Your Trans Fat Index

Higher intakes of transfats from processed foods have led to higher Trans Fat Index levels.

High trans fat blood levels and intake have been strongly related to heart disease. As such, the World Health Organization (WHO has called on all countries to remove trans fats from their food supplies by 2023, and many countries have already achieved this.

The relationship between ruminant transfats and heart disease is not as clear. The amount of ruminant trans fats typically present in meat and dairy are very low, so normal intakes of these foods probably will not result in a high Trans Fat Index.

Traditionally, trans fats were abundant in processed foods, like baked goods, chips, and microwave popcorn. As trans fats have been removed from the food supply, however, eating processed foods has become less connected to blood trans fat levels. For example, since 2009, the average Trans Fat Index measured at OmegaQuant has decreased by half (from 1.7% to 0.8%), and in 2017 more than half of the samples submitted to OmegaQuant have a Trans Fat Index of<1%.

Still, if you ate a lot of processed food in the past, your Trans Fat Index may be elevated.

Please consult with your healthcare provider before making any dietary changes. If your Trans Fat Level is <1%, there is no need to change your diet. If your Trans Fat Level is >1%, you may still be releasing stored trans fats that have built up over the years. Eating less processed food ensures you will not be eating any "hidden" trans fats that may still be in thefood supply. We recommend you re-test every 6 months until your levels are <1%.

The Trans Fat Index is the percent of 18:1 and 18:2 trans fatty acids of total fatty acids in red blood cell membranes, and the desirable range is <1%.

Trans fatty acids (or trans fats) in our blood come only from the food we eat because our bodies cannot make them.

Trans fats in the diet come from two sources:

1) industrial production by the "partial hydrogenation" of vegetable oils, in which liquid oils are converted into solid fats to be used in processed foods,

2) meat and milk products of ruminant animals, like cows and goats.

The fattyacids that make up the Trans Fat Index were chosen because they were typically found in processed foods, but a small amount may come from ruminant sources.