Tuesday, February 06, 2007
Trans Fatty Fries
Would you like fries with that?” Before answering this question at the next McDonald‘s visit, it maybe beneficial to read this article. According to a recent report by CNN Headline news, the trans fatty acid content in McDonald’s fries has jumped from the before reported six grams to eight grams per order of large fries. Trans fat is a unique polyunsaturated fatty acid that is converted to a solid at room temperature, which is usually done by a heating process. Trans fat can increase the risk of heart disease, cancer, diabetes, birth defects, and malabsorption of healthy oils. French fries seem to have one of the highest trans fatty acid contents among all the McDonald’s items. The only other items that have more are the deluxe breakfast and the ten-piece chicken select strips. The amount of six grams of trans fat that McDonalds originally reported was already above the FDA’s estimated average daily intake of trans fats for adults. This means that the new eight grams of trans fat reported must be well over the average. As one can infer this can be extremely harmful to one’s health. So the next visit to McDonalds just order a sandwich and stay away from those filthy fries.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
In 2003 the FDA told food manufacturers that they would be required to list the content of trans fats on food labels by January 2006. I mean, I cannot remeber checking labels for trans fats until recently but it's interesting how that whole process works. Studies conducted on pigs found that trans fats increased total cholesterol and in turn increased the rate of cardiovascular disease.
and it's not just the trans fats in french fries i would be worried about!
Rather than order a sandwich at McDonald's, I think it would just be best to steer clear of it entirely. You won't find much on their menu that's good for you.
And you can bet that most fried items at restaraunts are packed with trans fats. Hydrogenated vegetable oils have longer shelf lives and often can be used instead of animal fats in recipes, so it's cheaper for businesses to buy.
Post a Comment