Colorado State University Strives to Eliminate Trans Fat
Colorado State University Housing & Dining Services is working to eliminate added trans fat in the campus dining centers. The bakeshop and dining halls are now frying with oils that do not contain trans fat. Housing & Dining is joining with other university food services to encourage vendors and manufacturers that supply food to produce more food products that do not contain trans fat.
“Limiting trans fat is a nationwide trend and we want to do our part to help students maintain a healthy diet,” said Deon Lategan, director of dining services.
According to Brittney Sly, a nutritionist on campus, “Trans fat is a chemically produced fat that has a similar effect on the body as saturated fat in that it raises the amount of LDL (bad cholesterol) and lowers the amount of HDL (good cholesterol).” A combination that Sly says increases a person’s risk of heart disease.
Added trans fat is predominantly found in processed foods like doughnuts, cookies, crackers, margarine and salad dressing. It is used because it inhibits “rancidity” and increases a food’s shelf life. About one-fifth of trans fat in the diet comes from animal sources such as certain meats and dairy products. Recent studies have warned that Americans should limit their intake of trans fat.
Sly advises that the best way to reduce trans fat in your diet is to read labels. “If the ingredients list partially hydrogenated oils, trans fat is present,” she explains.
A federal law passed in 2006 requires all packaged foods to carry trans fat nutritional information, which makes label reading a more effective way to identify and avoid trans fat, Sly adds.
With awareness of trans fat increasing in the past couple of years, many restaurants, food producers, and campuses have been working to reduce trans fat. The New York Board of Health made headlines in 2006 when it passed a ban of all trans fat in New York restaurants by 2008; a goal many in the food industry believe will be hard to meet because so many food producers have yet to eliminate trans fat from the products purchased by restaurants.
The same is true for CSU in that Dining Services can eliminate trans fat in the items that they prepare from scratch, but must rely on the supply chain to eliminate trans fat from the pre-produced products and baking mixes that are purchased to be served in the dining centers.
“We can’t entirely eliminate added trans fat in the dining centers until the various food companies that we buy food products from eliminate trans fat from their products,” Lategan explains.
“Another important point about the trans fat free labels we’re seeing in grocery stores today is that just because an item has a trans fat free label, it doesn’t mean that it’s good for you. It may still be loaded with saturated fat, sugar, and empty calories,” Sly warns. “Make sure you always read the label.”
Sly advices smart consumers to avoid both trans fat and saturated fat and to eat fewer processed foods to help keep calorie count and sugar intake down. “Eat a variety of fruits and vegetables, low fat dairy, lean meats, and whole grains in your diet, while limiting processed foods, to create a basic recipe for healthy eating.”
