Fast Food Fat Varies by Country/City

[amber]

What's in that french fry? Fat varies by city
KFC, McDonald's make fast food fattier in U.S. than abroad


At a New York City McDonald's, a large fries-and-chicken-nuggets combo was found to contain 10.2 grams of the trans fat, compared with 0.33 grams in Denmark.

Updated: 9:38 p.m. ET April 12, 2006
Order french fries or hot wings at a McDonald's or a KFC in the United States and you're more likely to get a super-sized helping of artery-clogging trans fats than you would be at their restaurants in some other countries.

A study of the fast-food chains' products around the world found remarkably wide variations in trans fat content from country to country, from city to city within the same nation, and from restaurant to restaurant in the same city.

The researchers said the differences had to do with the type of frying oil used, and the main culprit appeared to be partially hydrogenated vegetable oil, which is high in trans fats.


"I was very surprised to see a difference in trans fatty acids in these uniform products," said one of the researchers, Dr. Steen Stender, a cardiologist at Gentofte University Hospital in Hellerup, Denmark, and former head of the Danish Nutrition Council. "It's such an easy risk factor to remove.

Drastic differences in trans fats
McDonald's Corp., which promised in September 2002 to cut trans fat in half, and KFC parent Yum! Brands Inc. said the explanation is local taste preferences. But nutrition experts and consumer activists said it is about money: Frying oil high in trans fats costs less.

The Danish researchers tested products from the chains' outlets in dozens of countries in 2004 and 2005, analyzing McDonald's chicken nuggets, KFC hot wings, and the two chains' fried potatoes. The findings were reported in Thursday's New England Journal of Medicine.

At a New York City McDonald's, a large fries-and-chicken-nuggets combo was found to contain 10.2 grams of the trans fat, compared with 0.33 grams in Denmark and about 3 grams in Spain, Russia and the Czech Republic.



At KFCs in Poland and Hungary, a large hot wings-and-fries order had 19 grams of trans fats or more, versus 5.5 grams for wings and fried potato wedges in New York. But in Germany, Russia, Denmark and Aberdeen, Scotland, the same meal had less than a gram.

A large order of french fries at a New York City McDonald's contained 30 percent more trans fat than the same order from an Atlanta McDonald's.

Partially hydrogenated vegetable oil is cooking oil that has been injected with hydrogen to harden it and give it a longer shelf life. Switching to liquid vegetable oils such as canola, corn, olive, coconut, or soy eliminates the trans fat, as has been done in Denmark under a 2004 law allowing only a minuscule amount of trans fat in foods.

Trans fat raises bad cholesterol and lowers good cholesterol. Eating just 5 grams of it per day increases the risk of heart disease 25 percent, research shows.

'Metabolic poison'
"Per gram, it is more harmful than any other kind of fat," Stender said. "It's a metabolic poison."

McDonald's said it "continues to work diligently on ways to reduce" trans fat in its fries. It said that most of its oils come from local suppliers, based on consumer preference, and that the oil used in the United States is different from that in Europe and elsewhere.

Stender and other experts said many restaurants still use partially hydrogenated vegetable oil to save money because it does not spoil and can be used over and over for frying.

Michael F. Jacobson, executive director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest, said his group has petitioned the Food and Drug Administration to drastically limit the use of trans fats and require restaurant menus to note foods containing trans fat. He said FDA is still reviewing the petitions, "even though they agree it's killing thousands of people a year."

CONTINUED: Penny more for healthier oil?


•Jacobsen's center estimated a few years ago that trans fats prematurely killed 30,000 to 75,000 Americans a year. That number has probably fallen, he said, because many packaged-food companies have switched to healthier oils.

But many processed foods — including pies, tortilla chips, margarine and microwave popcorn — still contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oil.

Harvard School of Public Health cardiologist Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian and colleagues wrote in the journal that while it may be hard for restaurants and food manufacturers to eliminate partially hydrogenated oil, other countries have replaced it with unsaturated fats without raising costs or reducing quality.

Doing so might prevent thousands of heart attacks and strokes each year in the United States, they wrote.

Jacobsen said that the cost might be a penny per order of fries or nuggets, and that the taste difference would be minimal.

"I don't think people would mind paying a penny more or getting one less french fry to avoid heart disease," he said.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7279844/...87818?GT1=7938

[cliffdweller]

What's the deal with trans fat? I really don't know one fat from another

[amber]

Originally Posted by cliffdweller

What's the deal with trans fat? I really don't know one fat from another

Well, this was in the article. There are more details if you look it up online, I'm sure. I was researching coconut oil and found some pretty good explanations of different kinds of fat. I think the length of the lipid chain is one factor, as far as the scientific makeup of different kinds of fat and how your body processes them.


