China News Service, June 20 (Health Channel Chen Ming) The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently announced that it will ban the use of artificial trans fats in food within three years to help reduce the incidence of heart disease. According to nutrition experts, trans fats are a threat to human health, and it is recommended that the less intake, the better.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced on the 16th that artificial trans fats pose a threat to public health and will completely eliminate artificial trans fats from the U.S. food system within three years. So, what are trans fats? Why did he suddenly become the target of "extermination"? What are the health risks of consuming too much trans fat?
1. Identify trans fatty acids on the ingredient list. As people become more aware of trans fatty acids, merchants are also playing "hide and seek" with consumers for economic benefits. You may have seen hydrogenated vegetable oil and partially hydrogenated vegetable oil on the ingredient list. , hydrogenated palm oil, hydrogenated soybean oil, vegetable shortening, margarine, yellow butter, pastry oil, margarine, etc. These are actually other terms for trans fats.
2. Since cooking processing will also produce trans fatty acids in cooking oil, some unhealthy cooking methods should be changed. Use less frying and more steaming when cooking to reduce the repeated use of oil.
3. "Zero negative" ≠ "None". The "General Principles for Nutritional Labeling of Prepackaged Foods" implemented by the Ministry of Health in 2013 stipulates that if food ingredients contain or hydrogenated and/or partially hydrogenated oils and fats are used during the production process, the trans fatty acid content must be indicated in the nutritional labeling table of the food label. If the trans fatty acid content in food is ≤0.3g/100g, it can be marked as "0", so you cannot blindly believe in "zero trans fatty acids".
In addition, experts remind that when looking at food packaging, be aware that “no added trans fat” does not mean “contains no trans fat” because “no added” only means noThere are additional additions, and trans fats may be produced in the food itself during the preparation process. (China News Network Health Channel)
Trans fat is widely found in desserts and fried foods, posing a threat to health
It is reported that trans fat is also known as trans fatty acid. There is a small amount of natural trans fat in beef, mutton, milk and their products. The main source of artificial trans fats is partially hydrogenated vegetable oils. Partially hydrogenated oil has the advantages of high temperature resistance, not easy to deteriorate, can add crispiness to food, and is easy to store for a long time. Therefore, it is widely used in commercially available packaged foods and fried foods in restaurants. For example, fried chicken, French fries, potato chips, instant noodles, twists, pastries, etc. in fried foods; cookies, puffs, wafers, cakes, egg yolks in baked foods Pie or strawberry pie, etc.; cream cake, cream bread, milk tea, chocolate, ice cream, salad dressing, etc. in the cream milk tea category.
Jia Kai, director of the Nutrition Department of Beijing Chaoyang Hospital, said that trans fats pose a threat to human health. Long-term excessive intake may increase the risk of obesity; it may also reduce memory and increase disease in the elderly. The prevalence of Alzheimer's disease; abnormal blood lipids, leading to cardiovascular disease, etc.
However, experts explain that the intake of trans fat is only a nutritional issue, not a food safety issue. It is unrealistic and unnecessary to completely avoid the intake of trans fat. Because it is so widespread, it is difficult to avoid ingesting it. The "General Principles for Nutritional Labeling of Prepackaged Foods" implemented by the Ministry of Health of my country in 2013 stipulates that the daily intake of trans fatty acids should not exceed 2.2 grams.
The trans fat intake of Chinese residents is far below the WHO recommended value, and there is no need for a ban yet
When it comes to the significance of the U.S. ban on artificial fats to China, experts said, “The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s approach has indeed given us some tips, such as doing more popular science on trans fats among ordinary people and telling them that this type of fat is If it poses a threat to human health, the intake should be reduced as much as possible, but that’s all. Chinese people’s dietary intake of trans fat is within a safe range, and there is no need to enact such a ban for the time being.”
According to the "Dietary Intake Level and Risk Assessment of Trans Fatty Acids among Chinese Residents" released by the National Food Safety Risk Assessment Center in 2014, the energy provided by trans fatty acids consumed by Chinese residents through the diet accounts for 0.16% of the total dietary energy. For residents of big cities like Beijing and Guangzhou, the rate is only 0.34%, far lower than the 1% limit recommended by the World Health Organization.
The eating habits of our residents are different from those of Western developed countries. ChinaPeople's main diet is plant-based food, and their animal fat intake is not as high as that of Europeans and Americans. In the United States, because trans fats are abundant and widespread in a variety of foods, experts say that even if the United States strictly prohibits artificial trans fats, its intake is still higher than in China.
Health reminder: "Zero-antibiotic" ≠ None " "No added" ≠ " Does not contain "
Although the daily intake of trans fatty acids in the daily diet of most residents in our country does not exceed the standard, as the pace of life of the Chinese people accelerates, fast food containing more trans fatty acids has emerged on a large scale. We should still pay attention to the intake as much as possible. Quantity control:
1. Identify trans fatty acids on the ingredient list. As people become more aware of trans fatty acids, merchants are also playing "hide and seek" with consumers for economic benefits. You may have seen hydrogenated vegetable oil and partially hydrogenated vegetable oil on the ingredient list. , hydrogenated palm oil, hydrogenated soybean oil, vegetable shortening, margarine, yellow butter, pastry oil, margarine, etc. These are actually other terms for trans fats.
2. Since cooking processing will also produce trans fatty acids in cooking oil, some unhealthy cooking methods should be changed. Use less frying and more steaming when cooking to reduce the repeated use of oil.
3. "Zero negative" ≠ "None". The "General Principles for Nutritional Labeling of Prepackaged Foods" implemented by the Ministry of Health in 2013 stipulates that if food ingredients contain or hydrogenated and/or partially hydrogenated oils and fats are used during the production process, the trans fatty acid content must be indicated in the nutritional labeling table of the food label. If the trans fatty acid content in food is ≤0.3g/100g, it can be marked as "0", so you cannot blindly believe in "zero trans fatty acids".
In addition, experts remind that when looking at food packaging, be aware that "no added trans fat" does not mean "contains no trans fat" because "no added" only means that there are no additional additions, and the food itself is produced during the production process. May produce trans fats.