Robert De Niro Cares About Your Heart
Ok, it might be presumptuous of me to say that actor Robert De Niro really cares about improving people’s heart health, but at least the Myriad Restaurant Group running the restaurants De Niro co-owns knows better than to use trans fats in the food they serve. New York City is hoping to make all restaurants within the city stop using trans fats by July 2008 or be subject to a fine. Chicago would like to do the same.
What foods tend to have the most trans fats?
- Shortenings, stick (or hard) margarine
- Cookies, crackers, snack foods
- Fried foods (including fried fast food)
- Doughnuts, pastries, baked goods
- Other processed foods made with or fried in partially hydrogenated oils
Trans fats are believed to raise LDL (bad) cholesterol and lower HDL (good) cholesterol, thus increasing the chances of atheroscleroris or clogged arteries.
It’s easy to figure out if the food you eat contains trans fats. On the Nutrition Facts label of packaged foods, trans fat is listed under total fat.
From the American Heart Association:
The American Heart Association recommends a dietary pattern that keeps intake of trans fats and saturated fats as low as possible (with less than 10 percent of daily calories coming from trans fats and saturated fats combined), as both of these are associated with an increased risk of heart disease.
I’m not sure if I agree with banning trans fats as a law. What could also work is making it a source of pride for restaurants to be able to say “No trans fats used in any of our dishes” similar to those that say “No MSG.” I would certainly prefer restaurants that are upfront about their use of ingredients.
Boston Herald, September 28, 2006
Technorati Tags: fats, trans fats, diet, new york, nyc, new york city, rober de niro, heart, heart disease, cholesterol, ldl, hdl, cardiovascular, cvd
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POSTED IN: Hearty Diet, Hearty News
3 opinions for Robert De Niro Cares About Your Heart
A Hearty Life » Grand Rounds 3(2) at RDoctor Medical
Oct 3, 2006 at 7:00 am
[…] That’s Just Brilliant at hospital impact. An interesting take by NicK Jacobs on the use of the word “brilliant” (which I hear a lot in London) and the ban on trans fats at his hospital. Learn more about trans-fats. […]
Grand Rounds 3.3 at Unbounded Medicine
Oct 10, 2006 at 5:00 pm
[…] Hsien-Hsien Lei comes with a funny story where Robert DeNiro takes care of your heart and he really worries about your health and also, Hsien tells you fast facts of fat. […]
Robert De Niro « Andando per Blog
Oct 18, 2006 at 9:52 am
[…] Robert De Niro Cares About Your Heart […]
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