Heart transplants save lives every day.

Transformers save the world from destruction (in movieland).

But trans fats?

We agree with the lead author of a new study on trans fats and memory who points out that while they extend the shelf life of prepared foods, they reduce the shelf life of people.

Still found in everything from coffee creamers to frozen pizza dough, taking in these artificially made fats (liquid oil is hydrogenated, turning it into a solid) increases your risk for obesity, heart disease and diabetes.

Plus, they damage your ability to recall information.

A University of California San Diego study found that the more trans fats men 45 and younger ate, the worse their memory was!

And it doesn't take much to do damage.

Every additional gram (that's just one-fifth of a teaspoon!) of trans fats in a guy's diet measurably reduces his ability to recall words.

Although there were no women in the study, rest assured that these evil fats have a similar effect on the female brain.

So, remember: Read the ingredients list on every package and make sure there are no trans fats (also listed as hydrogenated oils) of any kind!

The nutrition label won't give you the whole story. Listing zero trans fats doesn't really mean ZERO (it says zero if there's 0.5g or less per serving)!

Don't want to read labels? Opt for fresh foods, prepared at home from scratch. Then your whole family will be able to say thanks for the great food memories!

© 2014 Michael Roizen, M.D. and Mehmet Oz, M.D.
Distributed by King Features Syndicate, Inc.