Killer Fried Chicken (KFC, for short)

June 16th, 2006

Sometimes I feel sorry for chickens. They’re getting such a bad press at the moment.

If they are not going to kill you with bird flu, these unfortunate creatures will get you another way, that is if you like fast food.

Apparently there is a major fast food chain that is being sued in the United States for cooking its fried chicken in partially hydrogenated oil containing the naughty trans fatty acids.

Hydrogentated fats prolong the shelf life of processed foods and are linked to increased risk of heart disease, probably by raising the levels of bad cholesterol in your blood.

The maximum recommended daily intake of trans fats in the diet is 4.4g for women and 5.6g for men. Apparently a single portion of Killer Fried Chicken can contain 4.4g of trans fats so that is your whole daily allowance in one portion.

Eat any more foods containing trans fats during the day and you’re increasing the chance of raising your bad cholesterol levels.

Angina, heart attacks and strokes can be caused by prolonged elevated cholesterol levels as the bad cholesterol causes narrowing and hardening of critical coronary and cerebral arteries.

So the next time that you feel like tucking into a portion of fried chicken at your favourite fast food outlet, think of those trans fats circulating in your blood until they find a place to land on one of your artery walls, slowly clogging up your arteries.

Entry Filed under: Healthy Lifestyles