Trans Fat Intake Is Associated with Excess Risks for All-Cause Death and Adverse CV Outcomes

For decades, clinicians have encouraged patients to consume diets low in saturated fat. However, emerging evidence suggests that saturated fat intake is not associated as clearly with health risks as we previously thought. In contrast, trans fat intake is associated unambiguously with elevated cardiovascular (CV) risk, which has prompted the FDA to declare that trans fat is “not generally recognized as safe” for use in human food and to set a 2018 deadline for food companies to eliminate trans fat from their products. In this meta-analysis of dozens of prospective observational studies, researchers assessed associations between saturated or trans fat intake and several health outcomes.

• After adjustment for multiple variables, high intake of …