When coronary risk factors such as smoking and cholesterol were evaluated, it was the trans fats which stood out as a major risk factor. Among the women who ate the largest amounts of trans fats, the risk of a heart attack was 53 percent higher when compared to those who consumed the lowest levels. When total fat consumption ranged between 46 and 29 percent of calories, groups had equal risk for heart attacks. IND's are planned. Currently, about 5 to 10 percent of the fat in American diets is trans fat, which is produced when vegetable oils are artificially hydrogenated.
Hydrogenation increases firmness and resistance to rancidity.
Liquid vegetable oils, including olive, canola, soybean and corn oils, are free of trans fat. Trans fats are currently not listed on food labels, but a product is likely to contain them if hydrogenated fat is listed among the ingredients. The more liquid the fat under refrigeration, the fewer trans fats it contains. The current study found that polyunsaturates, which are highest in safflower, soybean, corn and sunflower oils, could lower coronary risk even below normal levels, and that monounsaturates, most prominent in olive and canola oil, had a small benefit. It appears that it is a good idea to decrease saturated fats, avoid trans fats, replace trans fats with monounsaturates and polyunsaturates from natural vegetable oils.