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"  There is good news out there for all of us french fry eaters: researchers have found no connection between eating fried foods and suffering from heart disease. Okay, before you run out and feast on your favorite fried eats there is a caveat \u2014 there is no risk as long as you use the right oil, and perhaps live in the right country. The study, conducted in Spain and published in the British Medical Journal, followed 40,000 Spaniards over the course of 11 years. The participants averaged 138 grams of fried food per day, including the 14 grams of olive oil used for frying. They found that at least one incidence of heart disease \u2014 such as a heart attack or a blocked artery \u2014 occurred in a mere 606 people over the course of the study. The researchers determined that, &amp;quot;In Spain, a Mediterranean country where olive or sunflower oil is used for frying, the consumption of fried foods was not associated with coronary heart disease or with all cause mortality.&amp;quot; More From Delish: How Olive Oil Benefits Your Health \u2014 and Your Cooking For years doctors have praised olive oil, a key component of the Mediterranean diet, for having incredible health benefits. Olive oil contains healthy dietary fats \u2014 monosaturated fatty acids and polyunsaturated fats \u2014 which are known to lower the risk of cardiovascular disease, lower cholesterol levels, and balance blood clotting. But it&amp;#039;s not just the type of oil that used that&amp;#039;s important in this study. The number of times the oil is used to fry foods impacted the quality of the oil and the risk factors. According to the report, &amp;quot;When food is fried its nutritional content changes \u2014 the food loses water and takes up fat, increasing its energy density.&amp;quot; Frying not only modifies the food, it also modifies the oil. During the process oil quality deteriorates as a result of oxidation and hydrogenation. Why is that bad? Because when oil is heated to such high degrees, the good unsaturated fats that help prevent cardiac disease decrease while the saturated fats increase. More From Delish: Healthy Fast-Food Alternatives If the same research were conducted in the U.S., the results would differ significantly as most of the fried food found in restaurants is prepared with oils known to be high in saturated fat. But more cities are taking note of the health risks involved in consuming foods cooked or fried in these fats. New York City was the first city to ban the use of trans-fats \u2014 which are known to increase your risk of heart disease \u2014 from restaurants in 2008. Obviously, Spain&amp;#039;s typical fried foods vary from those served in the U.S. &amp;quot;Consumption of fried snacks high in salt is fairly low in Spain, whereas in other countries such as the United States they provide an important percentage of energy intake,&amp;quot; said the report. The impact of consuming fried foods high in sodium was not considered in this study given the diet of the Spaniards. What is the takeaway? Eliminate saturated fats and trans fats from your diet as much as possible and whenever frying foods use an oil low in saturated fat such as sunflower or olive oil. The hope is that doing so will help you avoid some of the perils of heart disease. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.delish.com/food/news/a38878/new-research-shows-no-connection-between-fried-foods-and-heart-disease/>