Bakery foods are the major dietary source of trans-fatty acids among pregnant women with diets providing 30 percent energy from fat.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To estimate intake and identify major dietary sources of trans-fatty acids consumed by healthy, pregnant women. DESIGN: Cross-sectional prospective study using a food intake questionnaire designed specifically to estimate trans-fatty acid intakes calculated from a trans-fatty acid food database developed by food analysis. SUBJECTS/SETTING: Healthy, pregnant women (n=60) were recruited in Vancouver, BC, Canada. STATISTICAL ANALYSES PERFORMED Using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 9.0, descriptive statistics were applied to all variables and paired t tests were used to determine differences in intakes between second and third trimester of pregnancy. RESULTS: The mean fat intakes (in g/person/day) for the second and third trimesters, respectively, were 85.8 and 73.9 total fat, 31.5 and 26.4 monounsaturated, 29.7 and 26.3 saturated, 13.6 and 12.2 polyunsaturated, and 3.8 and 3.4 trans. Fat represented 28% of dietary energy in both trimesters. The major sources of trans-fatty acids were bakery foods (33% of trans-fatty acid intake), fast foods (12%), breads (10%), snacks (10%), and margarines/shortenings (8%). APPLICATIONS/CONCLUSIONS: Women following diets providing about 30% energy from fat consumed about 90% of trans-fatty acids as invisible fat, with less than 10% from table spreads. Dietitians should educate pregnant clients about hidden sources of trans-fatty acids and emphasize the importance of dietary fat composition.