"Partially hydrogenated vegetable oil is cooking oil that has been injected with hydrogen to harden it and give it a longer shelf life. Switching to liquid vegetable oils such as canola, corn, olive, coconut, or soy eliminates the trans fat, as has been done in Denmark under a 2004 law allowing only a minuscule amount of trans fat in foods.

Trans fat raises bad cholesterol and lowers good cholesterol. Eating just 5 grams of it per day increases the risk of heart disease 25 percent, research shows."

[Mari]

Doesn't surprise me, noticed that before.
I got a brownies pack from Betty Crocker once from a friend in the States, and according to that box I had to add a lot more oil than on the dutch box (same brand).. and more examples like that.
funny how on one hand you have so many diet products and on the other hand this thing goes on.

[cliffdweller]

Originally Posted by amber

Well, this was in the article.

D'uh. I didn't scroll down and see the rest of your post, sorry!

Man, I haven't had McDonald's in an age...now I'm glad!

[DavidMn]

Guess I''ll be hopping the pond next time I want a Big Mac.

[amber]

Originally Posted by Mari

Doesn't surprise me, noticed that before.
I got a brownies pack from Betty Crocker once from a friend in the States, and according to that box I had to add a lot more oil than on the dutch box (same brand).. and more examples like that.
funny how on one hand you have so many diet products and on the other hand this thing goes on.

Funny like Cancer. It's totally ridiculous.
Also: mmmm, french fries....*drool*...

[tuigirl]

I must admit the French McDos were always way yummier than the UK/Dutch/German ones and we used to joke that they were probably fried in horse fat or something! Wouldn't surprise me, but it's good to know at least the Danes have got their act together. Thanks Amber..interesting article.

[Mari]

I've ate at mcdonalds in a couple of countries (how imaginitive is that, you're in a foreign country.. let's eat at mcdonalds ) but the one in Dijon France.. I wasn't impressed, actually! I'd rather have me a McKroket back home, lol! And you can get mayonaise with your dutch fries, I just have to have some (how healthy) mayonaise...


(oh amber, I'm sure you know that 'funny' also means 'odd', not just 'humorous'...)

[ryan8472]

Originally Posted by DavidMn

Guess I''ll be hopping the pond next time I want a Big Mac.

I know, it makes me feel like a fatass. And I love those Big Mac's too.

[sara1998]

Originally Posted by Mari

I'd rather have me a McKroket back home, lol!

I have to ask... what's a McKroket?

[Mari]

A kroket is a popular local snack. McDonalds just put it in a bun and hopla, new snack born.

Description from wiki:
"The croquette or croquet is a parcel of food such as minced meat or vegetables, shaped into a cylinder, encased in breadcrumbs and deep fried."

oh I just had to copy this from them...

"The ingredients of the cheaper croquettes are the subject of a recurring urban myth, according to which offal, pigs' eyes, cows' udders, chickens' toes, and other animal parts are added to the croquets to provide bulk and flavour. All this is very unlikely since Dutch food law is very strict, and any supplier adding animal waste to food risks being banned from the industry altogether. Some have suggested the possibility of these rumours having been started by the top croquette brands in the Netherlands – Van Dobben and Kwekkeboom – to distinguish themselves from the lower quality, cheaper, brands."

There you have it, Dutch cuisine!!

[sara1998]

Originally Posted by Mari

A kroket is a popular local snack. McDonalds just put it in a bun and hopla, new snack born.

Description from wiki:
"The croquette or croquet is a parcel of food such as minced meat or vegetables, shaped into a cylinder, encased in breadcrumbs and deep fried."

oh I just had to copy this from them...

"The ingredients of the cheaper croquettes are the subject of a recurring urban myth, according to which offal, pigs' eyes, cows' udders, chickens' toes, and other animal parts are added to the croquets to provide bulk and flavour. All this is very unlikely since Dutch food law is very strict, and any supplier adding animal waste to food risks being banned from the industry altogether. Some have suggested the possibility of these rumours having been started by the top croquette brands in the Netherlands – Van Dobben and Kwekkeboom – to distinguish themselves from the lower quality, cheaper, brands."

There you have it, Dutch cuisine!!

Sounds very tasty. Thanks for the description.

[DavidMn]

You know, I'm kinda broke these days, so maybe I'll just sue Wendy's for that double cheeseburger I had the other day....