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(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Trans fats -- the kind found in partially hydrogenated vegetable oils used in everything from baked goods to French fries -- may be tripling the risk of heart disease in women.
That's the key finding from Harvard School of Public Health investigators who measured trans fat levels in blood samples from women participating in the long-running Nurses Health Study.
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Blood samples taken from nearly 33,000 women in 1989-1990 were examined for trans fats, which are easy to measure in the blood because they are not synthesized by the body. Researchers then compared trans fat levels in the samples to subsequent development of coronary heart disease in the women, finding a three-times higher risk in women with the highest levels of trans fats when compared to women with the lowest levels.
The researchers note trans fats have already been implicated in heart disease in other studies, but those studies have relied on self-reported eating habits by the participants to gauge trans fats levels. The researchers say this study is more reliable because it measured trans fat levels in the blood.
How does trans fat cause heart disease? The investigators explain trans fats are the worst kind of fat because not only do they raise LDL, or bad cholesterol levels, they lower HDL, or good cholesterol levels.
Many food manufacturers are now removing trans fats from their products, and New York and Pennsylvania have banned the use of trans fats in restaurants.
This article was reported by Ivanhoe.com, who offers Medical Alerts by e-mail every day of the week. To subscribe, go to: http://www.ivanhoe.com/newsalert/.
SOURCE: Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association, published online March 26, 2007
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