Baby bust?

Eat trans fats, lower your fertility

By Ashley Griffin Gartland

February 5, 2007

I’m well aware that eating French fries isn’t good for me. After all, there’s little nutritional value in deep-fried potatoes topped with a liberal sprinkling of salt. Still, I was surprised to learn that fries can harm more than my waistline; the trans fats they’re fried in can also impact my fertility.

Trans fats are made when manufacturers add hydrogen to vegetable oil to increase shelf life and flavor stability. The fats are common in fried and processed foods, and consuming them elevates the risk of heart disease and diabetes.

According to a recent study at the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, eating trans fats decreases fertility by interfering with the activity of a cell receptor.

For every 2 percent increase in calories consumed from trans fat instead of carbohydrates, a woman’s risk of infertility increased by 73 percent. And for every 2 percent of calories derived from trans fats instead of monounsaturated fats (such as olive oil), the risk of infertility more than doubled.

Perhaps I’ll turn my occasional French-fry indulgence into a passion for plain baked potatoes.