Danger In Your Grocery Cart 4: Hydrogenated Oils And Trans Fats

When you are grocery shopping and going up and down the isles and grabbing boxes of crackers, cookies, salad dressings, chips, pastries, peanut butter, cake mixes,frozen foods, or other processed foods, do you read your the ingredients lists? If you don't, you must.

If you see the hydrogenated oils, partially hydrogenated oils, or trans fat in the ingredient list, you might want to consider putting it back on the shelf because it is not worthy of your hard earn money.

First, what are these oils and fats? They are artificially produced to increase the shelf life of the food products. These ingredients are detrimental to your health.

When it comes to fat, trans fat is considered by some doctors to be the worst of them all because of its double-barreled impact on your cholesterol levels. Unlike other fats, trans fat — also called trans-fatty acids — both raises your "bad" (LDL) cholesterol and lowers your "good" (HDL) cholesterol.


Trans fat may increase inflammation, which is a process by which your body responds to injury. It's thought that inflammation plays a key role in the formation of fatty blockages in heart blood vessels. Trans fat appears to damage the cells lining blood vessels, leading to inflammation.http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/trans-fat/CL00032/NSECTIONGROUP=2

Due to the organizations like CSPI and Public Citizen, the FDA required food companies to list trans fat content in January, 2006. There are clear evidences of the link between trans fats and cancer, cardiovascular diseases, and diabetes. Also, obesity, suppressed immune system, decreased testosterone, deficiency of essential fatty acid, brain function disorders, abnormal sperm production, and low birth weight infants have been linked to hydrogenated oils and trans fats as well. 

"The FDA has decided that since trans fats should be entirely avoided in the diets of all human beings, there is consequently no recommended daily allowance of trans fats. Thus, manufacturers of foods cannot list the trans fat content of their food products in any "meaningful" way on the label, according to the FDA" (Grocery Warning, Mike Adams)


It is very difficult to avoid trans-fatty acids because they are in so many processed foods we consume. Remember, all hydrogenated oils contain trans fats. Please read labels and educate yourself to protect your own health.  Unfortunately, the food manufacturing companies or processed food companies have no interest in your health.  You are the only one who can protect and invest in your future.