Question

What’s up with trans-fat and why is it so bad for you. I need to discuss a brief overview of how trans fatty acids are formed. I also need to support my answer with evidence.

Answer 1

Fats contain long hydrocarbon chains, which are either unsaturated, have double bonds, or saturated, have no double bonds. In nature, unsaturated fatty acids usually have cis as opposed to trans configurations. In food production, liquid cis-unsaturated fats like vegetable oils are hydrogenated ( Hydrogen is added to the chain) to produce saturated fats, which have more desirable physical properties. For example, they melt at a desirable temperature at 30 - 40 degrees Celsius. Partial hydrogenation of the unsaturated fat converts some of the cis double bonds into trans double bonds by an isomerization reaction with the catalyst used for the hydrogenation. This yields a trans fat.

Even though trans fats are edible, intake of trans fats has been shown to increase the risk of coronary artery disease by raising the levels of lipoprotein LDL (often referred to as "bad cholesterol"), lowering levels of the lipoprotein HDL (often referred to as "good cholesterol"), increasing triglycerides in the bloodstream and promoting systemic inflammation.

These are the ill effects of trans fats.