>I don't know much about this subject and I'm curious. Which oils and fats
>contain transfatty acids? And why would someone avoid them--is it in
>connection with a casein/gluten free diet, or for other health reasons?

Jean, check out the webbsite:

http://www.enig.com

The following is one of many files on the subject.  The key about the delta
6 desaturase enzyme is that it allows linoleic acid (LA) to be converbed to
gamma linolenic acid, which is the building blocks for both good and bad
eiconasoids, which regulates a variety of hormones, including insulin.
While LA is pretty available in the food supply, GLA is not--you have to
supplement with borage, evening primrose or black current oils, drink human
milk or eat a lot of oatmeal or barley!!  The delta 6 desaturase enzyme is
reppressed by use of trans fatty acids (ie, hydrogenated oils) and hinders
the conversion of LA to GLA.  And, GLA supplementation is not the answer
because it provides inconsistent levels of foods as Dr. Sears explains in
his book The Zone.

Health Issues and Trans Fat

(Last Update: 17 April 1995)

My initial published research in 1978 showed that trans fatty acids, (i)
which were increasing in the food supply at the time; and (ii) which had not
been catalogued in any of the food data tables, were the very factors that
explained the positive statistical relationship between the increase in
cancer mortality and vegetable fat consumption in the U.S.

It was evident from published studies of the trans fatty acids that a number
of earlier researchers had questioned the biological safety of the trans
fatty acids viz a viz their relationship to both cancer and heart disease.
In fact, Ancel Keys had originally claimed that the partially hydrogenated
vegetable oils with their trans fatty acids were the culprits in heart
disease.  This was in 1958, and the edible oil industry was very swift in
their squelching of that information; they shifted the emphasis to
"saturated" fat and started the unwarranted attack on meat and dairy fats.
It has taken 30 years for research to get back on track.  Now research is
being reported on adverse effects from trans related to heart disease,
diabetes, cancer, low birth weight, obesity, and immune dysfunction.

Because trans fatty acids disrupt cellular function, they affect many
enzymes such as the delta-6 desaturase and consequently interfere with the
necessary conversions of both the omega-6 and the omega-3 essential fatty
acids to their elongated forms and consequently escalate the adverse effects
of essential fatty acid deficiency (this latter effect was shown especially
by the work of Dr. Holman and his colleagues at the Hormel Institute at the
University of Minnesota).

To contact Dr. Mary G. Enig, send your email to [log in to unmask] for more
information.
Tammy G.

"A parent's love perceives no limitations."