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FDA to ban trans-fats within 3 years
The FDA is finally rectifying one of their biggest failures ever -- trans fats. The FDA on Tuesday ruled that trans fat is not "generally recognized as safe" for use in human food.
"In many ways, trans fat is a real tragic story for the American diet," Nissen said. "In the 1950s and '60s, we mistakenly told Americans that butter and eggs were bad for them and pushed people to margarine, which is basically trans fat. What we've learned now is that saturated fat is relatively neutral -- it is the trans fat that is really harmful and we had made the dietary situation worse."
USA to ban partially-hydrogenated vegetable oil
According to multiple sources, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is set to ban partially-hydrogenated oil, a major source of trans-fats, which have been shown to cause heart disease. The ban will go into effect in 3 years.
The agency has proposed that partially hydrogenated oils, the source of trans fats, no longer be "generally recognized as safe."
That means companies would have to prove that such oils are safe to eat, a high hurdle given that scientific literature overwhelmingly shows the contrary. The Institute of Medicine has concluded that there is no safe level for consumption of them, a conclusion that the F.D.A. cited in its reasoning.
Partially hydrogenated oils are cheaper than saturated animal fats like butter, and for years were thought to be healthier. They are formed when liquid oil is treated with hydrogen gas and made solid. They became popular in fried and baked goods and in margarine. Crisco, originally marketed in the beginning of the 20th century, was the archetype, although it now contains no trans fat.
Official press release from the FDA:
In 2013, the FDA made a tentative determination that PHOs could no longer be considered GRAS [generally recognized as safe] and is finalizing that determination after considering public comments.
Since 2006, manufacturers have been required to include trans fat content information on the Nutrition Facts label of foods. Between 2003 and 2012, the FDA estimates that consumer trans fat consumption decreased about 78 percent and that the labeling rule and industry reformulation of foods were key factors in informing healthier consumer choices and reducing trans fat in foods. While trans fat intake has significantly decreased, the current intake remains a public health concern.
The oils were popularized in the 1950s, when it was thought that they would be healthier than saturated fats. Americans turned to products such as trans fat-laden margarine in droves after the federal government recommended a cutback in saturated animal fats.
Today, there is a broad scientific consensus that the oils contribute to heart disease and are linked to type two diabetes.
A young nutritionist at the University of Illinois discovered some of the first evidence that the oils could be unhealthy in 1957, when he found large amounts of the fat in the clogged arteries of patients who died of heart attacks. The scientist, Fred Kummerow, followed that discovery with decades of scientific papers, despite that his findings wouldn't be widely accepted until decades later.
In August 2013, with the help of San Diego attorney Gregory S Weston, Kummerow sued the FDA for its inaction, saying it had violated the New Deal-era legislation that granted the FDA authority over food safety. By November, the FDA had responded to the lawsuit by issuing the tentative ruling.
Original Submission
(Score: 3, Interesting) by c0lo on Wednesday June 17 2015, @03:32AM
Because you failed to find the papers?
(just curious, do you have a stake in a margarine operation?)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 17 2015, @04:06AM
We all have a stake in preventing pseudoscience from being presented as science. This requires vigilance and skepticism. I also know that, in general, medical research is of low quality. Since this is an area of research that most directly affects people's lives I consider that a great tragedy. I could care less about this specific thing and never looked into it until I saw this post. My initial guess is that this will most affect my life by making food more expensive.
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Wednesday June 17 2015, @04:24AM
Awww, my apologies for Poe-ing you.
If people would stop being worried about what the medical research has to say and apply common sense in regards to food and eating, the life would be much more enjoyable.
E.g. ... crispy bacon mmmm
(ah, so you don't have any stake in a margarine operation, I'll need to search others partners)
Can I tempt you into a transportation enterprise [soylentnews.org]?
Or would you be rather interested on the marketing side of it? [soylentnews.org]
(don't make me whoosh you, 'cause I'll do it next time)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 2) by tangomargarine on Wednesday June 17 2015, @06:51PM
Maybe people wouldn't keep getting whooshed if you weren't facetious all the time.
"Is that really true?" "I just spent the last hour telling you to think for yourself! Didn't you hear anything I said?"
(Score: 2) by sjames on Wednesday June 17 2015, @10:03AM
There has been a great deal of credible research to show the harm of trans-fats. As a result, ever since manufacturers were forced to list trans-fats on food lables, the public has already voluntarily cut trans-fat consumption by 78%. The remaining consumption appears to be divided between foods where the manufacturer is playing games with figures to skirt the labeling and cheap junk that is fairly obviously just slightly better for you than pan -fried roach baits.
It hasn't really driven food cost up and any minuscule savings will easily be consumed by the cost of your first stent.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 17 2015, @01:01PM
That may be so, but the semi-random sample I just checked last night was not impressive at all. Bad research and scholarship practices all over the place.