Trans fats are dastardly! Here is a list of their damage on our systems:
* Lower HDL (the "good" one, which we want to be high)
* Raise LDL (the "bad" one, which we want to be low)
* Raise Lp(a), which promotes atherosclerosis and clotting (a bad thing)
* Reduce blood vessel function
* Promote obesity, diabetes and hypertension (really bad thing)
* Alter fat cell size and number (shudder! another really bad thing)
* Reduce cream in breast milk
* Reduce fertility and correlate with low birth weight
* Increase asthma
* Reduce immune response
* Interfere with the conversion and use of DHA and EPA
* Disrupt enzymes that metabolize carcinogens and drugs
* Damage cell membranes
* Create free radicals (Cancer! A really, really bad thing!)
Trans fats do a lot of damage in addition to causing heart disease. Recall that all of your cell walls are made of fat. Like natural fats, trans fats enter the tissues and become part of the cell membrane, where, unlike natural fats, they disrupt every cellular activity, from metabolism to immunity. Hundreds of thousands of Americans are walking around with cell walls made of trans fats, which have no place in the diet or the body.
The sooner we ban trans fats - as Denmark has - the better!
Credited to Nina Planck in her book: "Real Food - what to eat and why"
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