trans fats
linked to a lower incidence of certain diseases. Thus, there have been an increasing number of recommendations by government bodies and health associations to decrease the proportion of saturated fat and increase the proportion of unsaturated fat in the diet. Most of these organizations also recommend decreasing the total amount of fat in the diet. Recently, certain fats called trans fats have been implicated in the presence of heart disease. These are fats from animal sources and are also produced when liquid oils are exposed to partial hydrogenation, an industrial process that increases their saturation. Trans fats are used in many prepared and fried foods. Because they bring with them the health risks that naturally occurring saturated fats do, there has been some effort to better quantify the presence of trans fats in food products. US law now requires that food labels list the amount of trans fat in each serving. Since 1992, the US Department of Agriculture has been promoting a food pyramid that gives a simple, visual picture of how much of what kind of foods make up a good, balanced diet. It recommends eating as few fats as possible. Although nutritionists recognize that some fat is necessary and largely unavoidable, even by strict vegetarians , they emphasize that a large proportion of any fat, saturated or unsaturated, in the diet is unhealthy. Even so, a difference as simple as the difference between a single and double carboncarbon bond can have a significant impact on health.