Interesterified Fats

With healthy eating becoming such a priority in many people’s live, some food manufactures have started to eliminate or reduce the trans fat that is found in processed food. And in most cases, this is a giant step forward. However, don’t be fooled! Some manufacturers are using interesterified fat, a supposed “healthy alternative” to hydrogenated oils and trans fat. But in actuality this alternative is just as bad.

What are Interesterified Fats?
Interesterified fats have been used in the manufacture of food since the 1920s in Europe and here in the United States since the 1950s. While this “new” method has been touted by food manufacturers as a healthy alternative to trans fat, there is some concern in light of recent studies.

Interesterified fats are similar to hydrogenated oils and are made by combining natural vegetable oils with stearic acid and alkylinic catalysts. While this process does not produce trans fat, the end result does contain harmful chemical residues that can cause cell damage.

What are the Health Concerns?
The studies that have been performed on interesterified fats have had interesting results regarding the short-term health risks. The results of these tests seem to suggest that interesterified fats have more harmful health risks than trans fats, increasing both blood glucose levels and reducing the amount of insulin made naturally in the body by double of what is reported with trans fats. These fats tend to affect men and women differently, and it is not clear what the long-term effects might be. For men these fats increase the likelihood of heart disease and stroke by inflaming the arterial walls and causing plaque to form. Women are affected differently because interesterified fats attach to the fatty cells of the breast, increasing the risk of cancer.

How Can You Identify Foods with Interesterified Fats?
It can be difficult to know if the processed foods you are eating contain these fats, but a general rule of thumb is that if a food is processed it will either contain trans fats or interesterified fats. It is more likely you will find interesterified fat in foods that advertise “zero trans fats” on the label. It can be found in margarine, shortening, French fries, fried chicken, doughnuts, cookies, pastries, crackers, cereal, waffles, salad dressing, and even mayonnaise.

When reading the labels of processed items, look for the ingredients “high stearate” or “stearic-rich fats.” Also if the product contains fully hydrogenated vegetable oil, palm oil, or palm kernel oil there is a high probability that it contains interesterified fats or trans fats.

While consumers demand high quality processed foods that have increasingly longer shelf lives, they are putting themselves at risk because of the inherent processes of preservation. When you consume food that has been chemically altered, your body does not know what to do with the new substances. This can cause serious health risks for both men and women.

What is the Future of Interesterified Fats?
While it is still unclear what the long term affects of interesterified fats will be, remember it took three decades before scientists could prove that trans fats were bad for you. It is highly likely it could take another three decades or more to fully understand the health effects of this “healthier” alternative to hydrogenated oil.

To avoid both trans fat and interesterified fat, it’s best to avoid processed foods altogether. If you must, use butter instead of margarine and other spreads, and stay away from hydrogenated cooking oils. Coconut oil is actually a healthy alternative.

By paying attention to what you put in your body, you are taking an important step towards great health!