Comments on: Trans fat content of foods

By: Max Thunder

Max Thunder — Tue, 12 Dec 2006 23:04:20 +0000

As a “French Canadian” (we call us Quebecers!), I had to laught when I saw the unidentified food!

Fortunately, as a picky eater, I never ate it, which is quite a rare phenomenon here. I used to prefer potato chips and those other craps… Where are all these trans fats now? I hope they’re gone over the hills and far away.

Hi Max–

I’ve been to Canada a lot, and I’ve never eaten it either.� In fact, I never saw it and had no idea what it was until a bunch of readers wrote in identifying it for me.

I, too, hope that trans fats vanish from our food scene.

Cheers–

MRE

By: Cindy Moore

Cindy Moore — Thu, 07 Dec 2006 23:41:58 +0000

20-30 grams on average sounds closer to me!

Me, too.

MRE

By: George Mead

George Mead — Thu, 07 Dec 2006 06:36:03 +0000

Mary Enig wrote back in ‘98;
“The industry continues to argue that American trans consumption is a low six to eight grams per person per day, not enough to contribute to today’s epidemic of chronic disease. Total per capita consumption of margarine and shortening hovers around 40 grams per person per day. If these products contain 30% trans (many shortenings contain more) then average consumption is about 12 grams per person per day. In reality, consumption figures can be dramatically higher for some individuals. A 1989 Washington Post article documented the diet of a teenage girl who ate 12 donuts and 24 cookies over a three day period. Total trans worked out to at least 30 grams per day, and possibly much more. The fat in the chips that teenagers consume in abundance may contain up to 48% trans which translates into 45.6 grams of trans fat in a small ten-ounce bag of snack chips�which a hungry teenager can gobble up in a few minutes”

Hi George–

Thanks for the update.

Cheers–

MRE

By: helen

helen — Thu, 07 Dec 2006 03:48:40 +0000

Maybe trans fat consumption is so low because people only take one bite & leave the rest,(LOL) otherwise it is very difficult to see how anyone could consume such small amounts of trans fats even on average! most people would consume around 30 to 100gms of trans fats daily without even trying, especially anyone eating deep fried or prepackaged anything 3 times a day. I would imagine this table is to show that trans fats are not all that widely consumed so that any bans on them are un-necessary? I wonder?

Hi Helen–

I suspect that realistically the average would be somewhere between 20-40 grams per day, which is a lot.

Cheers–

MRE

By: Connie

Connie — Thu, 07 Dec 2006 01:25:46 +0000

Maybe the averages are more like the numbers for other addictive substances. With alcohol, isn’t it something like, 50% of the alcoholic drinks are consumed by the 5% who have a problem?

Some of us have massive amounts and a whole bunch of others, not so much.

Hi Connie–

Even with some not eating any at all, given the number of people who eat this kind of stuff most of the time, I can’t imagine that the average intake isn’t greater than that listed in the article.

Cheers–

MRE

By: Joanna

Joanna — Thu, 07 Dec 2006 01:21:58 +0000

It’s poutine, a Canadian fast food favorite — French fries with cheese curd and brown gravy.

By: deirdra

deirdra — Thu, 07 Dec 2006 00:59:16 +0000

Looks like poutine to me too, though I’ve never seen it outside of Montreal. It is french fries + cheese curd + gravy.

By: Mary

Mary — Wed, 06 Dec 2006 23:49:20 +0000

The first item in the slide show is the French Canadian dish called “poutine”. Poutine is French fries and gravy topped with cheese curds. Very popular up here…

By: nathan

nathan — Wed, 06 Dec 2006 22:44:28 +0000

It’s poutine (poo-teen). Cheese curds and gravy on fries. Standard food at any canadian fry place, usually.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poutine

By: Regina W

Regina W — Wed, 06 Dec 2006 22:02:32 +0000

Long before I low-carbed, I had poutines in Canada – hate to admit, but it was good…then again, it was when fries were still fried in beef tallow, the cheese was made with whole milk and the gravy wasn’t something made from powder, but meat drippings! Imagine the fat in that! Yum!