WHO’s latest report is urging action by governments, the food industry and the public to remove trans fats from our food chain. What kind of foods contain trans fat? What does trans fat do to our body and how can we eliminate them?

Hello and welcome to Science in 5. I'm Vismita Gupta-Smith. We are talking to Dr. Francesco Branca, today. Welcome Francesco. Francesco, let's start with what kind of foods contain trans fats?

There are two kinds of trans fats, natural trans fats and industrial trans fats. The natural trans fats are contained in dairy products or in the meat of ruminant animals such as cows. Both trans fats are bad for our health. The industrial trans fats are the largest proportion. The value of this product for the manufacturers is the fact that they have a longer shelf life and they're also cheaper. Partially hydrogenated oils are used in products such as margarine, vanaspati ghee and they're used in baked products such as donuts or fried food or baked food that you often find in street food.

Francesco, describe to us what trans fats do to our body when we consume them.

So when trans fats enter our body, they're taken up by certain compounds that transport fat in the blood flow. And the more the trans fats, the higher the amount of bad cholesterol that is produced and the lower the amount of the good cholesterol.

So you have more of this bad cholesterol, which then means higher amount of hardening of the cell walls and inflammation of the cell walls. And this leads to a higher risk of clogging of the arteries and therefore a higher risk of heart disease and stroke.

Consumption of trans fats at the current level is estimated to increase that by 21% that is by one-in-five the risk of getting heart disease. And by even more one-in-four times the risk of dying from heart disease. And so we calculate that with the current level of consumption of trans fats, something in between 3-5 million people every year die as a result of the consumption of this toxic compound. And if we remove this compound from the food system, we will be able to save millions of lives.

Francesco, how can we remove trans fats from our food chain? And has any country done it?

So let me start by saying that trans fats are bad for your health. So removing them will give you health benefits and you would not even realize that trans fat is being removed because there's no change in taste, no change in the cost of food. It's possible to remove trans fat and replace it with other ingredients, vegetable oils such as canola oils or other vegetable oils and manufacturers know how to do that.

It's important that countries nudge manufacturers through adequate regulations. WHO has identified the most effective regulations which imply limiting the amount of trans fat below a certain very minimum level that comes usually from all natural sources. Or banning the sales and production of industrial trans fats.

Now we have 43 countries who have passed legislation in the last years, and this number has grown very quickly in the last few years as a result of public health campaigns. Largely, these countries are from the global north - high income countries.

But since last year, we've had countries such as India and Bangladesh who have passed regulations in line with the WHO good practices. And we have good expectation that other countries such as Nigeria this year will also pass legislation.

At the moment we have 3 billion people in the world who are covered by the risk of exposure to trans fats because they live in countries where legislation is strong. But we need to cover the rest of the world, and we really count on the collaboration of all actors, government actors, but also manufacturers of food, oil manufacturers to all work towards what could be an impressive public health achievement and in fact, the elimination of the first risk factor for non-communicable diseases such as heart disease.

Thank you, Francesco. That was Science in 5 today. Until next time then, stay safe, stay healthy and stick with science.

1. trans fat: a type of fat produced when oils are changed by a chemical process into solids, for example to make margarine. Trans fats are believed to encourage the harmful development of cholesterol. 反式脂肪（油类经化学过程转变为固体时所产生的脂肪被认为会促进胆固醇的增长，产生危害）。例如：foods that are low in trans fats反式脂肪含量低的食物

2. dairy adj. made from milk 牛奶的；奶制的；乳品的

3. ruminant n. (technical 术语) any animal that brings back food from its stomach and chews it again. 反刍动物

4. hydrogenated adj. (chemistry 化) hydrogenated oils have had hydrogen added to them （油类）氢化的，加氢的

5. margarine n. a yellow substance like butter made from animal or vegetable fats, used in cookingor spread on bread, etc. 人造黄油； 人造奶油

6. vanaspati ghee 混合氢化油

7. cholesterol n. a substance found in blood, fat and most tissues of the body. Too much cholesterol can cause heart disease. 胆固醇

8. inflammation n. a condition in which a part of the body becomes red, sore and swollen because of infection or injury 发炎；炎症

9. clog v. to block sth. or to become blocked （使）阻塞，堵塞

10. toxic adj. containing poison; poisonous 有毒的；引起中毒的

11. canola n. 加拿大油菜;

12. nudge v. 推进

13. in line with: 与……相似（或紧密相连） 

1. Dairy products and ruminant meat both contain natural trans fats.

2. Because they are less affordable and have a longer shelf life, industrial trans fats are valuable to producers.

3. According to future estimates, eating trans fats will raise your risk of developing heart disease by 21%, or one in five people.

4. Due to public health campaigns, there are currently 43 countries that have approved legislation in previous years.

5. At the moment we have 3 million people in the world at risk of exposure to trans fats.

(T) 1. Dairy products and ruminant meat both contain natural trans fats.

(F) 2. Because they are less affordable and have a longer shelf life, industrial trans fats are valuable to producers.（正确表达）Because they are more affordable and have a longer shelf life, industrial trans fats are valuable to producers.

(F) 3. According to future estimates, eating trans fats will raise your risk of developing heart disease by 21%, or one in five people.（正确表达）According to current estimates, eating trans fats will raise your risk of developing heart disease by 21%, or one in five people.

(T) 4. Due to public health campaigns, there are currently 43 countries that have approved legislation in previous years.

(F) 5. At the moment we have 3 million people in the world at risk of exposure to trans fats.（正确表达）At the moment we have 3 billion people in the world at risk of exposure to trans fats.