In this high-tech, security-conscious society, it may come as a surprise that the same people who religiously lock their doors and set their car alarms are letting a more subtle and dangerous criminal into their homes everyday. Obviously this fiend is not of the flesh and blood type, but one who lurks in cupboards and refrigerators. It has received a lot of attention in the past year, but many still are not aware of what it is exactlly and the harm it is capable of...I'm talking of trans-fatty acids, of course. Trans-fats, or hydrogenated oils, are simply vegetable oils that are put through the hydrogenation process to become solidified. And while we are now seeing many product labels that scream "No Trans Fats!", they are still lurking in most of the food in our cupboards, including cookies, chips, and snack crackers.

Hydrogenation turns a perfectly safe oil into an unnatural substance that our bodies are incapable of processing. Although its main purposes are to increase shelf life and cut costs, it is used in everything from frying doughnuts and french fries to making an artificial butter. Its effect on arteries is rather common sense: given that it has gone through a process to become solid, once ingested it leads to clogged arteries because it attaches to the cell wall. As a matter of fact, the molecular structure of a hydrogenated oil very closely resembles that of Stearic Acid (used to solidify wax in the candle-making process). We might as well swallow lard.

Herein lies the danger that hydrogenated oils possess: being chemically altered, unnatural ingredients, are bodies are confused by their presence and don't know what to do with them. They end up basically just taking up space that should be occupied by an essential component that performs a critical function, which means they are blocking a natural process. They also increase weight gain due to their inability to be processed out of the body quickly. Their danger is so well-known and understood that many European countries have banned their use altogether.

While their contribution to cancer, heart disease, birth defects, inflamation and joint pain, and diabetes is widely accepted, many people are still not being educated on the importance of cutting them out of their diets. It is known that Type II diabetes did not largely appear until after the introduction of hydrogenated oils into our lives, and the Harvard Medical School reports that their consumption could be linked to approximately 30,000 premature coronary heart disease deaths annually. (1) In 2002 the United States Academy of Sciences issed a statement arguing that there is "no safe level" of trans-fatty acids to be consumed. (2) Trans-fatty acids can be found in ingredients labels under "hydrogenated oil" or "partially hydrogenated vegetable oil." Both are equally bad, and the higher up they are on the ingredients list, the higher their content in that particular food. The good news is that such an obvious culprit is relatively simple to eliminate, thus increasing the quality of your health many times over. By looking for foods with short ingredients lists (the shorter, the more natural) and avoiding anything containing hydrogenated oils, we can reduce our chances of developing several serious health problems not to mention gaining an increase in energy and immune function. Because short-term deprivation is the key to long-term wellness, taking the steps to remove this dangerous ingredient will pay off for many years.

(1) http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/reviews/transfats.html/

(2) http://www.sustainableenterprises.com/Body/hydro.html/