Partially hydrogenated oil is a popular ingredient found in many snack and convenience-type foods such as popcorn, cookies, crackers and cake, as well as in many fried foods such as donuts and fast food-type dishes. The popularity of this food ingredient is due to its relatively cheap cost, its long shelf-life, and its ability to be used as a substitute ingredient for other more costly ingredients. Prior to the widespread use of partially hydrogenated soybean oil, which is the most popular hydrogenated oil used, coconut oil and butter were the main ingredients of choice. However, due to the higher cost of these two ingredients, as well as their relatively short shelf-life which resulted in foods spoiling rather quickly, a cheaper, longer-lasting ingredient was sought. Partially hydrogenated soybean oil, with its rich texture and semi-solid density, became the most popular butter and/or coconut oil substitute used in food. But what is partially hydrogenated soybean oil and why is it so bad?
Partially hydrogenated soybean oil is simply basic soybean oil that has undergone the process of “hydrogenation”. Hydrogenation is the process of heating a basic oil – in this case soybean oil – and passing hydrogen bubbles through it. The normal fatty acids found in the soybean oil become infused with hydrogen; this makes the oil more dense; it becomes semi-solid just like butter. That sounds harmless enough. And it would be if it weren’t for the fact that the hydrogenation process converts the simple fatty acids in the oil and turns them into trans fatty acids or trans fats as they are called. Trans fats are normal fatty acids that have had their cellular profile changed; they become altered and abnormal. Hence, in their altered and modified state they no longer function like a normal fatty acid and disrupt the normal cellular activities within the body, most notably the normal cellular metabolic processes. And this spells bad news for the body of a person who regularly consumes foods that are laden with partially hydrogenated oils and trans fatty acids.
The American Heart Association has listed the regular consumption of foods high in trans fats as being extremely detrimental to heart health, especially to the delicate inner linings of the blood vessel walls. Regular consumption of food high in trans fat is linked with the development of atherosclerosis, a form of heart disease that results in the thickening and hardening of the arteries in the heart and elsewhere in the body; this is a gradual condition that can lead to heart attack, stroke, and death in severe cases. Additionally, a diet rich in trans fat consumption is believed to be a contributing factor in the development of high blood pressure, insulin resistance, and diabetes, the last two being metabolic disorders. The unstable and warped properties of trans fatty acids, and their proven track record as a health threat, make them a dangerous food ingredient that should be avoided at all costs.
