One "brother" is the oldest of the two. He's been living large for quite awhile. The other brother is the "charmer," but some folks say both will break your heart, if you let them.

But forget about seeing them on reruns of "The Sopranos." Instead, you'll see them in your food - and one group wants to help you get rid of them.

The Dallas-based American Heart Association is launching the "Face The Fats" campaign to teach consumers how to minimize one "brother" - trans fat - in their diets and avoid unintended consequences of defaulting to the other brother, saturated fat.

The campaign aims to get more of us to change to healthier polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats, organization leaders said.

"Trans fat has received a lot of well-deserved scrutiny," said Dr. Robert H. Eckel, the associate's immediate past-president and head of its trans-fat panel. "At the same time, while it's critical that we continue to push aggressively to minimize its consumption, trans fat is just one part of the 'big fat picture.'

"It's equally important that we avoid increasing saturated fat in its place. Both trans and saturated fats raise the bad cholesterol and increase the risk of developing heart disease."

Fats calculator 

To help consumers understand the crazy world of fats, the association's "edutainment" website features a calculator  for you to plug in your age, gender, height, weight and level of physical activity to get your daily limits for total, saturated and trans fats.

The website also features lists of foods and their fat contents, and healthy-eating recipes by celebrity chef Alton Brown.

"Our bodies need some fat, but it's clear that many of us consume a lot more than we need," Brown said. "And all too often we load up on fats that aren't very good for us, passing up more healthful varieties."

The association's trans-fat campaign is funded by an $8.5 million settlement from a class-action lawsuit against McDonald's, which was wagged into court in 2003 for allegedly failing to tell the public it hadn't switched to healthier oils for its French fries as the company had promised. 

To its credit, McDonald's, and many of its competitors, now offer healthier menu items in addition to the customary burgers and fries. Some fast-food restaurants also have switched to cooking oils that produce little or no trans fat.

As for the "brothers," Sat and Trans, their  "webisodes" will remind you why they're bad.

Little known about trans fat 

On average, adults consume approximately 2.2 percent of total calories from trans fat and four to five times as much saturated fat a day - far more than the limits recommended by the association.

Last month, the federal government's National Cancer Institute reported women who averaged 40 percent of their calories from fat and ate the most saturated fat suffered more invasive breast cancer, the kind that has spread beyond its original site.

Despite the institute's study and a mountain of other similar findings, only half of the 1,000 adults in a heart association poll last year could name the health effects of trans fat or name at least one food that had it. But 70 percent of the people could name three foods with saturated fat.

The American Heart Association recommends total fat intake to be 25 to 35 percent of total daily calories and limiting daily intake of saturated fat to less than 7 percent and trans fat to less than 1 percent of total calories. As much as possible of the total fat  intake should come from sources of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats.

Where to find "bad" and "good" fats 

Trans fatty acids - or "trans fat," for short - occur when manufacturers inject hydrogen into vegetable oil to make it last longer on the shelf and to make products tastier. The new kind of oil is called "partially hydrogenated oil." 

Although more products are marketed as "trans fat-free," they still may contain saturated fat and calories, heart association leaders said.

In addition to French fries, trans fat is found especially in:

•  commercial baked doughnuts, pastries, muffins, cakes, pie crusts, biscuits and cookies;

•  fried chicken;

•  breaded chicken nuggets and breaded fish;

•  snack foods, such as crackers;

•  other foods made with partially hydrogenated vegetable oils, vegetable shortening or hard margarine.

Soft margarines typically do not contain trans fat.

Meanwhile, saturated fat comes primarily from:

•  beef;

•  lamb;

•  pork;

•  poultry cooked with the skin still attached;

•  beef fat;

•  lard;

•  cream, butter, cheese and other dairy products made from whole or reduced-fat milk;

•  palm, palm kernel and coconut oils. 

Major sources of "better" monounsaturated fats include olive, canola and peanut oils; avocados; and many nuts and seeds.

Major sources of polyunsaturated fat include soybean, corn, safflower and sunflower oils; salmon, tuna, mackerel, herring, trout and other "fatty fish;" some nuts and seeds.

Nubella News, a division of Marketing Technology Solutions, Inc., offers content intended for informational purposes only. It is not a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. We encourage our readers to seek prompt medical care for health issues and consult their physicians before starting a new diet, fitness regimen, or medical treatment.