Mojo Dividers & Hormone Disruptors – Trans Fats

You’ve no doubt heard of the dangers of trans fats, unless you’ve been hiding under a rock. Who ever hides underneath a rock? Anyway, in this post, I wanted to spread a little awareness of the dangers of trans fats and similar poisons. In fact, I’ve taken this from a section of my new book I’ve been writing today which is about living with full vitality.

Trans fats mess with your endocrine system (hormones) as they slow thyroid function (which is closely linked with testosterone and oestrogen production) and are a cause of major health problems including Type 2 Diabetes, obesity, cancer, a load of illnesses related to inflammation and various neurodegenerative (brain decline) diseases.

Hydrogenated oils are a key ingredient in most margarines and many processed foods, frozen dinners, breakfast cereals, doughnuts, sweets and deserts. An estimated 40% of processed foods in supermarkets contain partially trans fats and partially hydrogenated fats and many come in the form of vegetable oils.

These are fats that in their natural state are more suitable for a car engine. Unless made with olive oil, most margarines will be made from hydrogenated oils – and in the form of vegetable oil as a prime ingredient. Stick to grass-fed butter when making a choice about margarine vs butter. When I say grass-fed, I mean from grass-fed cows. I’m not suggesting that the butter has been fed grass. That’s just silly.

These hydrogenated oils are made by heating the oil to extremely high temperatures and a metal catalyst is added to thin them. They are then cooled and given to humans. Most vegetables oils are hydrogenated and are standard practice with which to fry and have been used in frying and deep frying since the 1950s. Here’s a quote directly from Wikiepedia on this:

Although trans fats are edible, consumption of trans fats has shown to increase the risk of coronary heart disease^[6][7] in part by raising levels of the lipoprotein LDL (so-called “bad cholesterol”), lowering levels of the lipoprotein HDL (“good cholesterol”), increasing triglycerides in the bloodstream and promoting systemic inflammation.^[8]

Edible? In what sense, in that we don’t die immediately? We probably wouldn’t die immediately if we drank engine oil – is that edible too then?

Not only is the above really important to know, but our brains are affected too by the ingestion of trans fats. You may know that our brains are made up of fat – in fact, our brain and entire nervous system and vascular system is comprised mainly of fat-based membranes. This is why it’s essential to make sure we consume sufficient essential fatty acids. They’re called essential fatty acids because our body does not produce them naturally and it is therefore essential we consume them in our diet. One dietary supplement I take is Omega-3 fish oils. Whilst I do tend to eat a lot of fish and eggs, from which we get a certain degree of omega-3s, I like to take that supplement to keep my brain fuelled.

You may see where I’m going with this. Trans fats (the evil ones) are not recognised as foreign invaders by the body, so they are incorporated into cell membranes. They are then expected to function like normal fats. Obviously they don’t function like normal fats as they’re manmade – synthetic – and take up space that should be reserved for healthy fats. This is therefore truly harmful to our brain health.

A lot of research has linked consumption of trans fats and hydrogenated fats to inflammation, ageing, heart disease and cancer. In fact, a law has recently been passed in in the US, recently in 2015 that has banned the use of trans fats in all processed foods in the USA. Manufacturers have a 3-year window in which to make these changes.

Read ingredients on any processed foods your considering purchasing – or avoid processed foods completely. Most contain preservatives, some of which are vegetable oils which go through this hydrogenation process. When you remove them from your diet, your cells can repair when you fuel your body with decent, nourishing food.

Generally speaking, if you can’t pronounce an ingredient on a label, that product should not enter your chops!

Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids

As with trans fats and hydrogenated oils, PUFAs should be avoided at all costs. PUFAs are easily oxidised in the body and quickly go bad – on the shelf and in your body. When they are heated during cooking these oils oxidise and have a pro-inflammatory effect on your system, thus leading to a number of health problems and also your endocrine system. Your endocrine system controls your hormones and they are sensitive to the digestion of PUFAs.

Common problems are a slowed metabolism, low energy levels and a sluggish thyroid function. Thyroid function is closely related to testosterone production. In the modern diet, consumption of PUFAs is a major contributor to insulin resistance, obesity, heart disease, diabetes, cancer, immune problems, arthritis and any other health condition as a result of inflammation.

Avoid: Canola oil, margarine, vegetable and seed PUFA oils (corn, safflower, sunflower, soybean, cottonseed and others) and vegetable shortening.

The best oils and fats to cook with are animal fats (duck or goose fat, lard or lamb tallow), grass-fed butter, coconut oil (my favourite), sesame oil (great for wok frying). Olive oil is amazing, and best eaten at room temperature, or at low heating temperatures as it is fragile at higher temperatures. Palm oil is also good for cooking.

A great source of Omega-3s are marine oils in the form of capsules like fish or krill oil. Also borage, cod- liver, salmon and hempseed oils.

Click here to watch a video in which I explain the effects and causes of Inflammation