Today the FDA may be a step closer to banning artificial trans fats from the food supply. After an extensive review of the literature on partially hydrogenated oils, a.k.a. artificial trans fats, the agency has decided that they should lose their “generally recognized as safe” status. The coming years could bring a complete ban of the fats that are so common in processed foods.
The research on trans fats has overwhelmingly suggested that they’re categorically worse for us than “regular” fats, since trans fats appear to raise LDL (“bad”) cholesterol and lower HDL (“good”) cholesterol, making them a significant contributor to heart disease.
“While consumption of potentially harmful artificial trans-fat has declined over the last two decades in the United States, current intake remains a significant public-health concern,” said FDA Commissioner Margaret A. Hamburg. “The FDA’s action today is an important step toward protecting more Americans from the potential dangers of trans-fat.”
Hamburg added that reducing trans fats in the American diet could prevent 20,000 heart attacks and 7,000 heart-related deaths per year.
“One of the FDA’s core regulatory functions is ensuring that food, including all substances added to food, is safe,” said Michael Taylor, the FDA’s deputy commissioner for foods and veterinary medicine. “Food manufacturers have voluntarily decreased trans fat levels in many foods in recent years, but a substantial number of products still contain partially hydrogenated oils, which are the major source of trans fat in processed food.”
Packaged foods must list trans fats in their nutritional information, but only if there’s more than 0.5 gram per serving. This ruling, back in 2006, prompted many companies to eliminate or reduce use of the fats. Still, the potential of 0.5 grams per serving could add up over time and pose some heart risks.
“The artery is still half clogged,” CDC director Thomas R. Frieden told The Times. “This is about preventing people from being exposed to a harmful chemical that most of the time they didn’t even know was there.” The potential ban would place trans fats in the category of food additive, and their addition to food would not be allowed without specific approval – something that would be very hard to accomplish given the amount of evidence for their health risks.
Trans fats are made by hydrogenating (adding hydrogen atoms) to oils, which makes them sturdier at room temperature – this is why margarine is solid, rather than liquid, at room temperature.
Michael Bloomberg famously banned trans fats from restaurant foods, which forced fast-food chains and independent restaurants to turn to other options. The Institute of Medicine (IOM) has said that there are no known benefits and no safe level of trans fats for human consumption.
As research continues to raise concern about various food additives, there’s become increased pressure, often from the public, to ban their use. Last week, for example, Kraft said it would voluntarily omit certain yellow food dyes, which already require a warning label in Europe, from some – but just some – of its kids’ products.
If the proposed trans fat ban does pass – there’s a 60-day comment period before the FDA will move forward – you might want to run out and enjoy some trans fat-infused French fries or frozen pizza while you still can. They may soon be a thing of the past.