If you’re wondering what all this talk about trans fats is about, and how you need to treat them in your daily diet, follow this rule given by doctors and nutritionists: “Avoid trans fats, limit saturated fats and add essential polyunsaturated fats.”

Here’s a fact to remember - the body essentially requires some fat from food, as it is a major source of energy. It helps you absorb some vitamins and minerals, and builds cell membranes, the vital exterior of each cell and the sheaths surrounding the nerves. It is necessary for blood clotting and muscle movement. Yet for long-term health, some fats are better than others, and good fats include monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. Bad ones include industrial-made trans fats. Saturated fats fall somewhere in between the good and bad.

Health specialists say that the worst type of dietary fat is the kind known as trans fat, a by-product of hydrogenation that is used to turn healthy oils into solids and to prevent them from becoming rancid. These fats possess no known health benefits and are not safe to consume as they increase the amount of harmful LDL cholesterol in the bloodstream and reduce the amount of beneficial HDL cholesterol. Trans fats create inflammation, which is linked to heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and other chronic conditions, and contribute to insulin resistance, which increases the risk of developing Type 2 Diabetes. If you want to know a harsh and hair-raising truth, every 2% of calories from trans fat consumed daily, raises the risk of heart disease by as much as 23%.

If you want to keep your system safe from trans fats, avoid fried and fast foods and commercially produced sweet treats. Above all, be vigilant and check the small print on packaged and processed foods, including breakfast cereals and other foods you purchase and consume on a daily basis.

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