Maurice - About.com User
Trans-fats are known to raise LDL cholesterol and lower HDL cholesterol (the good kind) so it is a good idea to avoid them. Now that trans-fats are required information on Nutrition Facts Labels, food manufacturers and many restaurants have reformulated their products to reduce or eliminate oils or fats that contain trans-fats.
One example of ingredient alteration is changing soybean genetics. Much of the oil used in restaurants comes from soy beans. Soy beans contain a fair amount of linolenic acid, which is a type of fatty acid found in many vegetable oil. Linolenic acid goes rancid fairly quickly so soybean oil is partially hydrogenated so that the oil lasts longer. Because of the trans-fats, strains of soy beans have been developed that contain much less linolenic acid. This means that the oil from these new soy beans will not go rancid as quickly so no hydrogenation is needed. This also means that the new soy bean oils don't contain trans-fats.
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