Parenting as a Christian Single Dad

The more I learn about healthy eating and making the right food choices for Madalyn and myself I am amazed at just how bad I have been doing. I have been reading “Burn the Fat Feed the Muscle” by Tom Venuto and it has opened my eyes to a lot of the controversy and the “dos” and “don’ts” in the dieting world. If you are interested in making a long-term lifestyle change I suggest the book. Don’t worry about him being a professional bodybuilder, the book is designed to help people meet their weight goals in a healthy way without fad diets and one program fits all hype.

The real issue for this post is TRANS FATS. We have heard it before about the dangers of trans fats and I must say I am blown away by what I am learning. I found a great site that talks all about trans fats detailing the dangers and how to detect foods that have them.
http://www.acaloriecounter.com/trans-fat-foods.php

The gist of what I am learning is that I need to get away from processed foods and get back down to the basics. Eating lean meats, vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and dairy are essential to living healthy. When you know the foods to eat then it is a matter of determining your goals and body type to determine the right combinations. Reading the label of any product is important to determine what you are really getting. Again that is why whole natural foods should be consumed the most. You know what you are getting. I can’t believe how much money I am saving by eating whole natural foods. Trans fats are hidden in all sorts of foods and unless you know what to look for you could be eating them. I have found several sources that say we should avoid any and all trans fats.

The food industry is pushing all these healthy foods (non fat, no trans fat, etc) yet obesity, food allergies, and childhood diabetes are on the rise. These types of claims can be misleading. I think we all have a responsibility to ourselves and our children to do the best we can and when we make healthy eating choices we are benefiting our family now and in the future. Choosing the "EASY" way now could be disasterous down the road.


What is Trans Fat?

Basically, trans fat is made when manufacturers add hydrogen to vegetable oil--a process called hydrogenation. Hydrogenation increases the shelf life and flavor stability of foods containing these fats.

Trans fat can be found in vegetable shortenings, some margarines, crackers, cookies, snack foods, and other foods made with or fried in partially hydrogenated oils. Unlike other fats, the majority of trans fat is formed when food manufacturers turn liquid oils into solid fats like shortening and hard margarine. A small amount of trans fat is found naturally, primarily in dairy products, some meat, and other animal-based foods.

Trans fat, like saturated fat and dietary cholesterol, raises the LDL cholesterol that increases your risk for CHD. Americans consume on average 4 to 5 times as much saturated fat as trans fat in their diets.

Although saturated fat is the main dietary culprit that raises LDL, trans fat and dietary cholesterol also contribute significantly.