In a recent study the effects of synthetic and natural trans fats on markers for cardiovascular disease were compared in healthy individuals (see 31 August 2017). Specifically the authors investigated the effects of the trans fats on changes to the lipoproteins in the blood of the subjects. The results of the study showed that both natural and synthetic trans fats showed negative effects, although some positive effects were also present in the natural trans fats. The main problem with the study was that the amounts of trans fats given to the subjects were too high with regard the amount of natural trans fats found in a diet, but too low for the amount of synthetic trans fats found in a diet. I have no problem believing that natural trans fats may have some negative effects in humans, as structurally they are still trans fats and still may interfere with normal fatty acid metabolism. However, the point is that they are only consumed at low levels and there is little evidence that dairy foods, their main source, are detrimental to the health.
Editorial in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition claims that synthetic sources of trans fats are easier to remove from foods that natural sources. They also claim that both natural and synthetic trans fats are both equally detrimental to low density lipoprotein cholesterol levels in the blood. All good disinformation is based on mixing truth with lies, and this is a good example of that.
In the same month, an editorial appeared in the same Journal claiming that both natural and synthetic trans fats are detrimental to the health. I would argue that this is not proven. While natural trans fats may affect blood lipoprotein chemistry, a huge amount of scientific evidence suggests that dairy foods, when consumed in moderation, are beneficial to the health,. In particular those who consume the most dairy are shown consistently to have lower body weights and body mass indexes compared to those who do not consume dairy. In addition, the mediterranean diet has been shown to be a high quality diet and it contains moderate amount of dairy foods, particularly milk, cheese and yoghurt. Further, the editorial claimed that synthetic trans fats are more able to be removed from foods. This may be true, but it is disingenuous, because the point is that they are not removed from foods, and there is no incentive for manufacturers to do this. Also the foods they appear in are numerous and their presence is almost ubiquitous in the Western diet, and so are actually difficult to remove from the diet.
Avoiding synthetic trans fats is easy. If you wish to avoid synthetic trans fats you must eliminate cakes, biscuits, pies and pastries from your diet. In addition, there must be no use of vegetable spreads or vegetable oils, the main sources of synthetic trans fats. Those who already consume a high quality diet will not consume these foods and therefore will not have to worry about the presence of synthetic trans fats in their diets. However, for those currently consuming a typical Western diet, it is actually very difficult to eliminate synthetic trans fats from the diet, because so many Western foods contain small amounts of trans fats. For those that wish to remove natural trans fats from the diet, it is as easy as avoiding products from ruminants such as cheese, milk and ruminant meat. However, doing this would serve no beneficial purpose, because the Maasai of Kenya consume almost exclusively ruminant products, and yet have almost no evidence of cardiovascular disease amongst their people when they consume their traditional diet.
Eat Well, Stay Healthy, Protect Yourself
RdB
