(Washington) - The process took more than two decades, but the FDA is finalizing a plan that will unveil a "ghost", potentially artery fat currently included in processed foods - foods that claim to be healthier than food Containing saturated fats.
Calling trans fat, is formed when vegetable oils are processed to make them more solid or more stable. And while some consumers even know of their existence, their use became very popular among food processors who were afraid to use saturated fats after these fats were linked to an increase in the risk of heart disease in the late 1960s. / p>
Studies now indicate that eating trans fat can result in the same health-related consequences that consume saturated fats. But under the current FDA regulations, this potential risk remains largely not revealed because food manufacturers are not required to reveal how many Fat processed foods such as cookies "with low fat" actually.
The proposed FDA regulation requires food manufacturers to delineate the amount of trans fat in their food, and would make it illegal for high trans fat products to say that they do not have or low cholesterol levels. The regulation, now in the final stages of refining, would also require processed food manufacturers include trans fat required by calculating the percentage of saturated fat contained in their products.
Foods That Help Fat Loss - FDA Plans to Unveil 'Phantom' Fat in Processed Foods
"It's a big step forward," says Mary Enig, PhD, one of the original scientists to study the effects of trans fat. But at the same time, she tells WebMD, the FDA would be wise to question whether the recommended label really explains the overall impact of trans fat.
enig wants trans fat to be listed in the main ingredients than being grouped with saturated fats. The proposed label, she says, implies that the FDA does not consider trans fat to be a true danger, although the research now "clearly show the opposite."
The petitioner for the current label is the Science Center in the Public Interest (CSPI), an organization that Enig also says it was guilty by increasing the use of trans fat in the first place. CSPI started the campaign against saturated fats, instating food processors to use trans fat instead, tells WebMD. But to say that the CSPI softened the proposed label for trans fat because this petition represented a change in his policy is "ridiculous," says Margo Wootan, PhD, a senior scientist in the consumer advocacy group.
"Our justification was based on the current understanding of trans fat consumers," says WebMD. The label had to be kept simple and easy to understand, because only about 10% of consumers understand the association between trans fat and the associated increase in the fat of the artery, Wootan says. The CSPI is now also pushing for the use of most recent alternatives for trans fat, it adds.
The industry is already researching and considering the adoption of several alternatives for trans fat, says Robert Reeves, president of the Shortening Institute and Edible Oils (ISEO). ISEO is the organization of trade representing around 90-95% of edible fats and oils produced in the US, but developing a product with the characteristics "that consumers desire and think acceptable will be difficult in the short term," says Reeves WebMD.
Nevertheless, it adds, the industry does not plan to combat the proposed FDA rule. "We came to believe that it would be best to have some kind of labeling [for trans fat]," he says the WebMD. "Emerging scientific evidence supports this."
- Fat trans, which is formed when vegetable oils are processed to make them more stable or solid, can be so dangerous To the heart saturated fats.
- Consumers may not know how many trans fat they are eating, since their listing is not required in food labels, but the FDA is proposing to change these regulations.
- Time, the popularity of trans fat increased between food processors seeking an alternative to unpopular saturated fats.
