The unhealthy relationship of budget foods and fat

We all want to save money when grocery shopping -- who wouldn't? But, as Maggie mentioned last month, bargain foods, while light on the wallet, can be heavy on your waistline and hard on your health.

An article in Shape magazine says that research has shown less expensive items often have more trans fats than those that are slightly more expensive. Trans fats, as you may know, have been shown to raise your bad cholesterol, and can show up in the ingredient list as partially hydrogenated or hydrogenated oil and shortening -- not stuff you want in your snacks, no matter how great the price is.

The University of Minnesota researchers Shape refers to found that 24 percent of the products they examined still contained trans fats -- the amounts might have been reduced from previous versions, but the products were not trans fat-free. Be choosy when buying snacks -- don't let a bargain get in the way of your health! To see some surprising foods that have trans fats, check out this slideshow at AOL Health.

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