Note that none of the following is required reading.
After a tiny bit a research, I am still led to believe that trans double bond are more common in nature simply because they are going to be more stable since they involve less of the unfavorable steric interactions I have been talking about in lecture (this unfavorable interaction is also known as steric hindrance. In fact , it is so rare for cis double bonds to be more stable, that the few cases where this does happen are referred to as exhibiting the "cis-effect."
As for why trans-fatty acids (or trans-fats in common parlance) are harmful to humans,
this general audience article indicates the problem is not a case of the stretched out trans-fats aggregating together to form clots as I had blindly guessed in class, but rather that the trans fats cause cholesterol and
triglycerides to be produced when they are metabolized.
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