The oil that replaced the bad trans fat (palm oil) is mostly saturated fat — which is also bad for your heart — so swapping one bad fat for another might not help much.
Scientific Claim
Palm oil, the most common substitute for PHOs in Poland after regulation, contains approximately 50% saturated fatty acids, which may offset the cardiovascular benefits of eliminating trans fats by increasing intake of another harmful fat.
Original Statement
“Palm oil contains around 50% saturated fatty acids... replacing PHOs with palm oil... may not mitigate the expected beneficial effects... due to the significant amounts of saturated fatty acids introduced into the diet.”
Evidence Quality Assessment
Claim Status
appropriately stated
Study Design Support
Design supports claim
Appropriate Language Strength
definitive
Can make definitive causal claims
Assessment Explanation
The claim states a well-established nutritional fact (palm oil composition) and links it to observed substitution patterns. No causal claim about health outcomes is made.
Evidence from Studies
Supporting (1)
After Poland banned bad trans fats, food companies mostly switched to palm oil, which is also full of unhealthy saturated fats — so while trans fats went down, another unhealthy fat went up.