The Food and Drug Administration made progress toward banning artificial trans fat in the United States’ food supply on Thursday. Once and for all, the artery-clogging food additive used to preserve freshness and thought to enhance flavor will be prohibited in all of our food.
Artificial trans fat mainly comes in the form of partially hydrogenated oils, and it can be found in things such as fast food, baking mixes, frozen pizza, microwave popcorn and margarine. Because the public has become aware of its side effects, the use of trans fat has become less common, but it is still a problem. For example, Long John Silver’s Breaded Clam Strips contain seven grams of trans fat per serving and Marie Callender’s Peanut Butter Cream Pie contains four grams per serving.
Studies show that trans fat not only increases our bad cholesterol levels, but also reduces the amount of good cholesterol causing an increased risk of coronary heart disease. And this is not the increased risk that is associated with everything else, but a significantly large increase in our chances of developing heart disease.
It seems like too much of anything causes something bad, but trans fat should hardly ever be consumed. The American Heart Association’s recommended daily allowance of trans fat is only two grams.
“There is no safe level of consumption of trans fat,” FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg said.
What’s even worse is that companies are not required to list the amount of trans fat per serving if it’s less than 0.5 gram. When we’re playing a game and the score to lose is only two, every little bit makes a difference. To protect yourself in the meantime, take a peek at the ingredient list — if there are partially hydrogenated oils listed, there is trans fat.
The FDA wants to move as fast as possible toward total prohibition, but there is a timeline it has to follow. There is currently a 60-day comment period open in order for companies to disclose how long they will need to reformulate products. The comments it receives will determine the next step to take toward phasing out trans fat, but it’s important that progress continues because the Center for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that removing trans fat could save approximately 7,000 lives a year.
“Given the public health impact, we want to move as quickly as we can,” said Michael Taylor, the Center’s deputy commissioner for foods.
The decision by the FDA is necessary, but it should never have come to this. People get mad when the government starts controlling things such as what can be put into food, but these same people need to start taking responsibility for their decisions. And not merely the decisions by consumers who purchase food containing trans fat, but also the decisions by manufacturers and restaurants that choose to use it to cut corners and reduce costs.
“Not only is artificial trans fat not safe, it’s not remotely necessary,” said Michael Jacobson, the Center for Science in the Public Interest’s executive director.
I understand corporations don’t want to produce expensive healthy food, but at least draw the line somewhere. The health of society should not be a cost companies are willing to incur when deciding how to maximize their profits.
People don’t seem to like an increase in government intervention, but if you’re not going to make responsible decisions that are better for the collective whole, then don’t complain when Uncle Sam steps in. The option to use partially hydrogenated oils is simply being eliminated from the ballot of choices because they don’t feel companies such as Long John Silver’s are making the smart decision. If you have a problem with the amount of government intervention, then make the smart choice.
