On the one hand, any circumstance that triggers interest, thanks to which reliable information that raises the public's self-awareness of health breaks through to the public, is invaluable. On the other hand, there is an increasing risk of misinformation caused by information noise generated by people who are not necessarily interested in improving the public's health. Before I try to answer the title question, a few facts about the fat and sugar calorie bomb that is doughnuts.

What are the doughnuts hiding inside?

The energy value of 100 g of donut cake is 415 kcal. It consists of: 7.6 g protein, 15.5 g fat, 62.1 g carbohydrates, 1.5 g fibre. The average doughnut with icing weighs about 70 g, which means its calorie content is 291 kcal.

This means that it is the same as, for example:

133 strawberries,
10 tomatoes,
100 g breaded turkey cutlet,
1 slice of margherita pizza.

To burn a similar amount of calories you would need to:

walk for about 70 min. at a brisk walk,
swim "frog" for about 30 min,
run for about 20 min,
cycle for about 40 min.

Flavours have a slightly 'inferior' performance, so they require a little more effort to ensure that no trace of them remains in the body of the eater.

Fat Thursday every Thursday?

On Fat Thursday, the statistical Pole eats 2.5 doughnuts, which means that we all eat almost 100 million of them in total. Is there anything to worry about?

One-day (point) culinary promiscuity of consumption, linked, for example, as in this case, to a traditional holiday, does not threaten us in any particular way.

However, a caveat should be made at the outset as to what such promiscuity, but extended over time (or, in the extreme version, permanent), might entail. Because consuming too much simple sugars (implicitly also too often) is conducive:

build-up body fat in the body,
caries,
increasing the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, among other diseases.

In turn, sodium consumed in excess causes:

water retention in the body,
slows down the metabolic rate,
increases blood pressure,
interferes with kidney function.

Deep-fried doughnuts and health

Both doughnuts and favours are a calorific fat and sugar bomb and a source of simple carbohydrates, which:

cause large spikes in blood sugar levels,
increase the appetite for unhealthy snacks.

One doughnut contains 9 teaspoons of sugar and has a high sodium content of 402 mg.

This we already know. But more importantly, it is often the case that shop-bought, confectionery or bakery doughnuts or French fries are fried on the fritterwhich is the cheapest, most harmful fat, known as trans fat or hydrogenated vegetable fat.

FRITURA

A fat readily used in the food industry, characterised by its high melting point, which allows repeated deep-frying without smoking or altering the taste of the food. In addition, it improves the texture of products, extends shelf life and is simply cheap.

Trans fats - why should they be avoided?

Trans fats negatively affect blood levels of 'bad' cholesterol (LDL) while lowering the fraction of 'good' cholesterol (HDL). Furthermore, they cause an increase in triglycerides.

It is the trans fatty acids that contribute the most:

atherosclerosis,
hypertension,
ischaemic heart disease.

In addition to the above-mentioned cardiovascular diseases, saturated fats increase the risk of:

inflammatory conditions,
type 2 diabetes,
cancer (breast, colon and prostate cancer)

and may contribute to memory loss in later life.

Trans fats and their effects on fertility

At this point, it is important to highlight the fact that trans fats are an important risk factor in reproductive processes:

1. Decrease fertility, disrupt ovulationcause problems with egg maturation and embryo implantation.

2. are harmful, especially to pregnant women and young children.

3 They interfere with the development of the fetal nervous system, can reduce the birth weight of newborns and interfere with lactation in lactating women.

4. in addition, pregnant women who consume significant amounts of trans fats are at greater risk of so-called pregnancy poisoning and insulin resistance.

You can read about what to eat to get pregnant here: https://www.invimed.pl/blog/co-jesc-by-zajsc

You can read about the pitfalls in the diet here: https://www.invimed.pl/blog/proplodnosciowe-pulapki-w-diecie

How do you eliminate trans fats from your diet?

It is virtually impossible to completely eliminate trans fats from your diet, but it is worth reducing your intake to a minimum. Try to buy foods that are as minimally processed as possible.

Let's read product labels and be sensitive to what they have in their ingredients: oil or fat 'hydrogenated', 'partially hydrogenated' or 'hydrogenated'. Let's try to prepare homemade sweets ourselves, which are sure to be healthier than the store-bought equivalents

Should you be afraid of Fat Thursday?

They return to the question: should we be afraid of Fat Thursday? To keep with tradition, let's allow ourselves to eat donuts or favours on Fat Thursday, but on a daily basis, it is better to avoid them. A holiday is therefore a 'festivity' because it is something cyclical and rare. This is true in religious terms, usually also for various secular traditions, and let the same rule apply when it comes to eating: doughnuts only on holidays and only on Fat Thursday.

Article compiled by: MA Kinga Siejewicz - Clinical nutritionist from the InviMed clinic in Warsaw.