(NAPSA)—In the analysis of “good” fats and “bad” fats, trans fats have been widely accepted as “one of the worst kinds of fat.” Because trans fats have been shown to raise bad cholesterol while reducing good cholesterol and linked to increased risk of heart attacks and strokes, individ- uals should consume as little transfat as possible. Susan Seab, RD, a registered dietician with Pennington Biomedical Research Center at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, says it’s getting eas- ier for Americans to identify and reduce their trans fat consumption. She recommendsthree steps to reduce trans fats in an individual’s diet: Pay Attention To Processed Foods Most trans fats are artificially created, formed when manufacturers ‘hydrogenate’ vegetable oils to turn them into solidfat. “Theyre most commonly found in processed foods such as commercially baked cookies and cakes, fried foods, margarines, and salty snack foods such as chips; so it helps to reduce the processed foods you consume.” explains Seab. “Instead, eat more fresh fruits and vegetables, and more whole grains.” Read Food Labels Grocery shoppers who read food labels have no doubt noticed an increase in information about trans fat. In 2003, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) required food manufacturers to list trans fat on the Nutrition Facts panel of foods and some dietary supplements. “Food manufacturers have until Jan. 1, 2006, to comply with the FDA rule to list trans fat on the nutrition label,” says Seab. “Many have already begun doing so and some food items now contain a ‘trans fat-free’ label on the front of packages. Check the nutrition panel and opt for products with low or no transfats, and don’t forget to watch the saturated fat levels as well.” Choose Wisely At Restaurants Restaurant menus seldom include the type of information found on grocery products’ nutrition panels, but some restaurants will provide printed nutrition information on request. Seab advises asking to see nutrition information before you order. “If the restaurant can’t provide printed nutrition information, choose unprocessed foods and be especially wary of fried foods and baked goods,” says Seab. “Or, better yet, find a restaurant that can tell you which menu items are trans fat-free. A few restaurants have shown real leadership and even taken the radical step of removing all trans fat from the entire menu.” Jason’s Deli, one of the first restaurant chains in the country @ to go trans fat-free, recently completed a five-year initiative to remove trans fat from its entire menu. Rusty Coco, cofounder of the Texas-based chain of fast casual restaurants, launched the initiative after he became aware of the dangersof transfats. “I began reducing trans fats in my diet,” explained Coco. “The more I learned, the more I realized that there were few things I could eat at my own restaurant that didn’t contain trans fats. Not only did I not want to eat it myself, I didn’t want to serve it to my customers.” Jason’s Deli charged its research and development team to develop trans fat-free ingredients; it also used its purchasing power to push suppliers to provide transfatfree products. In some cases, the company had to change suppliers. “We told our suppliers to rework their products or we would find others who would,” said Coco. “We refused to take no for an answer.” All new products were tried by customers in 16 Jason’s test delis to make surethetaste of the trans fat-free ingredients matched the old ingredients so as to not sacrifice taste for health. Jason’s has also launched an employee training initiative to educate its staff on the significance of avoiding trans fats and how to relay this information to customers.
