Women who eat foods high in trans-fat may double the risk for their infants to be overweight, claims a new study.
Trans-fat is formed in partially hydrogenated vegetable oil and is used in processed foods, such as snack cakes and potato chips, in order to extend shelf-life.
Dangers of trans-fat include increased risk of heart disease, type-2 diabetes, obesity, and even Alzheimer’s disease.
For the study, published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, researchers found breastfeeding mothers consuming 4.5 grams of trans-fat per day are more than twice as likely to have children with high body fat.
Mothers eating 4.5 grams of trans-fat each day were five times more likely to have a body fat percentage higher than 30%. And their infants had more than two times the risk of having over 24% body fat.
The scientists say the findings indicate that the detrimental health effects of trans-fat may be passed from mother to child.
Due to health risks, trans-fat has faced increased scrutiny in recent years. In 2008, California became the first U.S. state to ban trans-fat; prohibiting restaurants from using shortening, oil, or margarine containing artificial trans-fats for cooking.
Small amounts of trans-fatty acids are naturally found in foods such as meat and dairy, but the majority of trans-fats come from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil.
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