Trans fats are a type of fat that forms when liquid oil is transformed into a solid fat by adding hydrogens. This process is called hydrogenation and it serves to increase the shelf life of foods. Thus, fats and oils for frying are obtained that are very useful for the food industry, since they help to improve the durability, flavor and texture of the products. Some foods, such as pork and lamb, as well as butter and milk, naturally contain small amounts of these hydrogenated fats. However, most of the trans fats in our diet come from processed foods prepared with partially hydrogenated vegetable oils : margarines, industrial pastries, cookies, chips and other snacks … Recent research has indicated that these types of fats can be harmful for health, mainly because they raise "bad" cholesterol (LDL) and triglycerides .
Trans fats have other drawbacks. For example, as researchers from the University of Navarra and the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria have recently shown, its intake increases the risk of suffering from depression . On the contrary, olive oil protects against this ailment.
