Fats and Oils

Abby Patterson and Jenifer La

Keene State College Dietetic Interns

Icebreaker

Identify sources of fat!

Objectives
The function of fat in our body
Identify the chemical structure and physical properties
of fat
Identify trans fat in our food and describe the effects
trans fat has on our body

Function of Fat
Energy
Transport and Absorption of vitamins
Insulation and Protection

What is fat? - TED Talks

Why is it important to know different types

of fat?

Different types of fat can affect our

cholesterol
HDL (Good Cholesterol)

LDL (Bad Cholesterol)

Fat Carbon Chain

NIAAA Publications

Saturated Fat

NIAAA Publications

Saturated Fat

Indiana University, 2014

Unsaturated Fat

NIAAA Publications

Unsaturated Fat

Indiana University, 2014

Trans Fat

Fatty Acid Chain

Liquid Fats
Liquid at room temperature
Come from primarily plant
sources
Unsaturated
Examples: olive, corn, soybean,
canola, sesame, safflower
Photo Credit: CDC, 2012

Solid Fats
Solid at room temperature
Mostly from animal sources
Saturated/Trans
Examples: butter, milk fat,
chicken and beef fat, lard,
shortening

Photo credit: Christian Baitg, 2014

Trans Fat in Food

Easy and inexpensive, used to preserve
food
Taste and texture
Deep-fry: oils with trans fats can be used
many times in commercial fryers
Sources: Doughnuts, cakes, cookies,
frozen pizza, biscuits, crackers, stick
margarine, pie crusts, frosting, coffee
creamer, fast food
Photo Credit: Food Advice Centre

Trans Fat and Heart Disease

Trans fats raise LDL cholesterol and lower HDL
cholesterol
o contributes to coronary heart disease (leading cause
of death in the US)
Consuming trans fats increases risk of developing heart
disease and stroke

Hydrogenation

Experiment
How does trans fat consumption over time
impact blood flow?
Materials:

2 straws
2 cups
1 tray
margarine
red colored
H2O

Procedure:
1.
2.
3.
4.

Label one cup A and another B

Cut a hole on the side of the cups to fit the straw
Take one straw and put a piece of margarine in it
Slide the straws through the hole you made in the
cups (the one with butter in cup A, the one without
cup B)
5. Fill the cups with water and observe

Experiment - Discussion
Do you expect the cups to empty at different rates?
o If so, which cup will empty sooner? Cup A or Cup B?
o Why?
What part of the circulatory system does the fluid
represent?
What does the margarine represent?
How does this relate to the effect trans fat has in our
body?

CDC, 2013

Summary
Fat provides energy, absorbs/transports vitamins, and protection to our
body
Unsaturated fats are liquid at room temperature

Saturated/trans fats are solid at room temperature

High consumption of saturated/trans fats will increase our risk for
cardiovascular issues such as heart disease and stroke
Saturated fats are single bond carbon chains, unsaturated fat contains
single and double bonds and trans fat are produced through adding
hydrogen onto opposite sides to carbon bonds

Works Cited
Bastyr University. (2010). The Difference Between Solid Fats and Liquid Fats. Retrieved from
http://www.bastyr.edu/news/health-tips/2011/09/difference-between-solid-and-liquid-fats
Centers for Disease Control and Preventon. (2014). Nutrition Basics. Trans Fat. Retrieved from
http://www.cdc.gov/nutrition/everyone/basics/fat/transfat.html
Indiana University. (2014). The Kinds of Fat and Why It Matters to You. Retrieved from
http://www.indiana.edu/~oso/Fat/trans.html
The American Heart Association. (2014). Trans Fat. What are Trans Fats? Retrieved from
http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/NutritionCenter/HealthyEating/Trans-Fats_UCM_301120_Article.jsp
The Fuse School - Global Education. (2013). Hardening Vegetable Oils through Hydrogenation. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2iKczqO1TiE
USDA. (2014). Calories. What are Solid Fats? Retrieved from http://www.choosemyplate.gov/weight-managementcalories/calories/solid-fats.html
Zaidan, G. (2013). TED Talks. What is Fat? Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QhUrc4BnPgg