, the evidence indicates

The article adds: “Food manufacturers use trans fats to extend shelf life. Consuming trans fat raises low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or “bad” cholesterol and increases the risk of heart disease, experts say.”

Following the evidence on any topic can be of interest

Some earlier posts dealing with food and drink at the Preserved Stories website include:

Jill Eisen explores the politics, economics, and science of overeating (CBC Ideas podcast)

World Health Organization recommends that no more than 5 percent of your caloric intake – that is, 25 grams – should come from sugar

Fruit and vegetable intake: five a day may not be enough, scientists say (April 1, 2014 Guardian article)

Health benefits of wine and chocolate unlikely, new study finds – May 13, 2014 Globe and Mail

Truthiness, stage magic, and fair trade coffee

Is there a reason to boycott fair trade coffee after reading recent research reports? For me, answer is: No

Doi Chaang coffee. “There is no coffee shop that is not a social enterprise,” StarPhoenix article notes.

Updates

A Feb. 7, 2015 CBC article is entitled: “Why toddler foods have so much sugar and salt: ‘The child’s biology really makes them vulnerable’ to food industry.”

An April 25, 2017 Science Daily article is entitled: “Parents’ use of emotional feeding increases emotional eating in school-age children.”

A summary of the research report from the Society for Research in Child Development, on which the article is based, reads:

“Emotional eating is not uncommon in children and adolescents, but why youth eat emotionally has been unclear. Now a new longitudinal study from Norway has found that school-age children whose parents fed them more to soothe their negative feelings were more likely to eat emotionally later on. The reverse was also found to be the case, with parents of children who were more easily soothed by food being more likely to feed them for emotional reasons.”

An April 25, 2017 Guardian article is entitled: “Backlash after report claims saturated fats do not increase heart risk: Relying on low fat foods to avoid heart disease is misguided, say cardiologists, but critics say comments ignore evidence.”

An April 26, 2017 CBC article is entitled: “Pass the butter: Cutting saturated fat does not reduce heart disease risk, cardiologists say: Focus should instead be on eating ‘real food,’ walking and reducing stress.”