Background Research suggests that not all fats are created equal, particularly when it comes to heart health. In fact, various dietary fats or fatty acids can have different effects on blood lipids associated with coronary heart disease (CHD) such as HDL (“good”) cholesterol, LDL (“bad”) cholesterol, and triglycerides. Trans fatty acids and high amounts of certain saturated fatty acids (SFA) in...

My name is Dale E. Bauman and I am Liberty Hyde Bailey Professor in the Department of Animal Science at Cornell University. I am coauthoring this letter with Adam L. Lock, Post-Doctoral Research Fellow in my department. As members of the scientific community, we appreciate the opportunity to provide comment on trans fatty acids in nutrition labeling and we are writing to communicate scientific ...

Epidemiological, clinical and metabolic research has shown a strong association between dietary fatty acids intake and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors and clinical events. Saturated fatty acids (SFA) and trans fatty acids (TFA) derived from industrial hydrogenation of oils have been associated with an increased prevalence of CVD. However experimental results on the relationship betwee...

All of the essential n-6 and n-3 fatty acids accumulated by the fetus must be derived by transfer from the maternal circulation, and ultimately must originate from the maternal diet. After birth, the breast-fed infant receives essential fatty acids via mother's milk, or human milk substitutes and later complementary foods. Trans fatty acids (TFA) may have adverse effects on growth and developme...

Advances in our understanding of lipid metabolism in the ruminant and the effect of specific fatty acids on both ruminant metabolism and human health has increased significantly in recent years. Unique biohydrogenation intermediates formed in the rumen have been shown to be potent inhibitors of milk fat synthesis, and the biology behind this and its potential application and benefit to both ani...

Studies pertaining to trans fatty acids (TFA), which have been implicated in development of chronic diseases, are more relevant in developing countries where nutrition transition is changing traditional habits and practices. Measuring TFA is an arduous task because of the need for fat biopsies. This study identifies a tissue, which can be easily accessed for analytical measurement of trans fatt...

The present study was designed to investigate the hypothesis that trans fatty acids can induce apoptosis of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC). To test this hypothesis apoptosis was measured in HUVEC treated with 0.1, 1.0 or 5.0 mM trans elaidic acid (t-18:1) or linoelaidic acid (t,t-18:2) for 24 hours. For the detection of apoptosis, TdT-mediated dUTP nick end labelling assay (TUNE...

The objective of this paper was to determine the opportunities of improving milk productivity and altering the milk composition through nutritional interventions. The increase in the nutraceutical value of milk is expected through dietary modifications of the animal. Feeding high concentrate diets combined with dietary fat can be used to modify the FA profile of milk, without negative effect on...

Sudden cardiac death (SCD) is usually due to ventricular fibrillation and can occur as a first manifestation of heart disease. Prevention of ventricular fibrillation and SCD with n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids is well documented. Trans-fatty acids (TFA) in the diet and cell membranes might affect the risk of SCD as well. We review evidence from an observational study that high levels of trans-...

Due to the growing knowledge about the role of specific fatty acids in health and disease, dietary intake measurements of individual fatty acids or classes of fatty acids are becoming increasingly important. The objective of this study was to evaluate the ability of the Nambour FFQ to estimate intakes of specific fatty acids, particularly PUFA. The study population was a sub-sample of adult par...