 |
| |
Saturday November 21, 2009 |
|
| |
 |
|
|
|
 |
Removing Trans Fats From Foods Could Save Lives, FDA Says January 28, 2002 - 2:53 PM by Head News Manager | Category:
Cardiovascular Conditions |
June 6, 2000 (Reston, Va.) -- If food manufacturers would remove all trans fats from margarines and just 3% from commercial baked goods, it could save 5,000 lives a year in the U.S., an FDA expert says.
Some studies have shown that trans fats -- fats that have undergone chemical changes to make them solid at room temperature and help them resist spoilage -- are as bad as saturated fats in increasing the risk of heart disease. Trans fats are found in vegetable shortenings and in many commercially baked breads, cakes, cookies, and crackers.
The FDA is proposing that U.S. food labels be changed to include the amount of trans fats.
FDA epidemiologist Kathleen Koehler, PhD, estimates that removing all the trans fat from margarine and 3% from baked items would prevent more than 17,000 heart attacks and more than 5,000 deaths per year.
"Our estimates of the monetary benefit of removing trans fat are quite large," Koehler says. "The prevention of heart attacks would save between $2.9 billion to $7.9 billion annually." While such a move would cost the food industry a projected $401 to $854 million over 20 years, the health-cost savings over the same period would be $25 to $59 billion, she says.
A study presented here at the American Heart Association meeting on Dietary Fatty Acids and Cardiovascular Health revealed the FDA's proposed new labeling format. Trans fat would be included in the labels' saturated fat category, where an asterisk would refer consumers to a footnote indicating the amount. The change also would make it illegal for products high in trans fat to say that they have no or low cholesterol.
The FDA's period for consumer comment is over, and the label change is expected to go into effect by the fall.
"We are currently reviewing comments on the proposed rule and labeling, and then we will decide if and when to institute changes," Koehler says. "Our studies indicate, however, that removal of just a small percentage of trans fatty acids from our diet would have a very large impact on [heart] disease in this country."
Some who attended the AHA meeting opposed the FDA's proposal to include trans fats in the saturated fat category on food labels, saying that adding a separate category for trans fats would help raise consumer awareness of their health risks.
But Kim Gans, PhD, who commented on the issue, says the FDA's idea is a good one.
"I think placement of the trans fat in the saturated fat category is actually good for consumers, who already have been hearing quite a lot about reducing saturated fats in their diet," she says. "This change is something people have been asking for, and I'm glad to see it's about to become a reality." Gans is associate professor of nutrition at Brown University in Rhode Island.
"I'm actually surprised that this labeling change is taking place as quickly as it has," Gans says. "It illustrates the power of consumers to get things done. Manufacturers of margarine have already removed much of the trans fat from their products without the labeling change. Now that consumers will be able to see how much trans fat is in many products and avoid them, I think we'll see many more manufacturers of other products do the same."
|
|
Source: Removing Trans Fats From Foods Could Save Lives, FDA Says
 Back to Article
|
|
