All Foster's Pharmacy locations in Mount Vernon, Knox County, Centerburg Ohio are full service pharmacies with medical equipment, flu shots, home health, vitamins, and prescription delivery.

Thanks to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), trans fats can no longer hide out incognito in your food. As of January 2006, trans fats joined saturated fat and dietary cholesterol on food labels—a move that could make a big difference in your health and that of your children.

What are trans fats? Although naturally occurring in small amounts in some animal-based foods, trans fats are mainly the invention of food manufacturers. They add hydrogen to vegetable oil, turning it into a solid fat in a process called hydrogenation. Why would they do that? Solid fats are less likely to spoil, which increases the shelf life of foods and prolongs their flavor.

Unfortunately, there’s a down side to this manufacturing magic trick. As it turns out, trans fats are believed to be even more harmful than cholesterol and saturated fat. For starters, they deliver a double whammy—increasing the bad kind of blood cholesterol (low-density lipoprotein, or LDL) and lowering the good kind of blood cholesterol (high-density lipoprotein, or HDL). They also increase the levels of another type of fat (called triglycerides), lead to obesity, and may cause inflammation. These changes all greatly increase your risk of heart disease.

In the past, you needed to know the “code words” for trans fats—such as “shortening” or “partially hydrogenated” vegetable oil. Today you can check food labels to see which foods contain trans fats. Now that the cat is out of the bag, some food manufacturers are scrambling to eliminate trans fats from their foods. However, these kinds of foods still may contain them:

• Crackers, cookies, microwave popcorn, and other snack foods
• Some margarines
• Donuts and muffins
• Pie
• Frozen breakfast foods
• Deep-fried foods
• Vegetable shortening
• Other foods made with partially hydrogenated vegetable oil

When you check food labels, see if trans fats are in the first three to four ingredients. If so, avoid that product. Choose foods with lower combined amounts of saturated and trans fats, as well as lower levels of cholesterol. Don’t be tricked by labels that say “no cholesterol” or “cooked with vegetable oil.” The product may still contain bad fats.

The American Heart Association recommends getting no more than one percent of your total daily calories from foods containing trans fats. If you eat 2,000 calories a day, that’s only two grams or less. To put this into context, a large serving of fries (with no label to warn you) often contains five to eight grams of trans fats.

Replace solid shortenings, hard margarines, and butter with liquid vegetable oils, such as olive, canola, soybean, peanut, corn, or sunflower and soft margarines. Instead of high-fat meats, choose foods such as fish, nuts, and lean meats.

Try not to shop on an empty stomach—that’s a recipe for poor food choices. Fatigue can also prompt you to zip into fast-food restaurants. Remember: it’s up to you to take responsibility for the foods you bring into your house and put in front of your children. Your kids will eat what is there.

Minimizing trans fats in your family’s diet could have a tremendous impact. By some estimates, eliminating trans fats from our food supply could prevent up to 19 percent of 1.2 million heart attacks and related deaths each year. Do the math. You’ll be impressed.

You've probably heard it all before. Maybe the advice has even been so drilled into your head that it's simply become background noise: Eat your veggies. Choose whole grains. Banish the trans fats…. Et cetera, et cetera. Well, it may all be old news, but the age-old mantra is still true: "You are what you eat." So, here's a brief nutrition review, along with a couple of tips on how to begin making changes.

These are the basics of a healthy eating plan:

• Look for a rainbow of fruits and veggies. If you choose a variety of colors, you'll get a variety of nutrients – go for orange veggies and dark leafy greens, for example, along with dry beans and peas such as kidney beans, split peas, or lentils. And for the most benefits, choose whole fruits, not juice. Shoot for 5 to 6 servings each day.
• Got milk? Aim for 3 servings. A serving is 1 cup of milk or yogurt, 2 cups of cottage cheese, or 1½ ounces of cheese. If you're lactose intolerant, look for beverages that are free of milk products but are fortified with calcium. Make low-fat and nonfat choices most often.
• Eat the "whole" thing. Choose whole-grain breads, rice, cereals, crackers or pasta. Three ounces is a good daily goal.
• Be lean (not mean). Choose 5 ½ to 6 ounces of lean meats and poultry but mix up your protein choices. If you're a diehard carnivore, remember that protein is found in plants, too. Include fish, nuts, seeds, and beans in your meal plans.
• Go easy on the extras. The Nutrition Facts label is your friend! Look for foods low in saturated fats, salt (sodium), and added sugars. Nix the trans fats altogether.

Not many of us are great at keeping track of calories and serving sizes. Check out this nifty, new online calculator that does it for you: www.myfoodapedia. Type in the name of a food you want more information about. With one click of your mouse, you'll see what food group it falls into, how much a serving size is, and how many calories are in a serving. You can also compare it with another similar food. For example, if you're wondering how your cereals stack up with one another, you can quickly find out. You might be surprised to learn that homemade granola has three times the calories of Grape-Nuts.

Now, I'm the first to admit that making dietary changes isn't easy. Rather than trying to change everything at once, choose one change to start with. For example, try adding one more serving of veggies a day. Or, start eating breakfast if you aren't already. Or switch from snacks with empty calories (soda) to nutrient-rich snacks (an apple with peanut butter). Focus on how much better you feel and how your food choices can improve your overall health.

If you've made diet changes and are still troubled by weight gain, talk with our pharmacy staff. Perhaps a medication could be causing the problem. Your doctor may be able to change your prescription.

For more information, visit www.healthmart.com and click on “Health and Wellness.” In the Wellness Library, you'll find a wealth of information about nutrition – from a guide to organic foods to a look at senior nutrition.