In recent years concern has arisen about the potential health hazards of trans-fatty acids in the American diet. Dietary intake of trans-fatty acids has been linked to unhealthy shifts in serum lipid profiles and to coronary heart disease (CHD) in a number of studies. Although several studies have estimated intakes of trans-fatty acids in U.S. populations, presently data is lacking regarding trends in intake of trans-fatty acids in the population. Furthermore, it is unclear how trends in intake of trans-fatty acids may be related to changes in other dietary and non-dietary CHD risk factors and CHD mortality.