Trans fats not such a weighty issue
There's hardly anything healthy about the deep-fried Hostess Twinkie served for dessert at the Harris Grill in Shadyside.
But the restaurant's owner proudly will tell you the Twinkie is not fried in trans fats that can cause cholesterol levels to skyrocket.
Rodney Swartz cooks it this way by choice and believes no one should tell him how to make his desserts, french fries and falafel.
"If you eliminate trans fats, it's not going to make a big difference," said Swartz, who has operated Harris Grill since December 2004. "They think they're protecting people against evil. You're still going to have 300-pound people walking around."
In this season of ladylocks and pumpkin pies, everyone is talking about the much ballyhooed trans fats -- and whether or not they represent a threat to public health.
The trans fats buzz intensified earlier this month when New York City voted to ban restaurants from serving food with artificial trans fats by 2007, a move that Massachusetts and other states might follow.
As the no-trans fat movement makes its way to the home of the Smiley cookies and Primanti sandwiches, some are starting to wonder whether it's really a cure-all for bulging waistlines and whether it's infringing on people's choice.
"People think that if they switch from trans fats to something else that they don't have to worry about anything else," said Madelyn Fernstrom, director of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Weight Management Center. "Just because you eliminate trans fats will not make you a healthier eater."
While getting rid of trans fats is a step in the right direction, a judicious eater also needs to watch other types of fat, including saturated fats, which are commonly found in whole milk, butter and meats, Fernstrom said.
And, of course, we need to eat fruits and vegetables, and get some exercise, too.
That's why eliminating trans fats, Fernstrom and others believe, is not a panacea for the nation's obesity epidemic.
Almost two-thirds of Americans are overweight and about a third are obese, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
"It's not just one thing we need to do for a healthy lifestyle," Fernstrom said.
Such views don't mean there aren't legitimate health concerns about trans fats.
Several influential groups, including the American Heart Association and the Institute of Medicine, have said trans fats can raise blood LDL cholesterol, otherwise known as the bad cholesterol. There's also evidence that trans fats lower the HDL, or good cholesterol.
In short, these artery-clogging fats can increase the risk for heart attacks, strokes and diabetes, said Dr. Jorge Vazquez, chief of clinical nutrition at Allegheny General Hospital, North Side.
"There's nothing good about trans fats," Vazquez said. "Like any fats, they're used for energy. Everything else it does in the body is bad."
Those health concerns are pushing local hospitals to lead the way in eliminating foods that are cooked with trans fats.
The region's two largest hospital networks -- UPMC and West Penn Allegheny Health System -- are working on both using frying oils without trans fats and offering trans fat-free cookies and snacks in their cafeterias.
Alle-Kiski Medical Center in Harrison, which is part of the West Penn network, in early November started using canola oil for all of its frying.
The trans fats worries also are prompting national and local restaurant chains to rid their menus of trans fats.
Eat N' Park last year began frying french fries, chicken tenders and fish in trans fat-free oil, a move that officials said has improved the taste of those products.
Eat N' Park also is working to eliminate trans fats from its bakery items and already is testing trans fat-free Smiley cookies at several undisclosed locations, said Brooks Broadhurst, senior vice president of food and beverage.
The eagerness of some restaurants to voluntarily purge trans fats doesn't mean those who don't will be forced to do it.
"I don't think we should legislate people out of existence," said Dr. Bruce Dixon, director of the Allegheny County Health Department. "We should give people the information and they should make wise choices about what they eat. I would hope people can make these decisions voluntarily."
Allegheny General's Vazquez would like to see more information in the public's hands.
"When you are in a restaurant, your fish or your chicken doesn't come with a label," Vazquez said. "You have no way of knowing if it is good or bad for you and if it has trans fatty acids. If you have the information, you can make the choice."
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What are trans fats?
Trans fats are artificially made by adding hydrogen to vegetable oil. Food manufacturers have done this for more than 20 years to make food tastier and extend its shelf life. Trans fats, which also are known as partially hydrogenated oils, can be found in cookies, crackers, icing, potato chips, margarine and microwave popcorn. However, several food makers are starting to make their products trans fats-free. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration this year began requiring that trans fats be listed on all food labels.
