Trans fats expand your waistline- Study

Sunday Feb 14, 2010 (foodconsumer.org) -- A new study published in 2009 in Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition suggests intake of trans fats increases a person's waistline even though it may not increase his body mass index.

The study, led by Yamada M and colleagues from the Graduate School of Medicine at the University of Tokyo in Japan, resulted in a significant and positive association between total trans fat intake and waist circumference, triacylglycerol, and glycated hemoglobin, but not body mass index.

For the study, Yamada et al. analyzed data collected from 1136 Japanese female dietetic students aged 18 to 22 years through a validated self-administered diet history questionnaire.  The mean intake of total trans fatty acids was 0.9 percent of total energy with 77 percent from hydrogenated trans fat.  Natural trans fat is present in dairy products like milk.

The researchers did not find any link between natural trans fat and metabolic risk factors. But that does not prove there was no link. The intake of natural trans fat could possibly be too low to have a meaningful conclusion.

Partially hydrogenated fat or trans fat widely used in the food industry and restaurants has been linked to health problems like cardiovascular disease, cancer, and diabetes among others.  

In the United States, an average American may ingest a few grams of trans fat a day.  One meal from a fast food chain eatery may be loaded with as much as 8 grams of trans fat.

Harvard epidemiologists and nutritionists estimate that as many as 100,000 die each year in the United States from trans fat related heart disease.

Starting on Jan 1, 2010, California prohibited restaurants from using oils, margarine and shortening with more than half a gram of trans fat per serving.

By David Liu and editing by Denise Reynolds